Up and Out

Change.

Yep.

Here it comes again... in the biggest and best way I could imagine at the moment. I'm leaving my current company an joining something bigger and absolutely better.

Yes, it's super scary. I know I'm qualified, but it's going to be a challenge. Challenges, for me, keep me motivated... If you don't take the risk, you don't get the reward.

I've been contemplating what kind of blog I'd like to start. Whether it's something random and all over the place with my various hobbies and adventures, or if I focus it on marketing, or if I just do something specific. I'm still not sure. I just want to do something... but the tedious nature of posting pictures and documenting things... well, that takes up a TON of time!

Looks like I'll be doing some corporate blogging for this company, stretching my limits once again. Project management skills need to be honed, a new industry needs to be learned... but I'm ready to take on the challenge. I think it's uber exciting and I can't wait for it to happen.

I gave notice today, so in two weeks... I'll be up and out. C'est la vie... and what a wonderful one it is ;)

10 [minus 1] Things On A Monday

What a Monday.
1. A roommate I had lined up to move in this past weekend just backed out. Now I've got to come up with $600 extra by Saturday. Great!
2. The boss-man is being extra moody today. We're already all stressed and under tight deadlines, not sure I need this today.
3. Art night with Ms. Artsy was canceled because of some stuff she's got to deal with. Would have been nice to chill with her and do art, but I'm almost somewhat relieved because of how stressed out I am.
4. On a better note, my ex roomie got engaged last week. Happy for him!
5. Things with me and the boy, we'll call him Mr. C, are amazing and I couldn't ask for anything to be better :)
6. Our offices flooded with sewage (yes, you read that right) last week, so everyone is just now getting back to it. Doesn't help with the already crunched timelines.
7. Was just in San Francisco last weekend/week. I went on an amazing bike ride around the bay and in to Sausilio and Tiburon. Met some amazing people there. Here's a pic:

8. I absolutely, positively LOVE my graphic designer. He is frickin amazing at what he does and somehow deciphers what I mean when I verbally tell him all the crazy stuff I want to do. :)
9. I've also been going to dance classes with one of Mr. C's friends. We've been having a fantastic time with it and I'm sore for the next day after (which is a GREAT thing!)


That's all I've got... gotta get back at it!

PS - It's been, uhhh, interesting to start this whole blog thing again. Just so you know :)

The Boy

My first week at the new job was a lot. It was exhilarating and exhausting all in one. I'm really excited about it, actually. This company has its ish together and I was actually handed some marketing materials when I arrived (can I tell you how many companies - BIG COMPANIES - that don't have that?!). It made my day. I can say I made the right decision to join this team.

This week has also been full of the boy I told you about here. We went out on the boat last Sunday, hung out Monday night, he cooked dinner for me on Wednesday, and invited me over when I got done with Art class with Mrs. Artsy on Friday night. That's a lot of seeing each other for one week.

He's extremely sweet... keeping me guessing but still reassuring what his feelings are towards me. He says things like "you know, you're pretty amazing. I might just have to keep you around." It makes me smile and think about what it is that he wants.... which is where I get skeptical.

Yes, skeptical.

This amazing guy who has his shit together, who is witty and smart, attractive and manly, and treats me very well... I'm skeptical about him. What. The. Fuck?

As part of the 'me' that I am, I over-analyze these things. I think about my past and what kinds of things my exes have said before they screwed me over. I think about their actions, their so-called 'feelings' and all the things they did before they cheated on me or told me that they really didn't feel that way.

It takes everything wonderful that the boy has said or done and puts it in a little compartment and lets it rot there because I don't necessarily 'believe' him. How fucked up is that? I'm taking very careful steps... very planned out, precise words and actions. I can't just let go emotionally.

So, here I am. This wonderful guy... who is completely 'in' to me... and I'm having trouble letting him in.

Maybe this is a good thing, being that it's only been a month and a half that we've been dating. I dunno.

So... there. You've listened to me blurt out everything that's on my mind. Once again ;)

To give you an update on the anxiety - it's gone again, thank God! I cannot tell you how horrible I feel when that aspect of ridiculousness pops up again. So, hooray!

oh, and ps. I found an apartment!! Now, I just need to find a roommate!

10 Things [contributing to my big A]

Even more anxiety? No way. Ugh. I'm so over it!

1. Friday was my last day with the consulting company. It was bittersweet, but we went to happy hour after we met up for our 'wrapping everything up' meeting. Turns out, the wine bar we were at was filming an episode of NFL Wives (VH1). I'm not sure anyone watches that show, well, maybe Carrie, but I'll be one one of the episodes in the background. Kind of exciting!

2. Monday, I start the new job. I'm really excited about it - getting to meet new people, working on something new and something stable, and just the excitement of a new job overall. Now if this anxiety would just go away, I'll be in tip-top shape :)

3. I'm also trying to find a place to move to. My roomie here is moving to El Paso for 6 months with his job, so he can't move with me (sad!) but I'll be able to find another roommate and hopefully it'll work out as well as this one has. All of the whole finding a place, moving, and getting another roommate - well, that's stressful. ALSO needing to sell some extra things that I have lying around. If I get enough, might get a new living room set or TV or something. Who knows?!

4. This month, I'll have another credit card paid off (thank god). I have been pouring money into those cards and it's finally starting to show.

5. I have been dating a boy... and he's really quite fantastic. We've gone on 6 dates, so I guess it's alright for me to tell you about him. I don't like blogging about all of them, because, well, there have been a lot of 1st and 2nd dates but nothing beyond that... and, I dunno, it would have been great to write it all down, but seeing that many stories that come to an abrupt end is depressing.

Anyway, this boy and I have great chemistry together - I think the challenge is mutual (it is rare that I find someone, much less a guy, that challenges me) and we have a lot of fun together. Tall, ridiculously cute, and he likes me... who would have thought? I'm just trying to be extremely patient - and go with the flow. I don't need ANOTHER thing changing in my life right now ;)

6. Tonight, I scrapbooked a few pages in my Italy album. It was nice to pull that stuff out again. My mom had it out while she was here, so it was a little inspirational. I still have a long way to go, but it's progress nontheless.

7. I walked into a bridal boutique this AM to get measured for Rae's wedding in October. Turns out, the lead time to order this dress is 10-12 weeks... and I don't have that. Shit! Rush ordering makes it available only days before the wedding, and I'll already be in ATL at that point... start adding up the bill for rush and shipping now. I tried the dress on anyway - and, wouldn't you know... the sample they had at the boutique fit me perfectly... AND it was the right color for the wedding. The sash wasn't the "banana" color she wanted, but it's a creme, and since I'm the Maid of Honor, she thought it might look okay. What are the frickin' odds? $130 bucks later, scratch that off the list!!

8. I booked my tickets home for the wedding the other day. $190 round trip isn't bad. :) Now, just need a rental car and I'm set. Bachelorette party plans are also in the works. That feeling of 'accomplishment' is awesome.

9. Last night I went out with some friends that I hadn't gone out with in a long time. It was a fantastic time, as usual, and it made me realize that I have been sheltering myself with Fran. Since she and I aren't really hanging out much anymore (for other reasons), it was kind of refreshing to know that I could still go out and have a good time with some other people. I was drunk. Really, really drunk, though. Eh. What's a few drunk texts anyway ;)

10. Ready for what's next. Ready to shed some excess baggage (or so to speak) and enter the next phase of my life. This job is the first step in that direction. I'm stoked. (oh, and Carrie is moving so much closer than Hawaii in less than a month!!!!! OMG, SO excited!!)

That's it for now. Now do you see why I've got so much anxiety!? ;)

Introspection

As of late, I've been partying. A lot. It has to do with my friendship with Fran, that's for sure. I want to settle in to some dating relationships, but I have way too much fun. So, for me, I'm going to discuss several aspects of my life in the following paragraphs. Hopefully you'll read and offer up something good in the advice arena. If not, oh well.

Friendships
The friendships I've made in Texas have been solid, to an extent. I feel like I have good friends here, but they're not the best in the world. My bestie lives in Hawaii and I don't have much face-to-face with her, but she's there for me, she doesn't judge, and she's an amazing person. Fran, on the other hand, is my partner in crime. And crime it is. We're a lot a like, but she pushes the envelope farther than I do. Personality differences, I suppose. I wish there was a way to be completely anonymous about stories she and I have. If so, I'd write day and night. Some good, some bad, some scandalous, and some absolutely ridiculous. Book material, that good. I'm jaded when it comes to friendships at the moment. Opening up about this is not going to be my forte.

Relationships
There are many guys in my life at the moment. They're all incorporated into the perfect man. This always happens when I'm single... I keep a roster of a few that sit on the bench. I call them in to play when they're needed and it's a win/win situation, for me at least. One is my go-to for dates and social outings, another for fun outdoor activities, another for awesome conversation. Pretty soon, one will start to stand out and all the others will fade into the background.

Work
I've written many posts on this subject and nothing has changed. Right now, I have 4 options/offers on the table for my taking. I just have to make the ridiculously hard decision on which company and position it's going to be. This is one of those career-defining moments. I hope I make the right one...

Roommate
I'm actually incredibly happy with my roomie right now. He's become better since he got rid of the girl he was dating. Maybe I was just annoyed by all of that, or maybe it just changed him slightly. Who knows? He's really chill, doesn't invade my space... so what if he eats all the eggs? ;) haha!

Travel
I'm itching. Severely. I would love nothing more than to just jaunt around Europe for months and months, to live there, to do something fun like that. I'm talking still with the company I used to work for on the project out there. We'll see if that happens. If I get an offer to go there, I will hop on a plane tomorrow. You only get those types of opportunities once in a lifetime.

Family
I miss them dearly. My little sisters are so cute. They're learning to have better conversations on the phone. One of them likes to tell me jokes and the other one is learning how to leave voicemails. Absolutely adorable. I can't wait until they're teenagers - just a few more years. They're coming to visit at the end of the summer. I cannot wait for this. It's going to be so much fun. Now, I just need to get my brother over here....

That's about it, I guess. I'm feeling pretty somber at the moment. More apathetic than usual... but that's alright, I suppose. We all go through these moments in our lives. Big decision times, lots of crazy-ness.... I guess that's why it's called an introspection.

Now you know. ;)

4 fun things... before I go.

1. Kaskade will be here on June 19. Omg, the anticipation.
2. Carrie will be here even sooner than that - on Monday. We're going to have an amazing week.
3. I've been running a lot lately (not this week, but previous ones). I've run so much, it baffles even me. Kudos.
4. I have been contemplating writing a book again. I think I have a big story to tell. It just feels like an incredibly long and huge process.

In demand.

You know when you were a kiddo, and your mom said "I've had it to HERE with that..." and you knew she was serious about 'knocking it off'. Well, yah, that's where I'm at with the OG. Ms. Artsy and I jokingly say that most of the people around here are aliens because there's no way their actions or thought processes are normal and/or rational.

Anyway, there are some client projects at the CC that may come to fruition which would make it possible for me to be full time there. A few really cool, career enhancing projects to boot.

Also, as I'm sure I've said something about before... The agency we work with on the website for OG has also offered me an account management position there.

Today, I received an email from a restaurant chain with an "are you interested" and a job description attached. It'd be working directly under the Director of Marketing and sounds like it would be right up my alley. I'm going to talk to her just to see what it's about and to keep my options open. Again, it looks like I'm still "in demand" which is great news.

Now, the only hard part would be leaving Ms. Artsy behind. Oh how I love our walks to get good coffee and her insight to life in general.

I'm just over it with the OG. I might choose to keep my silence about the daily bullshit from this place, or I might choose to open up about it. We'll see. I feel like they hire people (not referring to me) to do specific, specialized things for them yet don't trust what they do. It's really fucked up.

That's my beef for today... bittersweet, for sure.

10 Things... just an update

1. Yesterday, Kaskade's new CD came out. Ummm... Ah-May-ZING. It is ridiculous how he can continue to put out new albums all the time, all are different from each other, and all are absolutely delicious.

2. Today was an interesting day. As I was leaving the OG, the CFO stopped me in the parking lot and told me he wanted me there full time. I jokingly told him I wanted 100K a year... he chuckled. It's interesting, because I've heard a lot of talk about my position turning full time quickly, but haven't been officially offered anything yet. Full time was the original intent of this job anyway... hmmm.

3. I worked at CC this afternoon in the same office as my boss, which is extremely odd. I'm able to work remotely, but for project we were working on this was the best option. I didn't leave there until after 9pm tonight and I'm exhausted. I was supposed to go to one of our clients to be "introduced" but we needed to focus more on this. They want to (potentially) hire me for 20 hours a week.... we'll see. ;)

4. I did about an hour of my Rosetta Stone last night... I might do some more tonight.

5. Saffie got her first taste of Texas last night as well. She's yet to go outside here but I think she likes it. She's gained a lot of weight being inside because she doesn't get the exercise she's used to. Hopefully, with the ponds and such, she'll do well out there. It might get a little too hot though.

6. This weekend should be pretty relaxing. Fran will be out of town all weekend and I'll have it to myself. Right now, the forecast calls for rain and thunderstorms from Friday to Monday, but I hope that changes. 60% chance. Oy! I need some pool-time!!!!

7. I was craving chinese food tonight. I probably shouldn't have splurged because I've been doing really well budget-wise as well as diet-wise... but it's been a long and stressful week! I have had the urge to work out every day this week but something or the other has kept me from it!!

8. I've set up a nice little schedule to pay off my debt. It involves about $1000 a month in payments, but I'll feel oh-so-free once I do it. :) I may even try to speed up the process by getting a weekend gig. If I could even make an extra $500 a month by working just Saturdays, that would be awesome!

9. The roomie is a LOT less annoying than he used to be. I think it has something to do with him breaking up with his girlfriend. She was ridiculous. He's much more fun without her :)

10. I. Am. Exhausted. Yet, I love what I do and continue to have that drive I need... it's such a great feeling knowing that I made the right decision in life. And to think, I made it at 21 years old. ;) So happy....

10 [crazy] Things so far this week. It's only Wednesday.

1. Monday was very uneventful. I talked to Number 12 for a little while. He's a good kid. I also ran 3 miles like I posted earlier.
2. Yesterday, that was a different story. I had anxiety all morning. Things weren't going well at OG. Inconsistency kills me when I try to work on a brand. What's worse than inconsistency? No desire to ever become consistent. Yah.
3. I showed up to OG at the ass crack of dawn because my boss called a meeting. He didn't show up until 9 am. Furious.
4. The last blog post certainly happened (and I just noticed that it was posted at 9:11 pm last night. Freaky.)
5. I saw Lie To Me, episodes 1 and 2 last night and I believe I am now hooked. Awesome show!
6. Because I couldn't get in to the gym, I roller bladed for 3 miles and Ran about 2 miles. It. Felt. Awesome.
7. This morning, I had the big launch meeting for my project at OG. My boss is, ummm, yah. He's outta control. He suggested that we upload Porn to our site so we get more hits. UNprofessional. (the actual conversation was much more shocking/embarrassing, but that's the jist.)
8. My Rosetta Stone en francais arrived today. Hooray!
9. I ran another 2 miles today and worked out in the gym. Starting to take a nice shape :) Hooray!
10. Happy Cinco de Mayo!!!

Face-d

Weird stuff happens in and around my office at OG. I mean, this was kinda weird... and Ms. Artsy who sits next to me told me about her run-ins at the Subway and AT&T around the corner... I just try to observe as much as I can for the sheer entertainment factor.

Thursday, I had to stay at the office longer than usual, which included the time where by body usually decides it's hungry. I left the office, went to subway, and proceeded to order a lovely little sandwich. While they put it in the little microwave to melt the cheese, I glanced around the place.

As I turned about 90 degrees toward the window, I noticed this lady sitting there by herself after eating her lunch. She pulls out a pocket mirror...

... and starts plucking her chin hairs.

W. T. F?!

IN public... AT the table where she just ate... ABSOLUTELY not ok.

Heavy Hitting

Right now, it’s a pivotal point in my career. The OG wants to offer me a full time position. The Consulting Co. (CC) would LOVE to offer me something full time but isn’t quite sure how she can work it at the moment. And an ad-agency that’s working on our website at the OG wants to hire me full time. I get weekly calls from recruiters who are interested in giving me project work. I’m in high demand.

In talking with my boss at CC, she offered up an awesome alternative solution. One of our major clients is a Consumer Packaged Goods company and they’re looking for a transitional person and/or someone to work 20 hours a week. It would be an amazing transition for me in my career. This would put me on a path to do what I’ve wanted to do (work on a major brand) and lead me into the big giants like Pepsi Co, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, and Frito Lay.

I also had a conversation today with the lady who is the international liaison for the worldwide portion of the company I worked for in Atlanta. I told her my project idea for the international partners and she thought it was great! She also thought it would be a good time to bring it up to the 'powers that be' because of the company's position at the moment and the timing of their next global meeting. This could be promising...

I’m on a mission.

I’m dead set on being the best I can be.

Going out and partying, living it up, blowing money on going out (and putting on the pounds), doing reckless and wild things – that’s not me. And that’s what I’ve been portrayed as to those that don’t know me well. My (not at work) friends don’t know the giving me. They don’t know the domesticated, creative, professional, talented me. All they know is the fun-loving, drunk, isn’t afraid of anything me… and that’s scary.

So, tonight, I didn't go out. I stayed in and talked to a boy. (that's so 9th grade of me...) I actually enjoyed this Friday night, too. Tomorrow, I'll work out, do some chores, and take care of some things. Hopefully it'll be sunny so I can lay by the pool a little. It'll be a nice day of relaxation before all of the heavy hitting I've got lined up for next week!

10 Things I did today

I have been incredibly productive today...

1. I got SO much done at OG this AM. Good, cause we're launching NEXT WEEK!!
2. I worked out for 45 mins. It. felt. awesome!!
3. Bought Rosetta Stone in French. I've been meaning to do this for a while but have been scared about the $600 it costs. Yesterday, my boss told me she'd pay me overtime for all the work I did last week. Thank you kind lady!!
4. Bought a frame for my diploma and one for the picture in the living room that broke during my move. Michael's had an awesome coupon... 40% off all frames, and an extra 25% off after that. Holla!
5. I got this girl's gift that I ordered from expressionery.com. She works with me at OG and she's getting married next week/leaving the company. So sad! Cute gift, though!
6. I made a delish dinner with rice, green beans, and broccoli. Yum-O!
7. I clipped coupons after getting the newspaper... save that money!
8. I called the court in GA and in OH about the biatch that owes me money. Turns out, need to sue her in OH. Not what I was hoping to hear. :(
9. Printed the pictures that Fran has been anxiously awaiting.
10. And signed up to do some volunteer work. :)

All in all, a great day! It was a much better day than the past two, so that's a good thing. I've been dealing with thoughts about Michael - and they've finally subsided. Hooray!

Now, go have yourself a productive little day!

OG

The oil and gas company (now going to be referred to as OG) has brought about some thought lately. This morning, in particular, there was a bit of riff-raff with my boss. The dynamic here is overwhelming sometimes. Men get pissy, some get special treatment because they belong to our parent company, they get heated and yell at each other… you know, the usual. (wtf??)

The point is, I’ve never before seen people act like this – especially not in a work setting. I worked in the Consulting industry prior to this and I must say this is a huge change of culture for me.

Looking at this job as a project, and only that, has given me the ability to not get upset if things don’t go according to plan – ANY plan, that is. Boss decided that he wanted some note cards made. He passed it to one lady, she passed it to another, then another, until it finally landed on my desk.

More than happy to and capable of carrying out this ridiculously easy task, I asked which logo he’d like on them – and he flipped his shit. He mentioned that he wanted a printer that we already have a relationship with to do it. Problem is, he won’t give me the contact there – or even tell me where “there” is. So, rather than giving me the details he just holds on to it. Now, he just says that he wants to “slap a logo” on it and call it a day. That’s going to look awesome with the rest of the materials that have yet to be developed. Way to go with consistency, big guy.

This company has gone against every. single. marketing concept I know. Marketing departments plan for their year well in advance. There’s a strategy in place, a plan, a budget… all these things that make it successful. Not at OG. We fly by the seat of our pants here and it’s going to set us up for failure, for sure.

On another note, the CFO wants me to “meet his son” for some reason. I guess he’s a few years older than me and in to web design. Since I’m a marketing person, he thinks we would “get along great”. Either that or he just sees the direction I’m headed and wants to capitalize on that for his son. Successful, career-driven, hard-working woman. Set it up!

Google-r

I am a googler. I use gmail, blogger (of course), picasa, adsense, google desktop, calendar, google voice, fast flip... and many other google functions in my daily life. I just love google applications.

Today, at the oil and gas co., I was discussing with my boss the importance of an analytics program behind our website. I, being the marketer that I am, find it necessary to track visitors on your site, find out how they use your site, how long they're there - and what they see. This can help you in the long run with adjustments to drive more traffic. Not only that, but google will actually suggest some changes to your site to make it optimal for search engines. It all makes sense to me.

He agrees. (although he's not 'technically' a marketing professional)

Then he launched some schpiel to me about how he didn't want to pay for back end analytics, that it just costs too much money, etc. etc. As an avid google fan, my first response was to suggest Google Analytics. It's free, and it sets you up for good times with other google applications later. Win, win.

He proceeds to tell me that google isn't the only analytics tool out there. I think I stopped listening at that point. He doesn't know what he's talking about. In my world, it is. :)

It's new laptop day!!!

Yep. It sure is!! In fact, yesterday should have been new laptop day but the crazies at FedEx decided they'd better bypass my door altogether and just leave it at the office. Had I not tracked this little sucker down last night, I wouldn't have even known it was sitting there waiting for me to bring it to life.

I mean, I DO live up 3 flights of stairs, but you sign up for that when you become a Fed Ex guy, in my opinion.

Either way, I'm SUPER excited about this laptop. I'm able to get work done SO much faster with such a large screen and fast computer. I'm able to go to the coffee shop around the corner (which I absolutely ADORE) and chill with the music and hot tea. MMMmmm.

I have so many funny stories that I always want to blog about but never seem to have the time.

This morning, I was talking with a coworker. She was facing me (away from the window) and I was facing her (looking out the window). Since our office building is overlooking the highway on one side, I was able to see a man on a bicycle out of the window. He looked like santa claus and his bike was loaded with junk. It was sad, because he was riding near the highway and that's super dangerous. But it was also pretty funny, because he looked super determined to make it. Poor guy!

This weekend will probably be uneventful. My best friend out here broke up with his girlfriend the other day. The one he moved here for. So he's moving back. And I'm super sad about it. I loved hanging out with him! Hell, with THEM! They're so much fun. Well, they were. Anyway, very sad moment.

But alas, it's new laptop day - so I'm happy about that! And really tired. So, umm, goodnight!

10 Things about work (well, and other stuff, too)

Oh bloggety-blog. How little time I have for you these days. I literally jumped right back into the game. Projects here and there - lots of *fun* stuff going on.

1. I've ordered a new computer. I can't wait for it to get here... Friday's the day. Can't wait! :) (yah, that's NEXT Friday... ugh!)
2. The consulting co. job is fabulous! I'm learning SO much and she's impressed with my work. I can see this one having a lot of potential. Only drawback, I'm a "consultant" therefore have to pay my own taxes. Not the fun part! My real title is Marketing Specialist. Fitting, I suppose.
3. There is SO much going on at the oil and gas co. I think there is a ton of room for me to "shine" and get stuff done. It's easy when the projects just present themselves to you. Much harder when you have to dig for them.
4. Carrie is coming here in June. That week can't get here fast enough!
5. Pretty much addicted to these sites: www.textsfromlastnight.com and www.postsecret.com Heh. In what little free time I have
6. My first 'gossip' lunch is tomorrow. I got a little preview today - and, let me tell you, this is going to be interesting. I've gotta figure out how this chick gets the whole "password protected" shizzle. I have a feeling this is gonna be juicy!
7. I've been working out for the past two weeks. The gym is really close (at the clubhouse of our apt. complex) and there's never anyone there. It makes me feel really good and I am building a few muscles. Hooray!
8. I need a good office plant. Anyone have any good suggestions? Something that doesn't take a lot of maintenance but is pretty and kinda big - my cube is humongous.
9. I caught up with a few people from my past today. It's been good catching up with people. I've had to wait until I actually had stuff to tell them. Could you imagine if I just told them I sat in my pj's watching Desperate Housewives all day? Haha!
10. Speaking of Desperate Housewives, I'm hooked. Not quite sure how I never watched this show before. But I can't wait to watch this show. Awesome!

Anyway, that's about it. I have some funny stories to tell. Like, when I was driving down the road the other day and a creepy crawly lookin thing just slid down from somewhere in my car. Freaked me out. Literally.

Yah. Good times.

10 Things for today!

1. Holy shit this industry is COMPLICATED. I thought Consulting was a hard concept to grasp when I worked for that company. Oil and gas is absolutely ridiculously confusing - especially with a company whose org structure is in shambles at the moment. My first few days were pretty awesome. I found out today that we have casual Fridays - that means jeans!! Holla! I love it so far! :)
2. I got my shoes in. They are amazing! I JUST got them yesterday, so I was able to wear them today. Super cute and went great with my outfit today. Certainly stylin'!
3. I worked out today, which was nice. 20 min. walking on the treadmill, 20 minutes with the weights, and 20 mins elyptical with weights (talk about a balancing act!) But I feel great! I wish I felt this great BEFORE I went to work out, then I'd do it all the time!!
4. I've not been following the Fat Smash Diet BUT I have been eating fruits and vegetables as snacks instead of the usual bread with hummus or something. I'm a relatively healthy eater, so hopefully I'll lose a little bit of weight. I'm kinda scared to cause my entire wardrobe is pretty expensive and I've been the same size for quite a while. As long as I continue to feel healthy, I guess I'm okay with it!
5. I've been watching Desperate Housewives and am absolutely HOOKED now! That show is crazy good... and soap net shows 3 episodes a day. Gotta love DVR!
6. Borders was having their crazy good sale on calendars - they always do this a few weeks into the new year. It's about the time that I go in to buy mine and they're only 4 bucks a piece! Huzzah! I got a magnetic words calendar for my office, a day planner for all of my projects, and a Texas Travel calendar for my room.
7. I thought my job was going to give me a laptop (because I asked) and then when I showed up, I have this desktop. It's great, don't get me wrong, but I was hoping for portability - and for multiple use, really - and I didn't get it! I understand, however, because they gave me THE computer with all of the design software and a gazillion other things on it. I AM in Marketing, I guess that is to be expected!
8. I get Taste of Home magazine every month and there's a recipe I'm DYING to try! It's Tomato Tortellini Soup... looks AMAZING! I'd link it, but it says you have to be a subscriber to the magazine to see it. Boo!
9. Now that I have somewhat of a "fixed" income every month, I can start on the David Ramsey plan that I read a few months ago. It's gonna be great to pay off my car, student loans, and credit cards.
10. Texas weather is pretty much awesome right now... it's been 70-ish the entire week. :) LOVE it!

The first day of the rest of my life...

So tomorrow is it. I start my new job at the oil and gas company and I couldn't be more excited! I talked to my boss today and he's already got four meetings lined up for me this week. I can't wait to get started!!

Another thought on the whole pub thing... I believe there's got to be a reason why it's not working out. So, I think I'm going to switch gears a bit. I may see if I can get a part time gig working at a store in the mall... like Express or Banana. The only problem I can see is spending my entire paycheck there instead of using it to pay off what I want to pay off... :)

Here goes... to the re-start of my career! I've got the hottest suit to wear tomorrow.... Hooray!

Randomness

Well, I haven't heard anything back from the company I'm "supposed" to start at on Monday. My thoughts... I probably won't start ON Monday. I'll probably work my 20 hours for the week maybe Wednesday thru Friday or something - cause of the delay in getting all of my stuff through HR. Bummer, cause I was hoping for a fresh Monday morning. I have my outfits for the week picked out and everything!

I went for that interview at the pub yesterday and met with the Training manager from Corporate. She said that the GM was sick and not able to make the interview but "loved" my personality and thought I would be a great fit at the pub. (Me too, duh!) So she re-scheduled my interview with the GM until today at 3pm. I went in to meet the guy (SUPER hungover from last night's shenanigans nonetheless) and the guy was 20 minutes late. Decided to make a 3pm run to the bank. Who does that?

Anyway, I wait for 20 minutes for him to come back and make me wait another 10 minutes for him to get ready for me. Our conversation was approximately 6 minutes long. He did the same thing the other people I talked to did and basically confirmed everything I'd written on the application when I filled it out. He wasn't thrilled about my "nights and weekends only" availability - so that might cost me the "you're hired". I am not a full time restaurant-er anymore, so sorry...

He said he'd call by the end of the week but I'm not gonna hold my breath.

I still have the meeting scheduled with the marketing consulting company on Monday about project work (which will hopefully start next week). It'll give me something fun to do and be a part of. Also, I met with a guy about a company he wants to start and he needs marketing help. I'm not sure I fully believe in what he wants to do - or, let's say, I'm not SUPER passionate about it, but I might be willing to help.

Other than that, I watched the top 10 bridges in the world and stared in awe at the Sydney bridge. OMG that thing is beautiful! I think I want to take a trip to Australia... definitely want to climb the bridge!! Putting that on the list of to-do's one day.

Ok - so random. But that's how life goes! Hopefully I'll get started working soon enough and everything will be a-okay. Or at least somewhat okay! ;)

Marketing Coordinator

Yep. That's what my new title will be once I start at the job I was offered today. This is the oil and gas company that I interviewed with before I left for Atlanta for Christmas.

He called and offered me the part time position (20 hours a week) that is supposed to turn into a full time one. They hadn't had anything figured out about how much it would pay, what the role would be, etc. In fact, they didn't even interview anyone else. I met the guy, he thought I would be a great asset to his team, and he wanted to hire me. (it just took frickin forever!)

This part time position is going to pay a pretty penny. If it were full time, it would be exactly what I was hoping to make starting out. Unfortunately, there are no benefits yet, but I know those will come.

I'm super excited now because the whole part time thing will give me the ability to work on other Marketing projects and work at a pub making a lot of extra money on the weekends. Maybe I'll find somewhere to volunteer at - marketing related or not.

Celebration is called for. Can't wait!!

Go me!!

10 Things going on at the moment...

A lot of eventful stuff has happened this week.

1. I quit at the restaurant yesterday. I just couldn't do it anymore. Today was my "One Year" with the company, and it made me sick to my stomach. Last year around this time, I knew it would only be to get me through school. School ended in July. I'm done with this bs. :) I don't make hardly any money there (because of the shifts I have) and I hate it. So I quit. Saturday night is my last shift. Hooray!
2. I got a cocktail job at this SUPER busy bar downtown. The guy is supposed to call me back tomorrow and let me know what day I start training. He wants to train me before I go to Atlanta for a week so I can come back and 'hit the ground running'... I'm all for that. Hooray for money!!
3. I've started to gain some weight and I am NOT happy about it. I think it's the crazy lifestyle of having to starve for 9 hours per shift and then gorge on food when I can finally eat. Thank God that's done!
4. I am going to go to a church this weekend. I think I might try this HUGE one down here that's like the one I went to in Atlanta. I have some reservations about it, but we'll see. It also depends on what time I'm done on Saturday night closing the bar, too.
5. I have another networking meeting next week. Should be interesting. This lady is a consultant and has her own consulting company. One of her clients is a place I'm looking to get in to. We'll see what happens with that.
6. I met a really good contact last week and he has a position open at his company. He says it's part time (for now) that will turn into a full time position. I'm SUPER excited about it because it's EXACTLY what I want to do and he'll pay what I'm looking for as well. He wants me to meet the rest of his department - and go from there. I'm thinking this is all going to happen very quickly once I get in the door!
7. Christmas is FAST-approaching. My trip to Atlanta is going to be here before I know it. I have some shopping done, but not everything. We have Christmas AND 3 family Birthdays. My bank account suffers every year because of it!
8. I can't wait to be in Atlanta for a week. It's somewhat stressful because I'll have to rent a car (for whatever reason my family isn't that family where you can just 'borrow the car' for an afternoon, but whatever) and that's EXPENSIVE. Plane ticket, plus play money while i'm there... oy! Stressful!
9. Hopefully all this job stuff will work out and I can have some money in the bank, pay everything off, ya know - all that GOOD stuff I've been waiting for. Speaking of banks, Michael hooked me up with a friend of a friend who has an Assistant Branch Manager position open at a bank. Not sure what I feel about that - I don't know that I want to get into the banking business...
10. I think I'm going to do a huge painting for the wall in the living room. I need to get a canvas and get some cool fabric. Then, I can paint the fabric (on a larger scale) onto the canvas. Sounds cool... not sure if it'll actually happen!