Happy Anniversary!

I just want to wish my parents a very Happy Anniversary! They celebrate 51 years of marital bliss today. One day, I intend to find my significant other (aka Mr. Right) and hope that we can spend our years making a lifetime of memories together! :)

My Summer Break is Over!

All good things must come to end and that's the case for my summer break. :( This was the main reason why I've been MIA for a few months. I needed some ME time and I definitely got a lot of it!

During my break, which started in late May, I found myself reuniting with three childhood friends. I've known "S" & "C" since the fourth grade and I've known "I" forever (our parents have been very good friends for many years)! We literally haven't seen each other (with the exception of I & S) since high school graduation. We all agreed to get together for dinner one evening and well, the rest is history (or in this case, HERstory)! It's like our friendship resumed where we left off many years ago. During this time, C mentioned that she wanted to try Zumba, so I went along with her and gave it a try. It's a good workout and I really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, a few weeks later, I injured my lower back, which was likely a result of the strenuous exercise plus stress, which lately is a never-ending saga with me. Anyway, about a week later and after having consulted with a chiropractor, my back felt much better. I returned to doing Zumba two weeks later, but shortly thereafter my membership expired. I'd love to go back and do it on a regular basis, but right now it's just not possible. In the meantime, C and I have taken up hiking and will continue to go when we can.

In addition to getting back to an exercise routine this summer, I've been trying to finish a few cleaning projects, which I hadn't been able to do since I've been in school. I still have a few more things to go through and will get back to it during a well deserved break!

Earlier this month, my family--minus my oldest niece--got together and celebrated my sister's 50th birthday by taking her out to lunch. My nephew (my sister's son), who was on leave from the Air Force, was even able to make it. We drove to a neighboring city and enjoyed a delicious lunch outside on what turned out to be a gorgeous day!

Lastly, I finally went back to school last week and let's just say that I'm glad that week is over with! Stress took over the best of me (yet again), but a few days ago I started noticing that things are slowly starting to fall into place. :) This semester is going to keep me quite busy, but I'm looking forward to what could happen as a result of taking the "fun" class!

Ideas...and more ideas!

Have you ever felt like your mind is racing a mile a minute with all these ideas? In the last few months and up until just recently, I've had several of those thoughts come into my mind, which I would like to write about. I have a clear picture of who I'd like to interview and what angle I'd use. However, the next step is to conduct more research and come up with various questions to ask these interviewees. And I already know the perfect publication that I plan on sending my query letter(s) to.

First up, an opportunity that literally presented itself! I plan on taking full advantage of it this week--hoping it isn't too late. Hopefully this interview will take me on to a path of where I'd like my writing to go.

Lastly, I'm considering incorporating other discussions into this blog. I think if I do this it will help to broaden my audience. I mean, you never know who's out there reading my blog!

A New Beginning

"What appears to be the end may really be a new beginning." ~Unknown

I've been a little lax lately in blogging, but once again I've had nothing to report...until now.

Exactly one week ago today was my last day at work. I was at this job for almost two years and was promoted last April; however, the promotion didn't last very long because then the entire organization was affected by budget cuts. After this happened, I wasn't too happy working there. The office wasn't drama-free and I was basically working for "peanuts" now. From that point on, I told my employer that I was going to be looking for another job. Initially when I accepted this position, I was informed that I would only be allowed to work a certain amount of hours. Well, I completed those hours last Friday & they came up before I could say, "Stick it where the sun don't shine!" (Just kidding!)

I absolutely HATE having to look for a new job! It always leads me to analyze what a potential employer might be thinking about when they read my resume. Well, so far I've been on two interviews: The first one occurred a month ago and when I called their HR Department two weeks ago, they said they were in the middle of conducting background checks. This organization plans to drag this out for a while, so I'll continue to wait patiently (*insert sarcastic remark here*).

In the meantime, I've been applying at different companies and actually got called in for an interview this past Wednesday. As I was speaking with the interviewer, she told me about the job and mentioned that she was very impressed with my cover letter. She asked me about my qualifications and I reiterated to her that I'm definitely qualified for the job. One thing I already have going for me is that I live 10 minutes away from their office, whereas some of the applicants have a commute because they live in the Bay Area. Personally, I have a good feeling about this job and I'm intending that I get it because I believe it'd be a "stepping stone" to my future. And if they decide to pass on me, then it wasn't meant to be and it'll just give me an incentive to keep looking. I just hope I can find something sooner than later.

I'm Back with a Downpour of Good News!

Yes, I'm back again from being on sabbatical from blogging! Well, it's been a slow news day these past few months, until about a week ago when I was 'drenched' with some good news!

I had left work a few minutes early last Thursday. Well, when I came into work on Friday, I started reading my e-mails when I noticed one from the director of our office. She was congratulating me on the article I wrote. I then began to wonder what she was talking about. Hmmm...well, the last article I wrote was almost two years ago and it was for class. I was told that it would get published the following semester, but it never did. I had even e-mailed my former instructor to inquire when it would be getting published. She told me that the newspaper had two new editors, so it was up to them as to which stories made it in. Evidently, mine never made it to print until last week! YAY! Needless to say, I told my "supervisor" the good news and she asked me if I'd leave a copy for the office. Well, it turns out a few days ago, she placed a copy of the newspaper, which had published my article, in the lunch room and placed a Post-It on the front page mentioning my article. What a way to embarrass me; however, I did receive several compliments from my co-workers.

Well, you can guess how surprised and excited I was about the article. But I was also not expecting to hear more good news soon after! About three weeks ago, I went to take a job exam and then the following week, I took another exam for the same organization, but for a slightly higher position. Well, this week, I found out the results for both exams and I passed! However, because there is always a high volume of people applying for these positions and taking these exams, you must pass it and have received a certain overall percentage in order to get on the waiting list. Once you pass the exam, you receive a ranking number and wait until your number is picked, and until you're contacted for an interview. Unfortunately, the list only stays active for a few months. And once the list expires, you have an opportunity to take the exam again when it's offered. Needless to say, I ranked #12 on exam one and #20 on exam two. However, soon after I passed the first exam, I received an e-mail informing me that I qualified for the bilingual vacancies and to call them for an interview, if I was interested. Well, I'm still waiting for the call back regarding the interview schedule.

After having been on a job search for the past nine months, I'm learning to have more patience and I believe it's slowly starting to pay off. I'm going to continue practicing being positive and surrounding myself with positivity so that I may reach my goals. I intend that the next path I'll be on is to become employed at one of these organizations. Disclaimer: I haven't given up on my dreams just yet. I have to put them on hold for the moment, but will try to find time to work around them and hope that they will become a part of my future. :)

Happy 2010!

Saying good bye to 2009 is leaving me a little melancholy and sentimental, but saying hello to 2010--the start of a new decade--is giving me hope of possible things to come.

The beginning of 2009 brought me a little false hope of advancement at work. I was going to be given the opportunity to take on more responsibilities, as well as receive better pay. Unfortunately because of how office politics work, I had to wait until early spring to relish in my promotion. However, it was then taken away in July when we experienced budget cuts.

In April, my fellow BH (Blockhead) Sistahs and I got together once again and drove to Fresno, CA to go see our favorite group, New Kids on the Block, perform again. Then in July, my friends and I got together again to attend their Full Service concerts in Concord and Irvine, CA. We had the best time meeting the guys again and getting together to share our childhood memories!

During the summer, I thought that love could be on the horizon when I ran into last crush...only to be given false hope. I learned a valuable lesson from this and it's to make myself happy and to focus on what I want in my life.

Late summer had me saying good bye to my one and only nephew, who joined the Air Force and was on his way to Basic Military Training in Texas. He graduated from BMT in early October, which allowed my parents, sister, two nieces and I to travel to San Antonio to see him graduate and be honored as one of the top graduates! We also got to do a little sightseeing at the River Walk.

Early fall brought me back to So Cal to take my parents to visit my mother's family, including her four siblings and numerous nieces and nephews. I always have a great time with my mother's side of the family. They're what I consider 'crazy' because they know how to tell the right jokes and always reminisce about the 'old days.'

The holidays brought my family together once again, in which we celebrated Thanksgiving with my cousin and her family, at her son's house. Then my immediate family--including my nephew, who was on a two-week leave from the Air Force--spent Christmas at my parents house.

Needless to say, I'm ready for 2010! I have faith that good or positive things will happen in the new year. Here's hoping that 2010 brings you much happiness, prosperity and good health! Happy New Year!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Well, I survived another year! Between my last birthday and today, I found myself spending a lot of time traveling, which I had always hoped to do. I spent most of '08 and '09 traveling up and down California to go see my favorite music group, NKOTB. Thanks to them, I've gotten to meet a lot of new friends and have become addicted to Twitter! Coincidentally, I have been the happy recipient of two tweets by none other than the leader or 'charismatic one' himself, Donnie Wahlberg! He's just as much a sweetheart with a big heart, as is Jonathan Knight, who you all {yes, all three of you!} know I've been crushing on since I was 16 years old!

Earlier this year, I got promoted at my job. I was getting the run-around at work and waited three months until the paperwork finally went through...only for the promotion to be taken away at the beginning of July when the California budget crisis led me to take a major pay cut. :( At that moment in time, I told my supervisors that I was going to have to look for another job, which I am still looking for. Yes, it's THAT bad in California!

Around May, I got reacquainted with an 'old' crush. I got the nerve to stop by his place of business a few times, but never had a real conversation with him. Eventually, my heart got broken yet again a few months later when I saw him with his ex-girlfriend. I quickly moved on.

About two weeks ago, I took my parents to visit my mother's siblings and their families in Southern California and Baja CA. The last time we saw the family was three years ago when we attended my cousin's memorial service. I love visiting my extended family (and yes, I have many, many cousins), who I don't get to see very much. On the last day we were in Baja, my cousin Ben gave and said something to my parents that ultimately made me become an emotional wreck. So up until the time we left, he made fun of me because I was still crying! My Baja cousins ALWAYS make us feel welcomed when we go to visit them. I will blog more about my Baja trip in another blog.

A few months ago, I started experiencing more feelings of regret. I've felt that I haven't accomplished much in my life nor do I get the respect I deserve. I went back to college a few years ago, but am only taking a few classes here and there since I really need to work. I intend to continue with school and complete all the necessary classes so that I can eventually transfer one day, but it may take me a while longer.

I'm not sure what lies ahead for me, but I can only hope it's something good and for which I've worked hard for. My current motto is that I'm going to focus more time in making myself happy. I have yet to see what is out there for me. It may be a new job in another city or traveling. Whatever it is, there may be some challenges along the way, but I have faith that I'll overcome them.

Here is to another year of living with good health and happiness, and exploring all the possibilities that are yet to come!