Busy Today, Slacking Tomorrow

Thursday marked the end of the summer program where I volunteer. The job I was offered was finalized on Monday, and I start work on Labor Day. This gives me a whole month of vacation before a possible Monday to Sunday work week. I have a lot of downtime to come, but this weekend is a little crazy.

Yesterday, I met with my contact at Kelly Mitchell to finalize my job. Part of the paperwork was an explanation of dress code for where I will be working. I walked over the Marshall's downtown and bought a few work tops on sale. I was looking for anything not made of "t-shirt material" and wasn't see-through. Then, I met Cory and Jenni where she was interviewing for the same position. We hopped in the car and drove to the Mall of America. I did some happy I-got-a-job shopping. I bought two dog bowls, dog treats, two more tops and some lady garments. I also picked up my Sephora birthday gift!

Today, I met with Liz, who found me on Craigslist. She was very nice! We talked about dogs, jobs, parents and well a lot of things at Jasmine 26. Afterwards, I went home, watched half of a movie and then took a 4 hour nap. I don't understand why I've been so sleepy, but whatever. (Sorry, Carissa, I slept through the Art Fair!)

Tomorrow, I'm meeting Cory and Jenni in Uptown for the Art Fair. Carissa linked me to a free bus pass for the event. (Yay for not walking four miles round-trip!)

In other news, you may remember that I was entering a bunch of sweepstakes. I have won a bracelet via GreenXC! Once I receive the item, I will give a nice write up. There are a lot of sweepstakes to enter, and I suggest entering when you can! It's worth a shot and only takes a few minutes.

Gizmo is doing great, and his blog is updated daily with photos of him being cute.

Small list of thing to do this week:

• Mail out the rent
• Go through mail
• EMPTY junk bowl
• Clean off end tables
• Organize entryway closet
• Hang up new work tops
• Dust all horizontal surfaces
• Sweep all floors
• Do laundry

And things to do before I start work:

• Buy a bus pass
• Hem sleeves of grey jacket

I'm Prime; It's My Birthday

23 years ago on August 1st, my mother went into labor around 1 pm, and I popped out August 2nd. I suppose I needed to marinate a little longer. I wanted to give an update on what has happened/will happen birthday-wise since I posted my birthday list in July.

Meaningful, Bill Paying Employment

I was contacted by Kelly Mitchell via Monster Jobs concerning a position with a corporation headquartered in Minneapolis. I went in for an interview on Friday and received a call on Monday offering me a job. I"ll be answering customer service emails and doing some light incoming-call customer service. It's 40 hours a week with over-time. It's a temporary position, but I'm hoping it leads to a permanent position within the company. The women at Kelly Mitchell were very professional and welcoming. I start in September, and the position is scheduled to end in January. During the five month period, I will make more than I did all of last year.

The women at Kelly Mitchell also asked me for referrals, so I offered up my good friend Jenni and my new friend Carissa. This should be great, right?

Reliable Collapsible Transportation

Soon after posting the birthday list, I purchased a folding bicycle off of Craigslist. It's a two year-old Tokyo that's silver. It's about 30 lbs, but can become less unwieldy, because it compacts. I purchased the bicycle for $80.00. 

Also pictured: A huge vase.

Very Irish Weekend

We have plans to be in Madison/Milwaukee/Sun Prairie the weekend of the 19th of August! I'll get to spend the day with Jared and as many people as I can talk into joining me. Gram sent me a check for $100.00 for my birthday that I will use for spending money. I'm very excited! There will be many photos, and we're going for the whole day!

Loyal, Dwarfed Dog

On Friday, the 29th of July, Jared and I met a nice woman in a parking lot about adopting her corgi, Gizmo. We took him home that afternoon. He's been great so far! I started a phlog of him which you can visit at the following link: Gizmo the Corgi. He's a 3 year-old tri-colored dude with stumpy little legs. Over the weekend I taught him to lay down on command. He already knew sit and kennel. While I'm busy doing nothing from the 5th to the 5th, I plan on getting him well versed on tricks.

More Effective Means of Time Travel

I have not gotten a camera. Actually, the more I think about it, the more I want an iPod. We'll see. 

Additional:

Comedy Club

I'm going out with some friends to see a comedy show at Acme Comedy. It's free, because I'm a birthday girl! I would like to wear a crown.

Free Treats From Starbucks

I wasn't hungry today by the time Jared came home, so instead we took the dog on a walk and stopped at Starbucks. I was talking to the woman behind the counter about volunteering at Jabbok over the fall and gave her the information for that. I asked if Starbucks does birthday specials, and she gave me my coffee and treats for free. She was very nice and thought Gizmo was a looker.  

Dinner with Gram

When we go to Madison, we'll be stopping by Gram's and heading to a birthday dinner (my favorite tradition). I'm not 100% sure where yet, but I'm like to try some place new and tasty.

It's really strange now, because I come home from volunteering and have nothing to search for on the internet. I have the bike, dog and job I wanted. Overall, it's been a great couple of weeks. Everything's coming up Holley.

What I Can Do When I Finally Find Employment

Preparing for the life you will have before you've even had an interview for a job is all the rage right now. In the spirit of poultry economics, I am going to list out all the amazing things I can do once I'm awesomely employed.

• Continue volunteering during the evenings at Jabbok Family Services
• Move to a bigger apartment (possibly the adorable ones one block off from here)
• Go to Disney World
• Adopt a corgi
• Feast on raspberries whenever I darn well please
• Shop without a ton of guilt
• Pay off credit card debt
• Get fat off of baklava
• Spoil Jared rotten with all the PS3 games he can shake a controller at
• Go to a concert (Deathcab will be here late August)
• Network with coworkers 
• Buy a Halloween costume
• Get a bus pass (yay!)
• Take dance classes
• Leap tall buildings in a single bound 
• Go three rounds with Rocky Balboa
• Party like it's 1999
• Live a lush life of affluence
• Spend my invisi-children's college funds on gambling and booze
• Buy myself a little something ... like a watch, a necklace... or a yacht
• Bring powdered wigs back into fashion 
• Use all that commute time on the bus to read Hunger Games and Harry Potter
• Replace that PS3 controller Jared broke from all that shaking
• Own a replica of a mastodon, or dig up a frozen one and reanimate it
• Use reanimated mastodon as primary transportation
• Eat a lot of pizza
• Have name legally changed to "Your Majesty"
• Hang out with Beyoncé
• Become a one-hit wonder
• Write a list that goes on far too long
• Challenge Katie Binning to a gun show
• Block out the sun, Mr. Burns style
• Create a super hero costume that functions in everyday life
• Create insane platform and run for Republican office
• Learn to love Cheetos

The employed care not for your horse power.

Sorry to all those searching for a gif of a corgi in a mastodon costume eating Cheetos.

Summer Heat Is So 2010

The program director of the youth center I volunteer at called early today to let me know that we won't be having program Monday or possibly even Tuesday. Why? It's flippin' hot! The heat index is over 100, and my pores are sweating from their pores. It greatly limits what I can do outdoors. Which is sad, because I was hoping to photo-document my post on all the great places in my neighborhood. That will have to wait.

We ran to the store and swooped up ingredients for this week's meals. We're going veg heavy with a thick stew and chili. By pumping up the volume of vegetables within the stew/chili, we can take a lot of guess work out of daily intake. We made a minestrone with onions, zucchini, carrots and celery. I added Italian sausage to increase the protein. The chili we made was pretty basic; it has black and kidney beans, ground turkey, green peppers, jalapenos and a whole habanero (Rainbow didn't have cayenne peppers.). The minestrone turned out well, and we ate some for dinner. I'll see how the chili is in the morning. I want to limit my baklava outings, so I made pumpkin bread. It's a good break from the new recipes I have been trying that have ended up pretty flavorless.

Hello, Cowboy.

Last night, I went out to Gay 90s with Christina from the youth center. It was a lot of fun, and not at all like Platteville. At Platteville, you'd go to the only dance club and it'd either be dead or so stuffed with bodies people are piled atop one another. 90s had more than one story, several different bars and dance floors... and an ongoing drag show! There was a go-go dancer dressed like Conan the Barbarian. Additionally, there was a very attractive cowboy and a man wearing Rolling Stone's underoos. The drinks weren't much more expensive than drinks at Platteville.

It was very interesting how busy the streets were downtown. The humidity was high and there was a lot of construction from the east. But, I think the ending Twins game as well as several shows ending added to the traffic most of all. All the traffic made Christina's bus really late, and Jared traffic crazy. Along the streets, there were tons of not so fit ladies in not so covering outfits. And, I saw two people throw up. That's two more people besides myself that I have seen throw up in... well a very long time.

I'm not stressing out about finding a job right now. Before, I was pretty racked with guilt... Jared is paying a lot of the bills, and what savings I had is pretty much gone. The situation isn't too terrible, because we live pretty cheaply, and Jared's salary is stretching well enough. Right now, I'm kindly distracted by my volunteer program. I hope I find a job in August! I really don't want to go back to spending everyday in my living room searching the same websites day after day.

Funny tidbit: getting dressed this morning, I realized that my skirt was older than most of the children who participate at the youth center. Sad? I don't think so! Hurray for fitting into clothes I've had for eight years. Good for me.

Cool Craigslist Perspective

This week I started volunteering with COOL Youth, met a woman from Craigslist about a possible friendship and got a new perspective on what I want to do with my life. I will now approach these out of order, the way I was taught not to.

In March, I posted an ad on Craigslist looking for someone to hang out with once I moved to Minneapolis. I wanted to meet someone that lived in my neighborhood and wasn't frightening to spend time with. (At this point, I have ended half of my sentences with prepositions.) Krista replied one late night, and we traded Facebook information. Up until this week, we had been inadvertently avoiding each other. We met for coffee at a neighborhood coffee shop and then moved on to eat dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant. Overall, I thought it went well, but I talked way too much. I think a lot of my uncontrollable life-story word vomit is rooted in the need to get it over with and lay the crazy out on the table.

Monday I also started volunteering for COOL Youth. "What is COOL Youth?" you might ask. It's a non-faith based after-school/summer program for low-income families in my neighborhood. And, it's amazing, and I love it. I hang out with fun kids all day who don't waste time trying to act suave and sophisticated. It's really refreshing, and we take turns battling to be the center of attention. Another great thing is the staff is awesome and really dedicated to the kids. Even grumpy, tired kids end up running around smiling their little faces off.

I'm liking the experience so much, I've applied to be an AmeriCorps Promise Fellow with COOL Youth and work there for a year. It's all plus-sides. I would get the experience necessary to coordinate a similar, youth-based program. I would be able to establish network connections in the community. Oh, and they'd pay me to be there. It's nuts. I've been looking at job requirements for positions around town with after-school programs and non-profits that work with youth. This AmeriCorps Promise Fellow position would give me the experience necessary to turn a beloved volunteer opportunity into a promising, non-morally compromising career. I think it's interesting that it took me this long to realize that I don't have to sell stuff to make a living.

June Catsup

Monday, I sat down with Tracey and George from Jabbok Family Services. We discussed their COOL Youth Program over the school year and the summer program that begins the 27th. The summer program sounds really fun, and it's clear that they're really serving the community.

This afternoon, I attended volunteer orientation and met some of the other volunteers for the summer program. I was a little surprised to be the eldest volunteer by almost a decade. I talked to a woman that is volunteering with COOL Youth to fill the service requirement to graduate high school. I told her about chaperoning for the middle school dances in Platteville. Then later I realized that when I was nineteen and chaperoning, she would have been old enough to attend said dances. Oh boy.

The COOL Youth program is arts focused which is great. I like that I can work with youth, work with art and work with people like George and Tracey who seem to genuinely care about the program they run. That is why I applied for an Americorps Fellowship to work with youth over the next year (hopefully with Jabbok).

After orientation, I ran home and threw on my interview uniform. Right now, my uniform has evolved to be black dress pants, a black tank top, black socks, black shoes and a cover up of some kind (Today it was a hot pink sweater.). I leisurely walked to the Marriott. I had never been there before and asked the valet where HR was located. Today was a group interview with myself and one other person. I think it went okay. Actually, I'm not 100% sure, because when we met or interviewer he was all smiles and by the time it was over he was straight faced. This might be a bad sign. Well, I'll know by the end of the week.

What I am really excited about is the summer program with Jabbok. I bought a one piece and a cover up; I am ready for some fun in the sun. Hanging out with kids keeps you young. I just want to have fun and a good reason to act like I'm ten. Being surrounded by thirty kids under 11 and four or so volunteers still in high school should help.

Rejection Month

As of today I have been searching for employment actively for one month. Let me tell you this: once I get a job I'm going to dig my bear hands in and never let go. Looking for work when you are unemployed is extremely dissatisfying. No amount of unflinching optimism can prepare you for the monsoon that searching for a job releases on your self-worth parade. All you are left to do is retire to your tiny apartment for a solo pity party. (Not that I don't throw a great pity party, but eating a whole pan of brownies is getting harder now that I'm not a preteen.)

Here is the run down. I have had interviews with Hilton, Macy's, and Saks Fifth Avenue. I've also had telephone interviews with U.S. Bank and Well's Fargo. I have exchanged emails with MCAD. I have sent 31 applications out through Craigslist. I have accounts with Snagajob, Indeed, Monster, Minnesota State Jobs, Manpower Inc. as well as private companies. I have interviews to come with Marriott and Well's Fargo. 

My skills at cover letter writing are developing surely but slowly. I have a pretty succinct resume. I feel like I bomb my interviews. My confidence is not very high in that kind of setting. I actually told the people at Hilton that my long term goal was to act more like an adult. While that could be better than explaining that I don't promote the idea of expectation, because it only leads to disappointment; it was definitely a bad answer. My biggest issue with interviewing is that it's eerily similar to modern dating. They want you to sugarcoat your personality and then release whatever crazy you might have slowly rather than jump in with both feet and clearly labeled flaws. This is a big problem for someone who believes everyone should have labels that tell you exactly what your dealing with up front (like an FDA warning.)

With the Saks Fifth Avenue and Macy's interviews, I'm really glad I didn't get a call back. I don't think retail is a good idea for anyone who wants to earn a living wage. Retail is accepted wage slavery. People think of working in retail as the job someone holds down in college or high school while going to school full time. But, many companies cannot hire someone under 18. For many people retail is their reality. They hold down that crappy job selling you affluence wearing clothes they had to buy on sale, because otherwise they wouldn't be able to afford it.

On Monday, I'm going to Jabbok Family Services to see about volunteering as a tutor and mentor for kids grades 6-12. I'm pretty excited about the possibility of doing anything with my time that isn't in front of a screen. Wednesday, I have a group job interview with Wells Fargo in Bloomington.

My plans are to keep looking for work, but if I don't find anything by mid-July, then I am going to go back to school for a degree in Network Administration. I have a tour of Minneapolis Community Technical College in July. I really don't want to go back to school though. I want to live an understated life enjoying my time before I'm too old to enjoy anything. 

This Week In Herstory

On the job front:
This week, I've interviewed with a high-end department store and a hotel in Minneapolis. I received an email from an art school about a position in their art store. I've met up with a woman from a temp agency about finding an office job. I need to call another agency and register with them. And today, I received a phone call from an office supply store about a specialized sales job. However, I don't know if the job at the office supply store will meet my salary requirements.

I really want the job at the hotel. I think it will be a great opportunity for a career in hospitality. What I like most is that the hotel brand has hotels all over downtown, so I can find open positions within a number of hotels while staying with the same company. I sent a thank you letter this afternoon to the manager. It's important to me to seem eager for the position. Because, well, I am.

On the home front:
Minneapolis is awesome. I really like the city. I feel like anything is possible, and I can do anything I want here. I'm also getting a big head, because my price of living is so cheap. I can walk almost anywhere, and once I get a job I will be getting a bus pass. That will open up a whole world of "what next."

On the Jared front:
Jared took a job with Swiss Valley about an hour from town. It's not super high paying, but there is a very real opportunity for promotion. We're both very excited.

On the Netflix queue:
We're watching Lost, Psych, Veronica Mars and a lot of random movies (some starring John Cleese). I've found a lot of humor in telling Jared that "the thing [he] hates most about Lost is that [he] doesn't hate it." We've been spending our afternoons exploring the city and our nights watching TV.

On the shore front:
Jared and I realized we don't have any goals to save for tonight at dinner. I really want to go to Disney World, so I'm looking into that. It's a real possibility. Jared wants to spend some time in south Florida not at Disney World too. I don't know why he'd want to do that. All I think about is Mickey Ears with my name on them and 186 foot castles.

Job Hunting Kills My Nerves

I'm hitting writers block head on. I've been so busy applying for jobs and wandering around the city, I haven't had time for blogging! I've applied to lots of positions, but there are two that I'm very excited about. I don't want to talk about job hunting much, because I'm being superstitious. I apply through Craigslist, Indeed, Star Tribune and directly through company websites. I also put in one hand written application. What I'm looking for right now is a part-time retail job to tide me over while I'm looking for a full-time job. I want to be able to wear jeans at my part-time job. I do love jeans.

I've been applying to jobs nonstop for the last week. It's discouraging that I've only gotten one interview for a job that would have less than 20 hours work a week. I hope I find a little something soon before I go nuts. Being out of work makes me want a pet.

Between my trip around San Francisco and touring Minneapolis with Jared... I have walked my feet right off.

Dinner Eating and Job Hunting

I cooked up Korean BBQ Chicken; steamed bok choy, Chinese eggplant, and silk squash; and boiled white rice with chicken bullion. It was all very good. Jared wasn't all too fond of the texture of the bok choy and said the chicken was too moist. Jared skinned and cut a whole catfish in our kitchen sink. We'll be making fish tacos tomorrow.

We walked downtown today and to Nicollet Mall. I put in an application with Macy's to work as a Beauty Advisor. I'm good with people and had a lot of luck in sales last year. I really want to learn how to apply makeup; it's something no one has ever taught me. I also want to work somewhere that will force me to dress like a grownup. Even if that means all black all day. If I don't hear back in a week or so, then I'm going to apply at Lush. I want to work for an organic beauty line.

In the mean time, I'm also applying for Administrative Assistant positions via Craigslist. I'd like to get a job soon, so that I'll have money in savings. The sooner I get a job the sooner I can go to Disney World.

I'm going to start waking up half an hour earlier everyday until I'm waking up at 7 am. Given I woke up today at noon... I should be on course by the 27th. I've got to get going on my goals before time gets the best of me.