Snowy Confession Time

Dear readers, I have to confess.

I haven't had more than 5 cups of coffee this month.

Insane, right?

It's the weather and my cold! It makes me want tea instead of coffee!

Good news is I'm starting to feel better and the coffee drinking has begun anew. I am feeling much more human and like my old caffeine-addled self.

But, alas, that is not the whole confession part.

Drumroll (and many apologies for not saying so sooner...):

I have a job!

Actually and technically, I have two jobs!

I started part-time regular work at Old Navy this week and it has been fabo-fabulous. I did happen to start on a particularly crazy day, as the Stuff&Save promotion happened this week. And getting to work yesterday was insane! The store was pretty quiet, which was a nice time to spend some more time getting to know the store better. This week I was on the sales floor; next week it looks like I'm on CashWrap. Which I'm not terribly excited about, but will find the strength to endure.
Why? How??
Because in my head, I'm always doing the happy "I've got a job!" dance!

I'm also part-time holiday at Bath & Body Works, but haven't started there yet. I'm having tons of issues with getting into the system from home to input my availability so I can be put on the schedule. So. I haven't worked yet and I'm not even in the schedule. I'll think about it tomorrow :)

Crazy, huh?

I waiting to post this for a few reasons. One being it felt weird to post about a job I had before working one shift. The bigger reason though was this: I was working on being thankful.
These jobs are not my dream jobs. When I officially was hired and my first orientations were scheduled, everyone around me was excited. I was thinking, "Gee, Lord. Retail? Really? Because when you see me you say "shopper!" My prayers were answered...just not in the way I had wanted! I felt embarrassed about having a job most college could get. No offense to college students, but I have my degree. Shouldn't I be able to get a "real", "grown-up" job? Apparently, not right now. Maybe soon. But not now.
It took some time, but I am finally thankful to have these jobs. (Even if it means driving to them in the snow! Rain! Or any other time!) They will stretch me. A lot.

And probably drive me to drink more coffee. Which, in the end, is a good thing, right?

P.S. Also, if this post is worded strangely (or rather, stranger than the usual oddness), I blame it on Rachel. She made me read this book called "Withering Tights" by Louise Rennison. It is hilarious and makes me talk like a 15 year old.

A bit of change

Today was a pretty big day for me.

Best part?

I hardly had to leave my house.

I've had this horrible allergy-induced cough for the past few days. Blergh. I woke up in a coughing fit. Not a cool way to start my Saturday. That was quickly remedied by my mother offering to make pancakes for breakfast. She was even super resourceful when it came to the chocolate chips we didn't have to be put in my pancakes. And we aren't even at the best part.

I went to the library with my dad, something we used to do together a lot. I remember days when I would take home a stack of books and a few movies that I could blaze through in a matter of hours/days. (Oh for the days when I didn't have to pay library fines! I've finally gotten rid of all my fines and I'm trying to keep it that way!) I went in to pick up one book. One book that was already on hold for me. But did I look anyway? Yes. And I came home with a book I've been dying to read (Ted DekKer's newest!) and a Robin McKinley book that Neil Gaiman endorsed as "pretty much perfect." (How could I *not* pick it up??) So I now have four books that absolutely, positively HAVE to wait until I finish "A Game of Thrones" because I've put that one off long enough. And I have to keep reading because my friend is reading it...and I'm trying (but failing) to catch up with her.

Trip to the library, new books, and still not the best part.

I threw stuff out.

A lot of stuff.

See, I tend to hang on to stuff. You never know who will want it (I'll have it!) or when I'll need it (I'll still have it!). I keep ephemera things because I got it/used it/blew my nose it in while I was in London. (Ok, not that last one. That would be gross.) Or I have stuff that might have been important at one time (receipts or bank statements, old pay stubs) but no longer have value. There are things that I am afraid to throw away for absolutely no other reason than I'm not sure if I should. What if I want it later?

Sometimes it is a memory thing. There is a song from the musical "Ordinary Days" about a girl cleaning out some space in her apartment to make room for her boyfriend who is moving in and she says, "But somehow I've been petrified to see what's been kept inside these chests and drawers. It's so very strange finding stuff from a lifetime ago, even when the life you find is yours. And there are things that make you feel that you needed this proof that your past was real. And you can't let them go."

I know exactly how that feels! I sometimes think if I get rid of that note or card, I'll forget. And sometimes I do. Sometimes, it's a good thing to forget. But some things don't need notes or cards to stay in your memory. And I know I don't need to hold on to everything.

I've tried to do projects like this before, but I usually/always get stuck halfway through the mire and I end up shoving it all back it the drawer.

Today? My mom helped.

Kind pancake maker, yes. But when it comes to cleaning up and throwing out, she is a force to be reckoned with. She understands my tendency to hold on to things (it is, sadly, something that runs in the family) but she lovingly helped me move past some of my fear of throwing stuff away. We made progress of epic proportions! At least three bags of garbage (maybe more...) and tons of space freed up in my room! We also sorted through some things of mine that, if I had my own place, would have been needed and properly organized but now are not of much use to me. We exchanged a very uncomfortable chair that used to belong to our neighbor with a much more comfortable rocking chair. I now have a space to do comfy reading in my room, instead of reading in my bed and falling asleep!

The best thing I learned today was that I can get over my fear of things. I might need a little help, a little hand holding and some Sour Patch Kids when it is all said and done--but I can do it.

And I think it's a good day when you learn something new about yourself.

(Side note: In the past 20 min or so after writing this post, I forgot that my chair had turned into a rocking chair TWICE! The last time I sat on it I said to myself, out loud, "Rocking chair. Rocking chair!" Oh boy...that one will take a little bit of time!)

Sister Pride

This summer I got to spend a lot of time with my little sister. I sometimes call her my baby sister, but she doesn't like that all the time. She's not a baby, I know, but still. I like being a big sister. So in my head, she's my baby sister.

Ya know what I learned from her?

She is a hard worker. Like super hard.

• She worked an almost a full time job at our local movie theatre. She even got promoted as Assistant Manager!
• She was in an alumni show at the high school here in town (in a role she wasn't terribly thrilled about, but ROCKED!).
• She mowed the grass (our grass & a friend's) just about every week, even though she has allergies from Hades.
• She exercised. Even on days she didn't mow grass. (I think mowing the grass is plenty of exercise for the week.) Even on days she had to work.
• She spent the summer (mostly) 11 hours away from her boyfriend.

And you know what?
She didn't complain. At least, not too much any way :)

• She managed to sing show tunes while mowing the grass. At the top of her voice.
• She baked almost every single week. And that girl can bake, let me tell you!
• She talked with her boyfriend practically all the time. They worked at making 11 hours feel not too far away.
• She took me to see Harry Potter 7.2 (mostly) because I wanted to see it. That's just the kind of sister she is.

I love this girl!
(even if she is a little crazy!)

I am always sad when she goes back to school. She drove back by her self this year and she left at 5am. So the night before she left, as is tradition, we snuggle under the same blanket and talk about the coming year. Is she excited to be going back? What class is she looking forward to the most? When is the next time she'll be home?

I can't wait to see her at Christmas for a few reasons, but the main one is this: we get to celebrate in person.
Celebrate what?
My baby girl sister is ENGAGED!