B is for...Ballerina

2. Dream job when you were little/ what is it now?

I didn't really want to be a ballerina when I was little. But, I'm trying to stick to a theme here.

Actually, I don't remember ever having a dream job in mind when I was growing up. I had a vivid imagination so I'm sure I pretended to be all sorts of things, but there was nothing that sticks out as something I was passionate about.

And honestly, it's the same now...sadly. There isn't one profession that comes to mind. So, I started doing research on "jobs that start with the letter B" (the theme, people, the theme) and what I came across was intriguing and a little scary.

Bone Crusher, for example. Sounds like a professional wrestler to me.

Bobbin Sorter, Body Make-up Artist (who's body are we making up?), Bonsai Culturist, Basting-machine Operator (do you need a degree for that?), Beekeeper, Barker, Bandoleer Packer, Barista.

I think I did find my dream job and it even fits my theme...

Beach Bartender...

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Is anyone still here?

Hi.

I'm Jinny. You may remember me from back in the day when I actually posted regularly to this blog. Work totally and utterly devoured my life for about four months. Most everything outside of work came to a screeching halt. But that doesn't mean that nothing has been going on.

So, let me get you all caught up.

The hallway project we started in March has finally come to a (almost) finish. It's down to painting doors, so I'm calling it finished.

We've started on the bedroom but it's going at a snails pace. Which is fine, we aren't on any time schedule here.

We spruced up our outdoor space. The café table and chairs was actually a surprise birthday present from Jeremy. I went out of town for a weekend and when I got home this was waiting for me. I cried, I was so surprised.

I've been out of town a few times. I went to a wedding in Austin. So, Kenedi, the bride, met my sister when they were both in college. This is how I met Kenedi. Eventually Kenedi ended up in San Marcos and started going to the same church that my cousin and her husband work at. So now Kenedi is practically part of the family so when she got hitched this summer we all had to be there.

I went to Canyon, TX to see Texas, the musical, at Palo Duro Canyon. It was a charter bus trip and my Grandma invited me to go (who says no to their Grandma? Not this girl). It was a fun trip and I had a good time spending the weekend with the ladies of my family. I'm very thankful that my aunt Gail didn't laugh at me while I had a death grip on her hand when the charter bus drove us down into the canyon. It was pretty hair raising.

Aunt Bev, Grandma, Great Aunt Lynette

 My Mom and I went to Dallas to help my sister get her new apartment situated. She's lived in Dallas for many years now but this is the first time she has ever had an apartment by herself. After living with our cousin for years we have jokingly compared it to a divorce. I wasn't sure what she got to keep or what she needed to replace. So we went shopping and did manly things, like put together furniture.

We adopted a new family member! Ferguson, the fish. He's pretty low maintenance, doesn't make a peep, and doesn't need a lot of attention...no nail clippings or insulin shots, no grooming or heart guard meds, no walks or toys required. And he is pretty to look at.

We had to take Harley to get her teeth cleaned. I wouldn't even mention this but her recovery from the anesthesia and pain meds was unlike anything we've had to deal with before. If any of y'all have had to have a pet put under to have any type of work done, I'm sure you are familiar with the little speech the office people give you on the way out. "Keep them quiet", "They might not feel like eating", "They will probably be drowsy", etc. In the past, all of our pets have bounced back from being put under with ease, not even a hitch. But poor Harley girl, she's old and doesn't bounce like that. She couldn't walk, but she sure did try, and when she fell over she would just lay very still like 'I'm just going to stay right here'. She was the funniest little drunk kitty ever. But while it was funny, it was sad at the same time because we could tell her mouth was bothering her. They extracted 5 teeth and noted that there were others already missing. So now we call her Toothless.

So, you see, I haven't been a complete couch potato this summer (although there was plenty of couch wallowing). Overtime at work is easing off, for now, and I really hope to have more time to come back to this space. I've missed it.

 





Rambling Woman

Hey.

I'm still on overtime. I've officially worked 115 hours of overtime since the first of May...and there is no end in sight. People keep reminding me of the paychecks. And those are nice, but I don't think they quite understand the utter exhaustion from not only being at work so much but also feeling like you aren't getting anywhere. Honestly, I'm doing some of the most jacked up work I've ever had to do in the whole 16 years I've worked for this company. It just feels like spinning wheels. I'd be less frustrated if I felt like I got things done during all those work hours.

I went to the gym for the first time in...well..I can't really remember the last time I went to the gym. I did a 45 minute Body Combat class. It felt good to be up, moving around. Seeing my under arms jiggle as I punched was sobering. I'm back at a place I swore I'd never be again..a place of my weight creeping up, a place of me mindlessly stuffing my face, a place of being uncomfortable in all my clothes. I don't want to be HERE. And I definitely don't want it to get worse. So, I have to do something.

Sorry if I'm rambling.

My sister moved into her first apartment all by herself. She's been moved away from home for years now, but up until now she's always had a roommate. She lived with our cousin for four years. Them moving on separate from each other is kinda like a divorce, I'm not sure what she got to keep. lol. So we've been window shopping together via text message and pinterest boards. I hope to get up there soon to help her get things on the wall and shop for the odds and ends. It's nice to know I'm needed for something.

But before I go up there she will be coming here (along with our cousin) for a Doctor Who viewing party. I can tell you with a straight face that I never, ever thought I'd be into Doctor Who. But on New Year's Eve Jeremy and I started watching Season Five and we just kept going. Now we have Dalek and Tardis pillows and we are eagerly awaiting the Twelfth Doctor. Do you watch Doctor Who? Will you be watching on Aug. 23?

I refuse to sink?

On Monday, my sister called to check on me.

"I went to your blog to see what you've been up to and there wasn't anything new."

Yeah, I know. I haven't really had the inspiration or time or energy to really sit down and blog anything lately. And even if I did have the urge to blog, what the heck would I blog about? We've been on overtime at work for three months straight. I've been going from work to the couch to bed, repeat.

My brain is mush.

My mid-section is mush (because I haven't been to the gym in months).

I feel like crap.

Tired, fat, crap.

Oh, and it's currently "I'm melting, I'm melting..what a world" degrees outside.

Honestly, I've been in a serious life rut. I don't want to read, I don't want to watch movies, I don't want to blog, or write, or take pictures. I don't want to think about what I'm wearing or do my hair. I want to sleep...and sleep some more..and never have to get out of my PJ's.

Sounds a little like depression, doesn't it? Yeah, don't worry..I don't think it's clinical. My whole life I've lived with bouts of depression. I sink and sink and sink. But I always manage to pull myself out of the tail spin...somehow.

Workie Workie

I don't hate my job. Not really. But it does overwhelm me sometimes..like now. Gearing up for another "hell week" (as Jeremy likes to call them). Overtime starts tomorrow and runs through Saturday. I'll hate it until my paycheck gets here.

What's been going on?

Well, nothing really. A whole lot of nothing. Not that I'm complaining. Not even a little bit. After the whirlwind that was December, I'll take uneventful any day {for now}. Really, we've just been trying to get back to a normal routing. Work, dinner, workouts, dog walks. It's been really hard, for some reason.

I'm bored out of my mind at work right now, when before the new year my days were zipping by. I think it's the lack of direction. I don't need much, I'm very good at working on my own..but radio silence doesn't sit well with me.

I snapped an Instagram picture this morning of my newly acquired muffin top. Apparently, it's what I gave myself for Christmas...lucky me. No gift receipt so I can't return it and I'm already wearing it..so....Let's just say I'm well within my pre-set "Danger Zone" on the scale and it's time to buckle down and get it off before it starts to think I'm keeping it for good.

I'm having to be very deliberate in my eating, once again. Things that were habit more or less have fallen away to make room for nasty old habits. Such as eating two servings at dinner and ice cream..every.single.night. I'm having to think about dinner WAY before dinner time to prepare myself mentally for only eating what my body needs me to.

Going to the gym seems to be SO HARD. I'm tired. All the time. Probably from not going to the gym. Crazy how that works. We went tonight and things that had been so easy for me were kicking my butt. Honestly, I could barely finish and had to half-ass stuff...but I DID do it. Which is better than NOT doing it at all {I keep telling myself}, so there is that.

I hate to look like I'm jumping on the New Year's Resolution bandwagon, because I'm really not. These are all things that I use to be doing..quite frequently..and with little thought. It's just so hard to get back on schedule once you allow yourself off the hook...and for as long as I did. So just don't do it y'all! Stay strong! Say no to the muffin top.

I call this installment 'Ode to Christmas'

I love when Jeremy sends me pictures from work.

 





Radio Silence

I know it's been like a ghost town around here. As soon as I got back to work from vacation I was transitioned over to a new job function. So for the last week I've been hitting the ground running every morning, trying to learn and absorb a ton of new information. I love learning new things but it's always an adjustment to move to a group where you no longer have the same sort of pull you had before. I'm coming from a work group in which the supervisors and managers put a lot of faith in my opinion and judgment. It might eventually be the same way in the new work group, but of course that takes time. It's just an unfamiliar feeling to feel like I have to censor myself or keep my thoughts to myself because the higher level management don't know me well enough to trust me yet.

Anyway, enough of that.

Basically, all my energy has been going to work lately. I'm doing good to get to the gym and decide what to make for dinner. Outside of that, I'm brain dead right now.

Milestone

Going through the mail a few days ago I opened up something from my employer. It was the information for my 15 year service award. Some how it had slipped my mind that I am quickly coming up on my 15 year service anniversary.

That's right.

15 whole years.

I grew up in the same neighborhood nearly my entire life. The building where I work is one of the tallest in this area and a landmark of sorts. Just like the collage high rise dorms, the building lends itself to the landscape and is often used to help give directions. The junior high school I attended is right across the street. So I saw the building a lot when I was growing up and I sometimes wondered what it looked like inside.

Now I know.

During a brief period of unemployment after my senior year VOE (vocational office employment) job had ended I happened to pop inside to put in an application. That was back when you could just walk in. Now you can't get in without swiping your badge. I was hired on as a temp with a six month probation period. Some of the other people I started with didn't get asked to stay on after that six month period was up, but I did.

Out of the six floors, I've worked on three (floor one being in there twice).

I've had nine different supervisors.

I've been part of three different work groups.

I haven't always liked my job. Sometimes I have really, really hated my job. My job has made me cry and stressed me out. It's not what I thought I'd be doing with my life. It's boring and mundane and not all that important, in the grand scheme of things {trust me, the customers think its very, VERY important}.

But I've learned a lot over these 15 years on what it means to work with people, to work with deadlines, to work with what you know and sometimes with even less than that. I've learned to use my common sense and make "executive decisions" without needing my hand held. I've learned how to listen and let customers vent. And I've learned that the customer is not always right. I've learned that it's important to have a sharp memory, it's important to roll with the punches, it's important to document everything. I've learned that I'm pretty dang good at multi-tasking. I've learned that I'm very good at stepping back and looking at the greater picture. I've learned that most people don't have the same work ethic as I do. I've learned that, even knowing that, I still can't allow myself to lower my standards.

I've learned that my talents and attributes have probably been wasted.

Overall, my job has provided my family with the means to do a lot of things. A lot of things that other people our age are just getting around to doing, like home ownership. It's allowed us to take care of ourselves without having to worry about the bill, due to the excellent insurance. It's allowed us to be able to travel with paid time off. Those few things right there are more than many others get with their jobs.

So I've learned to be thankful of what I have. A steady job, a good job, a job that has taught me a lot about being an adult. We'll see how much longer the ride lasts.

One last thing this job has taught me, to be ready for whatever might come. And I am ready...bring it.

Update Randomness

I think I've had the busiest two weeks of.my.life. Honestly, I haven't had a moment to breath since Thanksgiving. I blame a little of it on the time change. Does anyone else have trouble leaving your house to run errands after it gets dark? Please tell me its not just me. The fact that its pitch black by 6:00 really has me feeling frantic to get off work and GET ALL THE STUFF DONE before the sun goes down. Which is crazy.

The husband and I, Thanksgiving

Plus, we've been working OT at work because of the Holidays. Great for my paycheck...not so good for the whole not leaving my house after dark issue. And even AT work, things have been a little hectic. I recently moved desks and so I'm getting use to a new supervisor and co-workers (every group dynamic is a little different). There have been meetings and events that we don't normally have to contend with. It's all really good stuff, so no worries, just takes a lot of time and makes the usual work day seem a little more busy. Last weekend, I worked all day Saturday and forgot to tell my supervisor to add it to my time card. So, it wasn't on my paycheck this week. DOH! But, it will be on my next check..if I don't get something sooner.

My cousin, Sonya, came for a quick visit. She lives in Florida so we don't get to see her too often, but it's always great when we do. She and I cooked dinner for our Grandma and the three of us had a fun night of drinking wine and visiting.

Cooking at Grandmas

Last Thursday, we pulled into our carport after a late work day to find Lola watching us from the back gate. Jeremy accidentally left her outside that morning and she had been in the back yard all day long. I'm glad our dead-beat neighbors and their dogs have disappeared so she didn't have to deal with those mean ol' dogs. The weather was mild, luckily, and she was probably fine hanging out on our covered porch but she was awfully thirsty and totally pooped that evening.

This weekend my Mom and I went to Dallas to see my sister AND so I could surprise my bestie, Jonessa, for her birthday. She had no idea I was coming but I worked it out with her husband. I called her as I walked up the sidewalk to her house.

Me: Happy birthday!
Jonessa: Thank you.
Me: So..what are you doing today?
Jonessa: Oh, just baking with my sister. How about you?
Me: Well, I got you something very special for your birthday.
Jonessa: You did?
Me: Yes, you need to come check your front porch.
Jonessa: ARE YOU HERE?!
Me: *laughing* I don't know..come to your front door.

At that point she opened her front door and declared it the best.birthday.ever.

After spending the day with her and her sisters and her sweet baby boy I headed back to my sisters for dinner and the Chinese Lantern Festival being put on at the Dallas Fair Grounds. It was a pretty impressive display and I enjoyed reading the background info on each display.

 

 

 

So....that's what I've been up to lately. A whole lot of really great stuff!!! I'm behind on my Christmas shopping and I don't have any gifts under the tree at the moment. I'm not going to get around to sending out Christmas cards and I'll be lucky if we get lights up on the house before Christmas eve. My floors need to be vacuumed and my husband is nursing some pretty nasty allergies right now which are making him feel yucky. And don't EVEN get me started on my diet and fitness..or lack there of.

BUT!!! Even with all that..and the hectic day to day that has been my reality lately..life is good. Crazy good.

Halloween 2012: Dog Sitter

I was a dog sitter for Halloween. This is the first time in several years we've been allowed to dress up at work so I threw together something easy and comfortable. AND my puppies got a new toy after I was done...sitting on it. Ha ha.

How love works between a blabber mouth and the silent type

Me: *going on and on and ON about work stuff* I'm sorry for boring you with all of this.

Him: *shrugs* It's ok. I don't understand most of what your saying but I like watching you say it.

Random thoughts on a sleep deprived Monday

1. I stayed up too late last night reading {Defiant by Pamela Clare}. Even after I put the book aside I had a really hard time finding sleep. It was an on again/off again thing until the alarm went off at 5:30.

2. Because I was tired and grouchy my coworkers were annoying me..by just sitting there. I managed not to get into an argument with anyone..but I'm not sure how.

3. Did y'all hear about the Octomom signing up for gofundme.com so people, regular ol' people like you and me, can give her money? For nothing in return! Does that really work? I'm totally doing it.

4. I removed the word verification thingy from my blog comments {you're welcome}, but I'm getting pissed at the stupid spam comments. I get excited when I see an email that tells me I have a comment waiting for approval just to have my mood soured to find its a spammer. Boo.

5. But I have been loving the upswing in comments lately from y'all..the real human people out there. I love hearing from y'all.

6. I have become a little discouraged with my weigh loss/fitness. I still have a little too much jiggle to my wiggle. But I'm having a hard time committing to a solid work out schedule or curbing my food intake. I haven't gained any weight, no worries, but I'm still considered overweight and I'm just..jiggly. Too jiggly.

Looking for some Zen

On days like today I'm glad that we don't have children. Because on days like today I have a strong urge to get in my car and start driving and go for as far as I can and not look back. On days like today I look at Jeremy and say 'Let's just run away together'...and I'm only half joking.

Work is turning my brain into a useless mass of mush. I was ttthhhiiissss close to tears by the end of today. I had a serious tension headache all up the back of my neck. I wish I could say this is the first time my job has made me cry...but that would be a lie.

Lola started shaking her head over and over and over again this evening. And keeping her head slightly tilted like her ear is bothering her. I've taken a look in both ears but can't see anything that might be bothering her. Not an emergency situation...yet. But after the day I've had I just wanted to come home and relax...and I kind of can't when there might be something wrong with the damn dogs ear.

We had a surprise thunderstorm blow in. It was moving pretty fast so didn't linger..but it had thunder and pretty heavy rain. So Duke is currently shaking and panting, curled in a corner. Which of course has Lola panting.

I just need everyone to calm down for just a second. Including me.

I'm thankful for paid vacation days

Tomorrow I am taking my very last vacation day for the year{not including company Holidays}. I don't have anything important planned. I don't have anywhere I need to be. I thought it might be a wasted vacation day. But..I sure am glad that it's here.

This week has kicked.my.butt.

I blame the time change. Or something.

I've been a little moody. I've had a lot on my mind with holidays and birthdays and blogging and foster animals. I haven't been sleeping well. I'm tired.

So. Tomorrow, I am going to sleep in and then lounge around a bit. Maybe read some. I am going to try to put the running to-do list in my head on hold for just a few hours.

I am thankful for my job

It wasn't an easy day at work, but that's why I decided to focus on my blessing of employment. My job has provided my family with a lot of opportunity we wouldn't have had otherwise, like purchasing a home so early in our marriage. We've been blessed with wonderful insurance..and we have used it over the last 13 years. Whenever I get a statement from a treatment, or pick up a prescription, I go cross-eyed when I see what we would have had to pay out of pocket without our insurance. I enjoy paid vacation time. I take advantage of the flex scheduling. Although I am not passionate about the work that I do, I am very good at my job. Today I am thankful for my job.