My brain is going to explode

Sometimes, it really does feel like my brain is going to explode because there is so much going on. So, I was at work on Wednesday and I got a call from Parkland Hospital regarding my resume. They wanted to set up an interview for Friday morning at 8:30, so we did and I just arrived at work after the interview. So, the position at Parkland is for a social worker in the NICU department working with very sick babies and their families. It sounds like a great job in a very fast paced environment which really interests me. They said they have 4 candidates including me and that they hope to make a decision this time next week (so next Friday). I think that I will take this job over the one at SAFY if I am offered both. The one at Parkland seems a lot more interesting and pays a bunch more, which sounds very appealing. So, either way, I am hoping to be able to give my two weeks at this current job at the end of next week. One thing I was worried about for the Parkland job is the commute with all the traffic, but it seems that you can take the train from Arlington straight to Parkland. I think that would be so great, save time, gas, the environment, and the heartache of sitting in rush hour traffic.

Ok, on to wedding stuff. All I have to say is if you have the money to hire someone to take care of your wedding for you, YOU SHOULD. So, we have an appointment with another location tomorrow at noon in Richardson. Then, I am driving back up to Plano on Sunday to go to a bridal show with my mom at the Hotel Intercontinental. That hotel is our best bet right now as far as a location because they have June 18 available and can hold all the people we want to invite. Anyway, next Saturday, we have an appointment scheduled with them at 3:30 after my parents meet Michael's dad. I feel like I am driving to plano more often than I am driving to work. :) anyway, hopefully we should have a freakin date for this wedding soon and I can start taking care of some of the other stuff related to the wedding from the privacy of my own home instead of driving all over the world.

Well, last night, I got that silly overwhelming feeling that I hate. I guess thinking about these job interviews and how much I hate my current job and the wedding and constantly driving to plano and trying to get my apartment cleaned this weekend since Michael's family will be staying there next weekend and trying to be supportive to my sister since she has her Homecoming dance tomorrow night has all really gotten to be too much. I really just need some down time. All I am asking for is one day with nothing major scheduled. Anyway, I guess I can't complain too much, but since this is my blog, I am going to. :)

Well, I am looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow before we have to head up to plano. Also, I did get a chance to vote this week. It was super easy, I just went to an Elementary school right by my house. I really think Kerry has a good chance of winning. Anyway, I am off to get some paperwork done.

The Presidential Horror Show

If you HAVE seen The Rocky Horror Picture Show, you MUST check out The Presidential Horror Show. If you have NOT seen The Rocky Horror Picture Show, you SHOULD and you SHOULD ALSO watch The Presidential Horror Show. It is damn funny!!!

Thoughts on change...

This weekend went pretty well. I went to Houston with my parents and my sis to visit my aunt and cousins. It was a nice trip, but it was also very hard. I really do miss my uncle and that is always harder when there is something happy to celebrate like an engagement. My aunt and the kids were very happy for Michael and I, but it was so hard not to be sad that my uncle was not there also. My aunt gave Michael and I some money for our engagement and I told her that was very unnecessary, but she insisted that my uncle would have wanted us to have it. She told me that life is short and we need to enjoy every minute of it. It was definitely a hard trip full of many tears. Even though, it was still nice to see them and offer whatever support we can. They are going to come up for Thanksgiving, so I am looking forward to that.

About the job...I am still waiting to hear from the agency I interviewed with on Thursday. They said they would get back to me either way by Tuesday, so I should be hearing from them any time now. I really do hope I get this position.

On the Peace Corps...We talked to our recruiter last night and we got some not so good news. Basically, they have decided that they would like newly married couples to be living together and married for at least 6 months, so they will not consider us for placement until January 2006. At first, I was really pissed off about this because I have already completed part of my medical packet which is a very intensive, time consuming process. I also had to put in a bit of money to get all the medical stuff done. anyway, it seems that the process is now on hold. I am still pretty pissed off for the delay, but I also think it will be helpful to have several more months in the states after we get married. This extra time will allow us to recoup after the wedding, take a honeymoon if we would like, and still save for the Peace Corps. It also allows us to spend another holiday season in the states before we head off. We have so much planned in the next year that I think it will be good to have a few more months to take care of everything. That being said, I am still pissed off at the way the Peace Corps process has gone. It seems that we have tried to do everything they ask and yet still we are getting the short end of the deal. So, we are going to ask our recruiter how we can make sure this does not happen the next time around, so we can be sure and head out in Jan of 2006.

Well, with the extended time we have here, I am really hoping I get this new job since I am certain I will not be able to stand the job I am in for another year and 2 months. Anyway, I can only hope for the best. I think this delay has been especially hard for Michael because this is something he has wanted for so long. At first he was planning on leaving this coming January, then we pushed it back to July and now we are pushing it back to next January. It kind of feels like things are on hold. Anyway, I guess a wedding and getting married and living together are all things we have to look forward to in the coming year. I am certain we will make this year the best ever. Anyway, I am off to continue staring at my phone in the hopes that it will ring and I will get offered this new job. :)

It's been a few days...

Things have been busy, but good. Let me fill you all in. Well,the talk with my parents went well on Saturday. Michael and I visited with them from noon till almost 7 in the pm. We did some talking about how we all wanted the wedding to go and discussed the guest list and ceremony and stuff. We agreed on most things. There were a few things we disagreed on, but we compromised a bit and worked it out. We spent some time driving around the area looking at sites for the ceremony/reception. We have narrowed it down to three places right now. I am in the process of contacting them to see if the date we want is available, June 11, 2005. Well, my parents did say a few things that didn't make Michael and I so happy, but all in all, the meeting went very well.

Yesterday, Michael and I went over to Mark and Nat's to watch Monday Night Football. We had a great time, as usual. I cant remember a single time I have gone over to Mark and Nat's and didn't have a blast. Anyway, it was a lot of fun and it was great to catch up with everyone. I feel like I haven't seen them in so long. Scott was there too and it was great to see him also.

Well, I am still looking for a new job. I have an interview on Thursday morning with a treatment foster care agency in Arlington. It doesn't pay much more than my current job, so I will see how the interview goes. I would like to learn more about my specific job duties and how the company operates and much more before I switch positions. I am also holding out for Dallas ISD and Parkland Hospital because both those jobs pay more than I am making now and sound very interesting.

On the wedding front, we are looking to have the wedding on June 11, 2005, but it all depends on what location we can find that is available that day. It seems that everyone and their dog and cat want to have their wedding in June. So, we will see how that goes. For some reason, I feel sort of stressed out. I think it is just constantly waiting for people to call me back. Like, I am waiting for the wedding coordinators from these specific locations to call me back and I am also waiting to hear from these job opportunities. Anyway, I think part of it is also that I really need some down time. I still have the same cough I had two weeks ago. :) This weekend, I am waking up at 7 in the am on Saturday to drive to Plano, so I can join my family in Houston. We are going to visit my aunt and cousins there. I am not looking forward to the trip because we wont get back till Sunday night, but I am looking forward to spending some time with my cousins. It is the least I can do after all they have been through with their dad passing away. Anyway, I guess I will have to wait till next weekend for some down time. I cant wait to just lay in bed all day, maybe get up to eat and watch TV, that is what I would like to do next weekend. Anyway, I am off to counsel some kids.

Please don't forget to vote. Early voting started this week. Let's make a change.

Thoughts on the debate and other musings...

I was pretty pooped again last night and I fell asleep at about 9:00 with the debates on in the background. I did see most of the debates and here is what I thought.

First thought was, I like Kerry's red tie, next thought, why are they both wearing the same red tie?

It seems that Bush would laugh anytime Kerry had anything to say about him. Is he really an older man or is he just a 12 year old in an older man's body? That is the question.

Kerry is the bomb in that he can memorize a million statistics and more. I admire that because I am shit when it comes to memorizing stuff. It seems that Kerry really did his homework when it came to stats and such. Bush, on the other hand, was only able to keep spitting out the same damn facts, like the monkey he is.

I think Kerry made a few excellent points that I can really admire. I like when he stated that his faith guides him to make decisions, but he would never want to push that faith onto someone else, therefore he thinks abortion should remain legal. Right on, Kerry.

A positive and negative note for Kerry here. I like how he seems to believe that homosexuality is a choice. I loved that question, by the way. But, I am very, very upset that he opposes gay marriage. Leaving that to the states is not right. If he believes in fairness and equality and the sanctity of marriage, then let whoever wants to get married regardless of their genders. I'm jumping off my soap box now. :)

Now, back to Bush. He kept trying to give Kerry these one liners, but instead of it working, he just kept sounding like a fool.

Well, overall, I think the debate went well and I believe all three debates are going to really help Kerry out. I know it is possible, but I just can't imagine reelecting such a buffoon as Bush.

On another note, I have decided to go ahead and begin my Peace Corps medical packet since I am now looking for a new job. I might not be here in a month when my insurance kicks in, so I decided to go ahead and do it at the University Health Center at UTA since you can use that for up to a year after you graduate. Anyway, I would rather just get it done with and not have to worry about that during this job hunt. Well, I am really looking forward to this weekend. The only major thing we have planned is to go to my parent's place on Saturday, so we can begin discussing these wedding plans. I would also like to see I "heart" Huckabees this weekend. It is playing at the Magnolia here and it sounds like a great movie. Otherwise, I need to get some much needed R&R in this weekend. Anyway, I am out.

I am still recovering...

well, my legs and back are still sore, but i am recovering well from our vacation. Last night, i was so tired, I decided to skip my Spanish class and head home to sit on the couch. I was so exhuasted that I didnt even eat dinner. :) anyway, today has been another slow day at work. I did have plenty of time to search for jobs. I applied for several jobs today that sound interesting. I applied for one as a social worker at a hospital and one as a counselor at the community college here and another as a social worker in dallas isd. anyway, for those of you who do not know, I have decided that my current job is just not for me. There is just way too much down time and I really dont feel like I am making a difference. I didnt get into the field of social work for the money, I got into it so I could feel good when I went to work everyday. Even though there are only 10 months or so till we take off for the peace corps, I would rather enjoy my job for those 10 months than do what i am doing right now. So, I have decided to seriously start looking for another job. I feel like I can be very thorough and take my time since i still have a job and an income. So, I can take some time to look for something I really want. Though, I feel that if I stay in my current job too much longer, I will lose all motivation and enthusiasm to do anything. :) anyway, wish me luck. The job search begins again.

We survived the mountain...

Well, we made it out alive and we had a fabulous time. My four day weekend was totally and completely wonderful. I met Michael at the ring store after I left work on Thurday. We checked out my new ring and it is going to be beautiful. It is not perfect just yet, but when it is finished, I am certain it is going to look great. Then, we headed to the airport to drop my car off and then we started the trek to amarillo. We didnt feel like pushing it all the way to amarillo, so we spent the night in Childress of all places. It is quite a small town, but all we did was sleep there, so it was all good. We finished the trek to amarillo in the morning and spent some time with Michael's mom and got some lunch with some of his old coworkers. It was a nice time. Then, we headed off to Albuquerque to see Miriam. We arrived there in time to watch some of the debates before heading out to dinner with Miriam and her family. We crashed at Miriam's place that night. Her home is wonderful and I love how she has decorated it. We took off pretty early in the morning and got to catch some of the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta from the highway. There were a million hot air balloons all over the sky above the highway as we were leaving Albuquerque. It was fabulous. We spent some time shopping and site seeing in Santa Fe and we stopped in to see the Georgia O'Keefe Museum. I really do love her work. I bought myself another print for the house. Michael and I also bought some kick ass thumb rings that you can fidget with without even taking them off your finger, so that means I will never lose it when i am fidgeting with it. :)

Then, we decided to head off to the mountains to start our backpacking trek. This is where the real story about this weekend begins. :) The drive to our backpacking trail was beautiful. The mountains in the Santa Fe National Forest are amazing. The trees were all wonderful shades of yellow and orange. It was truly a sight. Well, we arrived at the base of our trail, packed our backpacks and were ready to go by 6 in the pm on Saturday. We started up the trail and a few hours later, we started to panic because we hadn't found a place to camp yet. Basically, we have been climbing up this mountain at the side of a cliff for two hours now. So, Michael spots an area that he thinks might be a clearing higher up, so he climbs this steep part of the mountain off the trail to see what he can find. We are in luck, there is a clearing up there where we can set up camp for the night. So, this means that we have to climb up this mountain with our packs on. Now, this is not easy feat, but we did it. I think I was actually as scared as I was when I was climbing the side of a rock at Enchanted Rock several years ago. Anyway, we set up camp, make some food and hit the sack. We wake up in the morning and pack up camp and continue our trek to Lake Katherine. Well, we continue to climb and climb and climb. we stopped for some tuna lunch and then continued to climb. There was one section of the trail that was amazing. we were walking through an aspen forest where the trail was covered with yellow aspen leaves. It was breathtaking. Well, we finally get to Stewart Lake, which is at about 10,000 feet elevation. Now, mind you this is not our destination, but we are so tired, we decide that this will do for a camping spot. Our intended destination was Lake Katherine, which was at an elevation of 13,000 feet and 3 more miles up and I just didnt have it in me to continue climbing. So, we set up camp at Lake Stewart and did some fishing and cooking and stuff like that. Michael even took a dip in the ice cold water because our camping pots bag flew in the water. he is so crazy. Anyway, there are many stories about the escapades we ran into while at Lake Stewart, but this post is already way to long. So, in the morning, we began our trip down the mountain. Through part of the trip, it started to snow and it was so amazingly beautiful. I couldn't believe how great it looked. Anyway, we made it down the mountain in about 4 hours. It seems it is much, much, much easier to climb down the mountain than up it. Well, we headed to Albuquerque and showered and packed for my flight at Miriam's place. Then, we got some dinner with Miriam and I headed off for my flight. i made it home at about 11:30 last night and am back at work today. I am very, very, very tired and super sore from our journey, but it was a super, amazingly wonderful 4 days. Well, as soon as we get some pictures developed, I will try to scan some and send them out so you can all see how beautiful the santa fe national forest is. well, I am off.

Things are STILL as crazy busy as usual

Well, these last few days have been quite busy. I had my Spanish class on Tuesday night and that is still going quite well. I am not picking up the language as fast as I would like, but I think I am doing pretty well. Yesterday, we ended up going out to dinner with some of Michael's coworkers instead of going to visit my parents. We decided to stick with the previous meeting time of next Saturday. Dinner was fun. Michael's coworkers seem nice. They did talk quite a bit about nursing since they are all nurses, but I think that is always the case when you go out with coworkers. Last night, we watched Lost when we got home from dinner. We actually recorded it becuase we really like the show. It is a new show about some people who are stranded on this island/jungle because their plane crashed. It is pretty suspenseful and thus far it has been interesting. This morning, i woke up super early to pack for our trip. We have quite a busy evening ahead of us. As soon as I get off work, i am heading home to pick up a few other things and finish packing, then we have to jet over to Village Jewelers because they have completed the computer design of my engagement ring and the stones have arrived. We are going to make sure the ring is what we want and we are going to pick which stone we want them to use. Then, we have to head over to Love Field Airport to drop my car off so that it will be waiting for me when i get home. Then, we need to grab something to eat and hit the road. I am not sure if we will make it to Amarillo tonight, but if not, we are cool stopping to sleep somewhere in between here and there. I went to Academy Sports during lunch to buy some rain gear for this camping trip since it looks like there might be some rain this weekend in Santa Fe. I bought a backpackers poncho. It is super cool because it protects me and my backpack from the rain. I also bought a pair of quickdrying pants, so if they do get wet, they can dry super fast. Anyway, i am super excited about this trip. It is going to be nice to get out of town for a few days and do some sight seeing and spend some time with nature and my honey. that always helps to clear my mind. I feel like things have been moving way to fast lately. I need some down time to just enjoy life and relax. So, I dont think I will post again till Tuesday. But, get ready for a nice post on Tuesday relaying all the events of our wonderful trip. Well, I am off.

Well, things can't always be perfect...

So, I have come to realize all too well that life does not always go the way you would like it to. I am so excited about getting married, but it seems that the wedding will be a whole other story in itself. It seems that weddings bring out the worst in families. Everyone wants to do it their way. The way I see it is that I would love everyone's input, but in the end the major decisions need to be made my Michael and I. We have already decided how we would like to do our ceremony and that is the most important part of it to us because that will be the most meaningful part of the wedding for us. The rest of the stuff we are much more flexible and willing to compromise on. I am beginning to wonder if this weddding is going to cause problems, then maybe it would be better to have a smaller ceremony with just close family and friends. The problem with that is that I love all my family and friends and I would love for all of them to be there. Anyway, I am hoping that my mom and I will be able to find a happy ground and some compromise regarding this wedding.

Well, the weekend went well. Michael's sister and her family are so wonderful. They are a very nice, simple family. She has two boys (7 and 9) who are way smart. She is an accountant and her husband stays home to homeschool their two boys. We played video games, board games, went to the park and threw around a few boomerangs, got some dinner, looked at home videos of Michael as a young boy. It was a great time, very relaxing and very laid back.

I spent Sunday with my sister up in Plano. She took me out to lunch to celebrate my engagement, we did some shopping and caught a movie. We spent a lot of time talking about the wedding and I asked her to be one of my maids of honor. I have decided that I just cannot choose, so i have decided to have two. Who cares about tradition. Michael is going to have two best men also. Anyway, she said yes, of course and seems very excited. We saw Wimbeldon, which was an ok movie. It was nothing special, but it was a sweet romantic comedy. Anyway, it was very nice to spend some quality time with my sister. When I got back to Arlington Sunday night, I spent some time doing laundry and groceries and stuff. Michael cooked some dinner while I put together our new spice rack. It looks quite cool. We used to have all these spices just spread around on the counter, now they are nicely displayed in a space saving spice rack.

I spent some time today trying to get myself ready to have the big discussion with my parents. We have decided to get together on Wednesday night. My parents dont want to wait till next weekend, they would like to discuss wedding logistics sooner. I didnt really feel up to it today since my mom and I had a huge fight this morning, so Michael and I decided that Wednesday would be best. I am hoping it does not take too long because i have to get back here to pack for our big trip. Michael and I are heading to amarillo, albuqerque, and santa fe this weekend. I took off Friday and Monday (unpaid of course since i have no vacation time yet) and we are going to stop in and see his family for a bit, maybe get some lunch with some of his old coworkers. Then we are going to head off to albuqerque to see Miriam for a late dinner. Then, we are going to do some backpacking/camping in Santa Fe. I am excited. This is going to be our last big trip of the year. We are hoping to start saving for the wedding and the peace corps. Well, I think that is all I have for now. Peace out.

TGIF, baby!!!!

I think this has officially been the longest week ever. Things at work have been going fine, but still sort of slow. I did see all my clients this week and I think I am really making some good progress with many of them. I have been sick most of the week, so that has made it pretty tough also. I am feeling better today, still not perfect, but better. As soon as I leave work, Michael and I are going to head off to Oklahoma to visit his sister. I am really looking forward to meeting her and her family. I am feeling a bit tired, but I am sure I will be able to rest on the drive up there. Well, I have been doing a lot of research to try to fine the perfect place to have our wedding and reception. I have found several locations in the DFW area that look beautiful online. We are planning to go look at sites in a few weekends with my parents. I hope we can find a good site soon, so we can actually have a date. That way I will have an answer to everyone's questions. Well, there are some rowdy kids outside of my office, so I am going to see what they need. I'm off. Have a great weekend.