Oh Happy Day

WELL, IM TYPING THIS ON MY PHONE AND FOR SOME STRANGE REASON, I CAN ONLY TYPE IN ALL CAPS. NO, I AM NOT YELLING. YES, I AM EXCITED. PLEASE FORGIVE MY TECHNOLOGICALLY CHALLENGED BRAIN FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO CHANGE IT!

WELL I GOT A VERY IMPORTANT PHONE CALL ON MONDAY. I HAVE ACCEPTED A CONDITIONAL JOB OFFER AS A 911 OPERATOR FOR THE CITY OF GILBERT, AZ. EARL AND I GO BACK JUNE 12 FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL AND MEDICAL EVALS. HOPEFULLY I PASS EVERYTHING-WHICH I SHOULD-AND I WILL HAVE A START DATE. PERHAPS EARL AND I WILL MAKE A DECISION ON WHERE TO LIVE AS WELL.

SO THAT'S MY NEWS OF THE WEEK!

ps-now my phone spontaneously isn't in all caps. Go figure!

Paradise Shmaradise

Ugh. I'm sorry. I have to vent.

This won't be pretty. You don't even have to read. I just have to get this off my chest.

Let me preface this by saying that I like my job. I like what I do. But the people person who is my direct supervisor makes me hate/dread coming to work.

I know I should change my attitude towards this person. I know I shouldn't let them get to me.

But I don't/do.

This person asked me to recall a late call from a week ago and write an incident report about it. I don't remember it very well. What I do remember is assigning the unit, telling the crew to take the toll road vs side streets as the call was a long distance.  After that I don't remember a darn thing. How am I supposed to write an incident report about something I don't remember?

And why the heck did this person wait until 545pm to bring up the topic when I'd been sitting here since 7am? That's probably the most frustrating. And to bring it up when my partner was out of the room so there were no "witnesses" to the conversation. If I didn't know better, I'd say that my sup was either really stupid or really smart to plan it out this way.

Whatever. This is my motivation to get a new job. I know I said in my interview that I'm looking for a career and to set down roots and that the cost of living is so much less in Arizona and that Earl and I have potential to grow out there. But really, at the heart of it all, I can't stand my boss. I can't stand the way they DON'T manage the dispatchers. The fact that they would rather play video games on their laptop before noon instead of working, or the fact that no respect is given to us dispatchers, or they constantly say how much they hate dispatchers and crew members and his wife and kid, and women, and everyone on the face of the earth. Why on earth would anyone want to work for a person like that?

I don't. I'm working on my out. And I'm in limbo. That's why I'm so anxious to hear back. If they say no, then I need to start working on other options. Like becoming an instructor at the barn. And pushing to get Earl hired there too.

That's all. That's my rant. If you made it this far, bless you. I'm sorry to go off like that. I just couldn't swallow anymore crap today.

I guess I need to remember the saying, "Keep Calm and Carry On." Cuz I'm definitely not calm when I'm at work.

Just Another Day in Paradise

As I typed that title the song by Phil Vassar came to mind. Now I'm singing it in my head. If I sang it out loud my partner would probably wonder what was wrong with me.

The sun is shining. The air is warm. And I am stuck inside.

But it's okay. I spent the last two days outside with the horses. I even got some sun (my shoulders and arms are currently pink, not lobster red like Earl thinks) and really enjoyed the weather. And I get to go back again tomorrow!

I haven't heard back from Arizona. I know that they won't leave me hanging. I just have to be patient a little bit longer. It's killing me to not know one way or the other. But this is a growth opportunity for me regardless of the outcome. If the answer is to come back out for the next step, I'm super stoked. If it isn't, I won't lie, I'll be super bummed.

Earl and I have our apartment search narrowed to approximately 4 places. We are also toying with the idea of perhaps getting a condo or town home. Not sure if that one will happen, but you get a whole lot more bang for your buck.

Keep your fingers crossed that I hear back sometime soon!

Busy, Busy, Dizzy...

Wow, I think I'm losing my mind!

That of course, implies that I had a mind to lose in the first place.

Any whozit, I'm at work today (shocker, I know) and I feel a little overwhelmed with life at the moment. In response to my previous post, I know now that my background check is moving along. My investigator call my work/employment references this week, so while I still feel as though I am in limbo, I feel more confident with this "status report."

I have taken on a new task at the barn this week. I started a blog. You can visit it at www.backbaytrc.blogspot.com if you so desire. I'd be stoked if you would follow it and share it with your friends. I'm just trying to create more awareness of the center. And a blog is so much easier to update and add pictures and it's very user friendly!!

I did it because I want people to know who we are and what we do. There's even a link on the blog that will send you to the "official" website if someone felt inclined to donate via PayPal.

If you have any suggestions on how to improve the look of the blog, PLEASE let me know!! I intend to do posts on the volunteers, the instructors, and do like a student of the month type deal. Even do a post on horse terminology. I want this to be a place where the students and their families can go to see themselves, the other kids, and really make it feel like a family. Also, I want them to learn. Like have one post dedicated to different types of tack, another to major horse anatomy, riding terms, etc.

I just hope that I have the stamina to maintain it!

But I am open to suggestions!

3 Weeks and Counting

Today marks 3 weeks since I was in Arizona last.

I assume that since I have not heard back from my background investigator that things are going well. It's not like I have any skeletons in my closet. I don't really even have a background.

I really hope that I hear back from them this week. I may or may not be checking my e-mail every 5-10 minutes. I'm trying to be patient.

I didn't get Newport. I'm #16 on the eligibility list. Not too shabby. But Earl and I have come to accept that we will be moving this year, it's just a matter of when. And Earl is slowly coming around to accepting the heat aspect of Arizona.

Still no e-mail.

They said that I could hear back as early as 3 weeks. Or as long as 6-8. Heaven help me if I have to wait that long. I guess since I've been in the hiring process since last October, another month or two won't kill me. But I hope I'm not forced to wait that long.

On a side note, this Saturday is the Balboa Island Garage Sale. We're going to try to get rid of a lot of stuff. There will be clothes, shoes, books, and furniture. Earl and I will be sorting through things this afternoon after he gets home from class. We're really trying to sell my bedroom furniture so that we don't have to cart it to Arizona later on. It's really pretty, but really heavy!

Earl wants me to sell my snowboard. Heck no! I sold my SCUBA gear, I'm not getting rid of my snowboard. Or boots. Maybe I'll sell gloves, beanies, and pants...won't really need them in AZ. We'll see.

So that's my Monday morning for you. How's your's shaping out to be?

A Topic I'd Rather Not Discuss

I shudder at writing this. It's kinda gross. But I need your help. And it just might prove how shallow I am.

All you lovely ladies out there, how do you keep from getting acne?

I'm 28 years old and I still have the acne of a teenager. It's embarrassing to go to job interviews with pimples on my cheeks, my chin, my forehead. I've tried different cleansers, washes, scrubs, you name it. I've tried Neutrogena, Clean & Clean, St. Yves, Pro-Active. I use makeup remover at night so I don't sleep with makeup on my face. Once upon a time I even tried Clinique to no avail.

I know that part of the issue is genetics. I know that my siblings have all had issues with this. And it's not like I have massive breakouts. Just enough to make me self-conscious.

So what tricks and tips would you recommend? Any particular product that you swear by?

What Would You Do for a Nap?

There's not a whole lot I would do for a Klondike Bar, but right now? I'd do just about anything for a nap.

It's been kind of an exciting day at work. Exciting for southern Orange County actually. We had a small earthquake this morning. A 3.9 in San Juan Capistrano. Not too far away from where I work. I was in the bathroom washing my hands when I heard it, more than felt it. I was pretty sure that we were about to get busy so I went back to my desk and boy was I right!

We were buys for at least 2 1/2 straight hours. It was gnarly. We were down to 2 point cover at one time. That means we had only 2 available units for the 11 cities we provide 911 coverage for.

I'm not sure why people freak out so much when there's an earthquake. Maybe if it was significant, but a 3.9? C'mon people!

Any who...since it was so busy, we had to postpone our lunch. Didn't get to eat til about 2-230. We had Wahoo's. And I devoured it all. And I was still hungry.

About an hour after that I was falling asleep at my desk. I wanted nothing more than to lay down and take a nap. Instead I had a crew go to McDonald's and get me an Oreo McFlurry. I just finished it. It was so good. Definitely hit the spot! But now that the ice cream is gone and I have just under an hour left of work, I'm exhausted again. We're busy again too.

Earl and I had discussed going to the grocery store after he picks me up tonight. I don't think I have the energy to do that now. All I want is to go home and snuggle up to my goober under the covers and fall asleep.  I am yawning so much right now. Am I making you sleepy? I was kind of hoping that by writing this, I would wake up a little.

It's not working.

So maybe I'll go play some Angry Birds for the next 45 minutes. I'm sure I'll be in bed by 830-9 tonight.

And I am so looking forward to it.

Let it Begin

Well, I just barely had my background interview and polygraph last Monday. And I got a call today from one of my references that he had gotten a phone call from my background investigator. 


It's started.


I'm a little nervous/happy/excited/scared all rolled into one that this is actually happening. But I am at peace with it. I'm not freaked out, having panic attacks over the thought of moving. I still may, but for now I'm good. 


Oh, I went in to work today only to turn around and come home again. I got confused on the days and I wasn't really working today. So Earl and I came home (he was going to drop me off so he could have the car for school) and he promptly went back to bed. Of course I was wide awake and the chances of me going back to sleep were slim to none. So I plunked myself down on the futon, wrapped in my robe, with the heater going, and started reading a book. It's a book that I'd read before. Not too exciting, but a good yarn. And I haven't done much since then. And now that it's 1834, I am on page 391 of 486. I just might finish it before bed! It might even be a new record for me. 


Did I mention that I even took time out to take an elderly lady from our ward to a doctor's appointment today and I fixed a steak dinner for me and Earl? Yeah, I'm that good.


Just don't look at the clean laundry piled on the bed and in baskets, waiting to be folded.

Movies I Should Not Watch While at Work

At my job, outside of business hours, we are allowed to have the TV on. We can play video games too. And on the weekends, I typically have control of the remote for the TV since my partner(s) usually play Battlefield.

Sometimes I watch action movies. Sometimes comedies. And sometimes I watch chick flicks.

Not always the smartest move. Especially if it's a movie I've never seen before.

Like today. I watched the movie "Juno" on TBS. Not really the saddest movie ever. But the ending totally made me tear up.

Do you have any idea how hard it is to talk on the phone to complete strangers when you're crying? Or on the radio to guys who know you?

Not that easy.

So I'll add Juno to the list that currently includes Armageddon, Deep Impact, and Marley and Me just to name a few.

Now that I've put it out there, I'm going to go finish "The Proposal."

Oh Buddy!

Watch out world! I learned how to change the template of my blog!! It looks all cute and snazzy now! Not really my favorite design, but more my style than anything else out there. Plus I don't really know what my style is. A little problematic if you think about it...

Basically I'm just trying to personalize it. Make it me. But again, what is "me"?

Side note: we've had a significant storm roll through town today. We had hail!! It was itty-bitty, teeny-tiny, but it was hail!! I love severe weather. I know, I'm weird. Especially because I see the tornado warnings go out for the midwest, and I just want to be out there!

Is there a blog template out there of tornadoes?

I made a Mormon.org profile today. I'm not really sure what prompted me to do it. But I did it. It's under review right now, basically to make sure that I didn't put incorrect doctrine out there. And when they asked for a profile pic, I chose a picture of me from years ago when I was at an Angels game with my friends. It's a cool picture. Looking at most of my pictures, it's usually me and Earl. And they requested that you use a singular picture. So I had to cheat and go back a few years!

I'm jumping around a lot on this post. I just checked the radar for our area and it looks like the rain is just about over. Will probably have clear skies when I drive home in three hours. Boo.

So what do you think about the new look? Good? Bad? Ugly? I'm not really sure how to change it more...tips and advice are appreciated!!

And that's all she wrote folks!