Room décor, soccer, and remembering...

This weekend, I headed up to BG for my brother's soccer tournament. It was nice to be back there, even just for a day. I guiltily felt a little homesick for that place as I walked around campus with my mom. While I was there, though, I looked into a new opportunity that came upon me recently. One of the best dorms on campus is offering (for this year only) to allow three students to room together for a discounted rate, since there is a lot of incoming freshmen this year and the university is in the process of building two new residence halls. This was a great opportunity for me, because I have two really close friends up at BG (M. and L.), and it would be amazing if we could all live together, right? Well, we were worried about the size of the room, since we would all be in this space frequently. So I figured I would check it out while I was up there (the dorms were all open because of Orientation and stuff anyway). One of the girls who was working the front desk took us up to an empty room and let us have a look around. It was a bit bigger than my room last year, which M. and I shared, and seemed like it could reasonably house 3 close-knit girls. L. is already planning just about every detail of our room... it's making me a bit nervous, since we don't have a room assignment there yet. We do have room assignments in general, but not in that building and all that. I hope she doesn't get her hopes up for nothing....
Today, we drove back to C-bus and watched the final game of the 2010 World Cup. I was kinda pulling for the Netherlands, but I'm not a huge soccer fan (even though I've watched quite a few soccer games this weekend). Spain won... in case you didn't know already, haha. Also, this afternoon I listed all of my textbooks from this year on Half.com, so hopefully I make some decent money selling those (at least enough to pay for this semester's books).
This evening, my whole family went up to Indian Lake to sprinkle my late uncle's ashes over the lake. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this past fall, and quickly deteriorated... he died on January 15. His favorite place was Indian Lake, so he asked that we sprinkle his ashes there. We abided by his wishes, and also had a balloon release, during which we played one of his favorite songs: Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond. All of this was an emotional ordeal, but it was good for his kids to get some more closure, and to celebrate his life more than mourn his death. Afterward, we all went out to eat and reminisced.
It wasn't a typical weekend for me, but it ended up being pretty good: I got to hang out with family and friends, visit my school, and watch soccer (though the latter wasn't as enjoyable). Now I've got to get to bed so I can start this week out right-- maybe with a little work-out at Lifetime? ;)

Oh, I almost forgot! On Friday, my best friend C. came over and taught my how to knit! I'm no expert yet, but I'm well on my way to completing thing #1 on my summer to-do list! :)

New haircut! :)

Well, I accomplished another item on my summer to-do list today!

23. Get my hair cut in a cuter hairstyle.


What do you think? I like it more than I thought I would... :)

I'm also working on #17... My friend S. is helping me with ideas, and I also started another blog just for my writing. Here's the link if you're interested:

http://thepensmightierthanthesword.blogspot.com/

#7 and #20

I've accomplished quite a bit since I posted last-- including two items on my Summer To-Do List! :)

20. Get a job and make some sweet moolah

So, on Wednesday, I had two job interviews scheduled. The first one was for a phone position at that car repair company I mentioned a few posts ago. I went in (at 8 am, might I add-- ugh), nailed the interview, and got offered the job! (which, of course, I took.) Of course, I canceled the other interview I had scheduled, which, of course, I no longer needed to attend, since I am already employed. So, I have my schedule sorted out, and now I just have to submit a sample for drug testing, allow the company to do a background check on me, and I'm good to go! I have orientation for the job this Wednesday, but I don't officially start working 'til the 19th. I'm eager to start work, partially because I'd be earning $12/hour(!), and partially because I'm getting sick of all this waiting around. I'm ready to go and do my job! (even if it is going to be a 30-hour work week, and my shift starts at 8 am). I'm really excited to get started, though. And, of course, happy to be employed at last. :)

7. Watch a sunset.

I recently went up to Indian Lake, where my grandparents own a camper and a boat. My family ate dinner at one of the notorious restaurants of the region, the Tiltin' Hilton, where the floor is slanted, and then went out for a boat ride. Once we got out on the water, it was near sunset, so I got to see the sunset over the lake. It was beautiful! Plus, I got to visit one set of grandparents, so you could count that for #11 as well if you wanted. ;)

Yesterday, I got to see the fireworks of Red, White, and BOOM! from the wonderful view of AEP's 29th floor (which houses the legal department where my dad works). It was AMAZING! The fireworks were right at our eye level up there! The picture below shows my little sister N trying to "hug" the fireworks. She loved the whole show. :) She had a bad experience with fireworks before, so I'm glad she enjoyed them so much this year.

Today, I got to spend some time with some of my best friends I made at BG, M and L. I haven't gotten to see them much over the summer, because they both live so far away. It was great to see them! I love them so much. :)

I've also been doing well on thing #12-- I'm all the way up to Exodus 16 now! :) My sister was doing this with me, but she's fallen behind... she's still in Genesis. Ah well, I'm going to keep truckin'!

I just have one last thing to say before I conclude this post: Happy 234th birthday, America!

A New Hope?

So the other day, my dad asks me to apply at this car repair company as a customer sales rep. I'm kind of confused about it, but I agree to do it anyway. Looking over the application, it doesn't seem like I'm even qualified to apply for this job, and I'm not terribly excited about the prospect of doing the job, but remembering my dad's urgent request, I fill out the application, turn it in, and don't really think anything of it.

The day before yesterday, I get a call from the company, asking me to do a phone interview with them the next day. So, I agree, and prepare for the interview, which happened yesterday. The interview went pretty well, and the interviewer says that she will call me the next day in the afternoon. That evening, while telling my dad about the whole ordeal, he tells me that he knows a big wig at the company, and asked him to push me through to employment. I'm almost mad at my dad for not telling me about this. I mean, here I was, thinking I was doing so well, when maybe someone has just been ordered to push me through to employment. Gah. Anyway, they have yet to call "this afternoon" and it's already 5:30. But who knows, maybe they got backed up or something. Of course, the worst-case scenario is going through my head (but I won't bore you with the details of that). I'm still holding out hope... I feel like Princess Leia in Star Wars Episode IV, repeating: "Help me, Obi Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope."

The hunt for employment may be nearly over-- but I'm not calling off the dogs yet. But I hope they call me (with some good news) soon.

My Summer To-Do List

So, today I was reading a friend's blog, and she came up with 50 things that she wants to accomplish before she goes back to school in the fall. I thought this was a great idea, and decided to come up with my own list of things to do this summer. (some of them I stole from her list, but only because they were so good!) I think I'll stick with 26 things to do (after all, 26 is my favorite number!). Here they are:

1. Learn to knit or crochet, then make a Ravenclaw scarf for the HP7 (part 1) premiere in November

2. Go camping with my family

3. Go on a bike ride or a canoe trip with friends
4. Attend as many Clippers games as I can
5. Grow closer to God
6. Go to a concert
7. Watch a sunset
8. Watch a sunrise with a friend (after staying up all night, of course!)
9. Go to the beach
10. Take a road trip with friends
11. Visit my grandparents (both sets)
12. Read 5 chapters of the Bible every day
13. Start the Europe scrapbook before I forget everything (haha)
14. Go to a midnight showing of a movie
15. Have a HAM Night in Columbus
16. Cook a meal for my family
17. Work on my novel
18. Try new vegetarian-friendly foods
19. Walk Skye more often
20. Get a job (and make some sweet moolah)
21. Have a Harry Potter movie marathon
22. Ditto Star Wars
23. Get my hair cut in a cuter hairstyle
24. Play golf with some of my teammates from high school
25. Beat my dad in a round of golf
26. Read or re-read...

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
• Pride and Prejudice
• Hooked: Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One and Never Lets Them Go
• The Element Encyclopedia of Secret Societies
• Jane Eyre
• Heat Wave
• The Book Thief
• Watchmen
• Blue Like Jazz
• The rest of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series

I might be close to completing a few of these already... such as #20... keep your fingers crossed!

Job Interview

“Disappointment to a noble soul is what cold water is to burning

metal; it strengthens, tempers, intensifies, but never destroys it.”

-Eliza Tabor

Today, I had a job interview at a department store. I felt pretty confident in my ability to do the job that they were asking of me, but I was a little unsure if I was really qualified for it (like, if I had enough experience). But I got the interview, so I figured, "Well, my previous employment information was on the application, so they must be interested in me anyway." So, I head out to the interview this morning, feeling confident, and I walk into the wrong store. Apparently, there are 2 of the same department store where I applied at that particular mall. I felt a little frazzled, but walked to the other side of the mall and found the HR department in plenty of time (and calmed down along the way). The manager who interviewed me seemed really nice, and the interview was going really well. At the end, I'm expecting something completely different than what happened next.

She looks at me, smiling, and says that she's sorry, but I just don't have the retail experience that the job she's hiring for needs, and that she barely has enough hours for the people she has hired already, but thanks for coming in for the interview and maybe I can come back during a busier season for a job. I politely nodded understandingly and thanked her for her time. As I'm walking back to my car (which is parked out front of the other department store), I'm thinking through the interview. Why even ask me to interview if she knew I didn't have the experience she wanted for the job? And moreover, why is she hiring more people when she barely has enough hours for the people she already hired? I was really disappointed. I guess I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up so much...

When I started my car, the radio automatically turned on, and "Airplanes" by B.O.B. was playing. Funny how things like that happen when you really need them to. :) "Can we pretend that the airplanes / In the night sky / Are like shooting stars / I could really use a wish right now..."

Initially, not getting the job was disappointing, of course, but at least I got more experience in interviewing, and know what kinds of questions to expect in my next one. And I've got a solid lead at another store, so hopefully that or one of my other applications sparks something. I could really use a job right now...

Job Search Blues

So, the job search isn't going so well. I called back a place I thought I had a solid lead on, and the manager who talked to me didn't seem too optimistic. I've applied to so many places I've lost count. This is partially because every day my dad has come home demanding, "So, how many job applications did you fill out today?" Today alone I filled out 19. My brother, who is 17 and has less work experience than me, filled out one job application, and he got an interview. That interview was today, and guess what? He got the job. What the heck?! He fills out ONE lousy application and gets a job, while I've been working my butt off and get nothing? So unfair... I hope something turns up. It's already halfway through June and I have to go back to school in August. I've been working at this since I came home a month ago. It's getting ridiculous. This summer I was really hoping to get a job, even if I had to wear a dorky uniform and smell like french fries or wake up at 4 am for a 5-o'clock shift. I don't think I've been unreasonable with my job expectations, either. I just don't get it.... Maybe it's because he's a guy and I'm a girl. Wouldn't that just take the cake... but a few of my friends got jobs this summer already, some of them girls. Maybe I'm just inadequate. I hope that's not the case... At any rate, I hope I get hired somewhere soon. Or at least an interview.

( Wish I were here... )