Thursday, January 29, 2009

Stuff

Here's some thing I've been doing lately

-laying Madden '05 on PS2. ( I have learned that the game stops keeping score once you hit 255 in a game )
-Reading "After All" The Biography of Mary Tyler Moore. Sweet.
-Trying to eat right...which means eating breakfast. It's a good thing I work alone in the morning because for some reason slimfast shakes make me terribly gassy.
-Job searching and trying to stay positive/hopeful.

-Listening to In Rainbows by Radiohead. There are so many layers to this album.
-Watching This Old House. Yes. I really like that show.
-Trying to watch LOST. An apt title since that is exactly how I feel trying to catch up after having never watched the show. I think I'd like it if I could start from the beginning.

I guess that's all.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

The Career Change ( Part 3 )

I am starting to get very frustrated* with the amount of time it is taking for my career advisor to get back with me. At this stage in the game it has drawn out to about a week from the time I e-mail or call him to the time I get a reply. Much like some of my siblings...I do NOT appreciate waiting.

Yesterday I applied for two positions. Both have appropriate schedules,benefits and the like and they also had the added bonus of allowing me to work for a good cause. One was with the YMCA of Greater Williamson County and the other was with The Caring Place. I feel like I should be hearing back from these companies very soon...but I have been wrong before. Once.

It was icy like a mother when I got up to go to work this morning. I knew it must be really cold because my dog Rovy got UNDER the covers on the bed. Not really...but it was cold.

SUPER BOWL! This year's Super Bowl is going to be awesome for two reasons: It was completely unexpected and Arizona is in it for the first time EVER. There are also some really great back stories this year. If you haven't read about Kurt Warner history in football...you should check it out. Try wikipedia. A lesser known play is Sean McHugh. In early September he was cut from the Detroit Lions. Yes. You read correctly. The worst team in the history of football Detroit Lions actually cut come one. Not just any one either. Sean got cut shortly after finding out that his lovely wife and he were to expect another child. They had also just purchased a house. And no he was unemployed, but only for about a day. The following day he was picked up by a little football team out of Pittsburgh. Yes sir! This cat goes from getting cut by the worst ever team in football to playing for a Super Bowl ring. Good story. True story.

I keep having dreams where I end up with alot of money. I am not sure if it is subconscious hoping or just weird dreams...but it sure would be nice if any of those dreams came true. Yes it would.

* I absolutely hate when people pronounce it "fustrated" or "flustrated". Terrible!

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Unrealistic goals in a very real world

Today I returned to work after 3 days off. I enjoyed those three days, but I absolutely hated what I found at work when I got back. stacks of papers reprimanding our store for our short comings. What short coming you might ask. Let me tell you. Last week my store went "over hours". We used 189 hours for the week. There are three managers that each require 40 hours a week to maintain their position. That's 120 hours. There is also a policies that states that no employee is to be in the store by themselves for any reason. So how is it that we are suppose to follow the rules and not go "over hours"?!?!?! If it happens again ( and it will ) the entire management team will be written up...basically given a strike. I also found that I received a personally reprimand for not accepting a return because the item was marked down to $19.99 from it's original price of $44.00 and our policy is all items discounted 50% or more from the original price are not able to be returned or exchanged. So I refused the return only to get an -email ( a very rude one ) stating that "It's obviously not off of the ORIGINAL price, but the last price it was listed at in your store." Funny thing though...the sign says original price. When am I going to learn that in the corporate world nobody ever says what they mean and I must become psychic or risk my job. Awesome.

I just read that paragraph and it may be really lame to alot of people...but I am leaving it for the simple fact that I needed to vent.

The Super Bowl is this weekend and I am very excited.

I am praying really hard for a new job SOON!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

The Career Change ( Part 2 )

Today I received the results of my career assessment. This simple personal inventory tells you what jobs you will most likely enjoy and thrive in. I really like taking personal inventory tests. Is that a job? Can I just do that? No? Ok. It was worth a shot. Anyway, some of the careers suggested didn't shock me at all and others I laughed at due to how outrageous they were. One particular suggestions really got me thinking...until the end. While looking at the list of possible career paths I found Speech Pathologist. Wow. That sounds important. So I read a bit about it and it sounded like really amazing work. In fact, I had a speech problem when I was younger ( it still shows up when I am very tired ) and went to speech therapy for a while. Maybe I would be awesome at this! So I continue to read. Great pay, regular schedule, little to no travel required, and all I have to do is get a PHD in Speech Pathology! Awesome! Needless to say I moved on to the next item of interest. I have a conference call with my career advisor next week at which time he will further explain this jumble of results I have before me and help me sort out the best and most realistic options listed.


In other news, I have the weekend off and I am very excited about this. I don't have any specific plans, but I am sure I will occupy my time in an awesome way.


This just in! Ping Pong is awesome. More to come as we receive details of just how awesome it is.



Wednesday, January 21, 2009

The Career Change ( Part 1 )

As you may have read, I am searching for a career in which I can utilize my education and experience more fully. I have been working with a career counselor to tidy up my resume and give it the attention I am hoping to gain from prospective employers. After I completely resume boot camp and came out strong and ready for the job field, I updated my old resume on numerous job posting sights. Almost immediately I started to receive e-mails informing me that a company had seen my resume and thought I might like to apply for a position they had opening. Usually they are pretty boring jobs and have one or two things that makes them a no go for me. For example:
Sales Manager for a Fortune 500 Company - great job in the long run but the payment is based 75% on commission and since I have a mortgage I am not down with that.
Health and Safety Trainer for the State of Texas - sounds easy enough, but requires you to be traveling 50% of the year. No dice.
I get a lot of job offers like these, but very rarely does one catch my eye ( for good OR bad reasons ) like an offer I got e-mailed yesterday. This particular offer was from the State of Texas Health and Human Services department. The job fit so much of my criteria, too! Great pay, a great set schedule, incredible benefits, and little to no travel. You may be asking your self "Geeze oh Lou! Why did he take the job?!" Well my friend, the positions I was encouraged to apply for was Progress Auditor for Sexually Violent Criminals. Now, I know most of you haven't seen my resume, but there is absolutely NOTHING on it that would make me a good candidate for this job! What must they be looking for?! I think perhaps the only criteria for this job is that you ,yourself, can not be a Sexually Violent Criminal.

As of now I have declined the offer to apply for this position, but I was gracious about it. When I receive job offers like this one it reminds me...maybe selling jeans isn't so bad.

Cheers!

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The President

Yes, today is inauguration day. This past week has been the most coverage that a presidential inauguration has ever received. Hours upon hours of celebrity news casters explaining just why Obama is going to be the so great and why it is that his presidency is So important. All of this talk and hype about this man has been very off-putting and confusing to me. I was raised in a home race was never an issue. Racism was a sin like lying, stealing, cheating, or anything else. I feel as though a lot of what I am hearing and seeing in this excitement about our new president is racism. Only yesterday did we celebrate the life of man that worked so hard to help push our society to a point at which we would all have learned "not to judge a man by the color of his skin but rather the content of his character" and yet so many people wanted so badly to have "a black president". Is that not a judgement based on the color of his skin? His character should be put to question until it is proven as should and has been the true heart of all past presidents. America wants to give it's self a big pat on the back and say "Look! Equality! A black man is our president!" But until we pay no mind what race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation a person is we have not experienced true equality. To me, this is a hollow victory. A surface win.

I want to be very clear that I feel a duty to pray for the president no matter who they are. Also, let us be clear that I do not have anything against Mr. President. I am simply dismayed that our country STILL doesn't understand what it means for racism to be abolished.


In other news, I have been playing alot of disc golf lately and loving it. It's so great to be outside and not sitting in front of a TV or Computer. It's nice not to be a loser. Yep...I totally said that. If you spend all your free time playing video games and watching TV or movies and not going out and experiencing what is outside of your home...I think you are losing out...there by making you a loser. Logic!

If you want to come play disc golf or do anything else outside* drop me a line and let me know. I am down!

*all activities must be legal and not involve nudity or ferocious animals.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Change

No matter your age, your race, your income level, or any other variable, every one must drink the bitter sweet concoction of change. Right now it seems like every one I know is going through a major change in their life. Job changes, church changes, locations changes, relationship changes are all happening right now. For most of us change brings on a dose of stress or worry. I struggle to keep in mind that 99% of the time worrying and feeling stress over a situation will not affect the outcome of said situation. So, for myself and any one else who reads this I would like to share with you something I once read. "Be anxious for nothing, but with prayer and supplication make your requests known to God." I am not a great Bible scholar and I can't tell you where that verse can be found, but for me...the address makes no different. If you will excuse my rough paraphrase, I feel as though this is good saying "Look, you can do absolutely nothing about this situation, so settle down and trust me. I got this." I'm workin on it.

I still really want a boat. My little brother and I have talked about goin halves on one, but nothing has fit the bill thus far.

Today marks the first day of my diet and exercise plan. While I don't think it's ok to complain about the things you can't change, it is simply unforgivable to whine about those that you can. Ergo...I will change what I don't like. Dig it?

Both of the teams I was routing for in the AFC and NFC championships made it to the super bowl. I would now like to make a big point about a controversial subject. To those of you who claim that NCAA football needs to go to a play off system because that way the best teams would play each other for the championship...take a second look! The Arizona Cardinals will be playing the Pittsburgh Stealers for the National Championship. Still think a play off system allows for the best to play the best in the championship? Nope.

Tomorrow, the 44 president of the United States will take office. God bless him and God bless America.

Friday, January 16, 2009

I don't get it

I am 26 years old and I have been told countless times that you can't judge a book by it's cover and other things along that line, but somehow I always end up being shocked and offended when I find out some one I thought was a good person is involved in some terrible activity! ( That was a run on sentence)

My job search is gaining steam. I have now perfected my resume and cover letter and started a contacts list. This list was built primarily by the career counselor at my Alma Mater and most of the employers are Alumni. That seems like a step in the right direction. Not only do I feel that I have the skills to be a valuable member of a business team, but know that I can go into the interview already understanding that my interviewer and I have something in common will give me extra confidence. Nice.

Maybe that's all I have to say right now.

Yep.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Things going on with me

Loving my new home and really enjoying spending time getting everything "just so" and truly making it home.

Taking big steps toward getting into a career that will use my degree.

Working to meet my physical fitness and weight goals.

Playing Madden '05 on PS2 with my little brother. This is the best year of Madden for PS2 because it marks the introduction of "the hit stick" there by making it possible to completely ruin somebody while playing defense.

Playing disc golf. I am still very new to the sport, but I am starting to get it down.

Finding out from the optometrist that I do not have an infection, but that I am actually allergic to the saline solution I have been using. What a lame thing to be allergic to.

Helping a friend of mine work on a property he just purchased. We have decided we could have our own DIY show where we can instruct you on how to put up a new panel of sheet rock in a house with NOT a single level surface! Yeah...it would have to be edited.

Reading "After All" the autobiography of Mary Tyler Moore. She has always intrigued me and the book has not let me down thus far.

Scheming with my younger brother about how we might be able to get ourselves a John boat and spend every weekend chillin' on lake Georgetown. Sweet!

I guess that pretty much sums it up.

What's going on with you?

Monday, January 5, 2009

Prospects and great hope

I want every one to know that since the early part of 2003 I have been happy with my life. Alot of things have happened that made me upset or sad for a short time, but all in all I truly love my life. I have been very blessed. Lately, however, I have felt what I am called "a divine nudge" to take a step of faith and pursue a new career. Don't get me wrong, I am excited about the idea of a set schedule, weekends off, good money, and utilizing the degree I went to school to earn, but I am a man who hates uncertainty. I have worked in retail for 10 years. There is no aspect of this business I do not know, and at the risk of sounding cocky, very few areas of retail in which I am not superior to most. The problem is, I am learning that God demands that we live up to our potential. That looks different for different people, but for me...it looks like pursuing a new career when I am already comfortable where I am. I honestly believe that this is what God wants, and in many ways it what I want, but I am still a bit nervous.

This weekend I get to demo some walls in a friends house and then install new dry wall. I am seriously looking forward to this!

Also, I got a sheet sander this weekend and it is awesome. I sanded down this old trunk and painted it blue and we are going to use it for extra seating and storage in our new back yard. HECK YES!

Very excited.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Lists

So, I really like lists of things. Top 5 lists are probably my favorite lists because they are challenging. It's either tough to come up with five items, or difficult to limit the list to five...either way it's a fun challenge. Here are a couple of my top five lists.

Top 5 Favorite Books
Me Talk Pretty Someday - David Sedaris
The Picture of Dorian Grey - Oscar Wilde
The Giver - Lois Lowry
Heart Breaking Work of a Staggering Genius - Dave Eggers
To Kill A Mocking Bird - Harper Lee

Top 5 Favorite Movies
High Fidelity
Snatch
Saving Private Ryan
The Bourne Identity
Shawshank Redemption

Top 5 Favorite Memories of 2008
My wedding day
Headlining Stubb's on Saturday Night
My Brothers wedding
Closing on our new home
Christmas Eve with the family

Top 5 Places I'd like to go on Vacation
New Mexico
Ireland
Colorado
England
Maine

So, those are some of my lists. Enjoy them and then write your own and posts them as a comment.