Monday, August 23, 2010

Do you know what today is?  Besides it being a Monday, which are usually great days because they are my day off, it is the first day of SUNY New Paltz classes.  Which means that summer is officially over!  Gross.  It also means that work is going to be sucky for the next two weeks.  Last minute vactioners trying to suck in the last waking moments of summer, minimal staff, long hours, homework, and barely getting to see my husband. 

However I can flip this around and look at the brighter side and say one more semester closer till Matt graduates!  The fall is upon us which means, apple picking, pumpkin picking, apple cider donuts, sweaters, leaves changing, long drives to see the foliage, and of course Halloween!  One of my favorite holidays.

I just can't get ahead of myself and I need to focus on the next two weeks and then I can breath.  Working 10 more hours a week (maybe 15) is really not that bad considering I have been able to take two vacations this summer.  This is not my first summer doing this either so I just need to grin and bare it.

Wish me luck!

Something New...

After exploring Etsy on and off for a few weeks I am going to try out a new craft.  Something inexpensive (of course because I am cheap) and kind of different.  It's not a new craft but I think I will have fun with it.  Bottle Caps.  People are selling bottle cap magnets, wine charms, etc. like crazy on Etsy.  So I think I will try it out and see how it goes.  If all goes well friends and family will be receiving them as birthday and Christmas gifts this year.  I am also interested to see how costly it it because I would like to try this out as one of my holiday crafts in December.  It seems like a fun thing to do for Halloween as well. 

So, I ordered a book/kit to start off.  I have been collecting twist off bottle caps too.  However, it seems the ones that people are selling are unused bottle caps (before they are actually pressed onto a beer bottle).  They seem pretty inexpensive too.  You can purchase them from a variety of home brew websites or on Amazon.com.  One site was selling them for $5.95 for 1lb (approximately 210 caps)  The rest of the supplies are glaze or crystal lacquer, approximately $2.95 for 2 oz., a 1" hole punch, your choice of paper designs bought or found, and then whatever else you want to use to decorate it.  (glitter glue, charms, pins, wine charm rings, magnets, etc.)  Overall, not too expensive and it doesn't take up too much space when storing the supplies. 

I will keep you posted.  I hope it goes well. 

Groupon

The CEO for Groupon was on the Today show this morning.  A 29 year old male who is now a millionare!  Ugh that makes me jealous. 

anyway I went and checked out his site and it is pretty cool.  I don't think I want daily emails sent to me because I don't live close enough to a city but the deals that they are able to offer are pretty cool.  So I think all should check it out, especially if you do live in or near a city.  It is a nation wide site.

Have fun and enjoy!

http://www.groupon.com/

Saving Money

Most people know I love to save money.  Call me frugal or cheap, I don't care.

Here is an article I found on Yahoo.

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/110384/things-you-shouldnt-be-paying-for?mod=bb-budgeting

Tomorrow Night

Tomorrow night is the season premiere of 'Weeds'- I can't wait to see what Nancy will do this season.  This suburbian mommy/dealer was in over head at the end of last season. 

I hope I don't forget to watch it.

Showtime   10:00 p.m.
http://www.sho.com/site/weeds/home.do

10 Things I Could do Without

Not in any particular order

1. Whiney people.  Really, your life is not that bad.
2. People who don't signal when chaning lanes or turning. 
3. Subbing your toe.
4. Burping without excusing yourself. (GROSS!)
5. Soggy cereal.
6. Waking up early in the morning.  I love my slumber.
7. Telemarketer phone calls.
8. Slow internet connections.  It drives me crazy.
9. Liter.  Again totally easy to fix.
10. Danielle from the 'Real Housewives of NJ'- I didn't want to add her to my list because it give hers attention but no one reads my blog besides me so it's ok.

10 Things I Love

Not in any particular order.

1. My "Easy Button" at work.  It always adds the perfect touch and sweet satisfaction when finishing any task.
2. Our Netbook.  It is a lifesaver during the school year.
3. Rolling over to the cold side of the pillow.
4. A new pair of running sneakers that feel awesome on the pavement.
5. Crossing things off lists.
6. Watermelon and strawberry Charms Lolly Pops.
7. My $5 sunglasses from JR warehouse.
8. The first summer night that hits 65 degrees.
9. A quiet house and a bubble bath.
10. A great glass of red wine.  It really can take you anywhere. 

Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th a day potentially filled with mayhem and unusual happenings.  Even though I have a calendar brain, live off of one at work, and plan most of my life around one- I forgot that today was Friday the 13.  (until...) Until, things just started to suck at work today, which didn't take long.  I believe I was at work for about 12 minutes before I got the call that changed the whole day.  Managing a staff is no easy task and today proved to be a challenging one.  Besides being told I "look tired", which is always uplifting to hear when you are cranky, the issues were pretty typical.  A "no call, no show" followed by one of the lamest texts I have read in a while from an employee/friend.  A reoccurring issue with this employee.  On the surface it seems pretty straight forward as to how to deal with this but it is never what it seems and there is always way more drama underneath it all.  I am not sure why I was so surprised by the events of the day.  I do know I was hurt and my stress level spiked.  I thoroughly appreciated that I work where there are 85 miles of hiking trails because I wanted to escape the office and walk all of them.  A quick jaunt down one foot path helped calm my nerves and face the impending situation.  I tried to fake the next couple of hours with the rest of the staff and put on a happy face.  Which wasn't too hard since they are all pretty cool and I really appreciate all of their quirks and hilarious ways.  I was able to catch up on the random guest gossip and sat at lunch with my hand over my mouth in disbelief of someo of the things I was hearing.  The demise of the employee/friend is still in the process of being decided by the higher ups but either way the whole thing is a mess.  Shifts for the weekend and all next week have to be covered- this is never an easy feat.  Of course while doing this I realize I made mistakes on the staff schedule for next week and have to make more phone calls, send out even more emails while crossing my fingers and telling myself it will all work out even though we have 90 kids and over 400 guests in house almost every night next week. Just when I think thinks are starting to settle my computer decides to let a virus onto the laptop I use at work.  I internally freak out and get in touch with IT.  Of course they masterfully take charge and fix it.  The dorky part about the whole thing is apparently a new way "worms" or "hackers" (whatever) are getting into people's computers are through craft ads, lol!  I was looking up punch tin patterns for Christmas crafts and my computer went psycho!   CRITICAL was flashing in red letters.  What does that mean?  Is my computer going to melt?  Great!, I thought this is just what I need.  It was resolved and actually wasn't as big a deal as I initially thought.  Eventually the day went back to business as usual and the clock struck 5:00 p.m.  I grabbed my bag and headed out the door.  I was having friends over for dinner tonight so I was really looking forward to that and leaving my stress at work.  Thankfully my awesome husband took care of the grill and with the help of my guests the meal came together- and I was able to pull off a 8 min power nap while I waited for them to arrive. 

Now I am sleepy and should probably start to head in.  Hopefully I can start writing on a daily basis but I am not putting any pressure on myself. 

Good Night!

The first one...

To begin this journey I feel like I should reveal myself through my manic brainstorming and the creative streaming that goes through my head. I hope I can do that, we’ll see.

First here is a small list of hobbies I have dabbled in; learning Italian, crocheting, head band making, gardening, jewelry making, flower arranging, amateur photography, attempting to learn piano, running, party planning, scrap booking, comedy video productions, sewing, coaster making and soap making. (and so many more things!!) All of them attempted half through compulsion and half through trying to find a creative outlet. Like many things in life they all seem to run their course and then I am left with boxes of supplies, instructional books collecting dust, and a failed desire to finish half started projects. 75% of the time I wholeheartedly believe I am going to start a small scale business by making, creating, or offering my services out, “getting discovered”, and then having my own official website, TV show and brand. Alas, reality and or boredom set in. "They" say to become an expert at something you have to put in 10,000 hours doing one thing. I think on average, since I was 9 or 10 years old, I have probably only put in 100 hours on every hobby I have attempted. It is so discouraging to read that but kind of hilarious at the same time. This is why, because I know it won't stop me from searching out new crafts, scouring the book shelves of the local bookstores to help with my newest "big idea", hoarding pages of magazines with the newest ways to cut flowers for a centerpiece, books to read in the month of September, or shoes to buy.

With all of that being said, I would like to make a toast to many more projects, daydreams, and discoveries. Salute!