Onward and upward

Mood: apprehensive
Music: "Lorelei" by Styx was the last song in my head

It's an interesting time of year, September. Things are starting, things are ending, the short is getting colder, and a general mindset shift occurs. A lot has happened in the past month; namely, lots of responsibilities. I start this entry from a train platform on my way home. It's late, dark, and cold, but I don't feel as bad as I should be.

I somehow found myself a member of the Board of Directors of my chorus as the Treasurer. I was asked, out of the blue, and I took the position with little thought. I have much to learn yet, but it's already made an impression on me, and possibly on my career. (More on that next.) Tomorrow I'm supposed to help compile financial data for some grant applications. I don't exactly know what I'm doing yet, but I hope it helps.

I had an interview last Friday. The position at hand: one of three open slots for regional IT store support. I would be responsible for up to three stores' technological needs: PCs, networks, registers, scales, and managing one person per store. And on-call hours. Quite a lot of responsibility, but an almost double pay raise. (But it wasn't much to begin with anyway, and it still isn't much now, relatively speaking.) And I shouldn't have any trouble getting work afterwards when I move on.

I had only three days to prepare. Serendipitously I scheduled a mock interview for two days before the real one, which helped me out a lot. When I told all my coworkers that I was applying to move up, everyone was very encouraging and supportive, which helped my confidence a lot as well. I thought I did alright in the actual interview, but you can never tell. I won't know for sure until Monday.

I bought a MacBook Pro off of some dude from Craigslist. The price was unbelievably low ($380), so I immediately suspected some sort of catch. And there were two: no install disks, and applications quit randomly. I'm not even sure the programs on it (Adobe CS, Logic Pro, MS Office, and the operating system, for that matter) are legal. I'm going to have to spend some quality time (and money) wiping the hard drive clean and learning the quirks of OS X, but I figured that it was high time I learned to do it anyway, since I will need it in the future for my career.

So there's a whole lot on my plate right now, and even more if the interview went right. For now, though, I just need to get to bed fairly soon. I'm now on a train headed to Penn Station, and looking at a two hour layover at the Port Authority. At 1am on a Saturday night. Why does this sound so familiar? Oh, because I've done this exact thing before. Groan. Here we go, another long night in the city.

New Month's resolutions

Song in my head: Ben Folds "Landed"

I'm trying something new this year. Instead of doing one overarching grandiloquently impossible resolution, I am giving myself twelve smaller ones, with a new one introduced cumulatively each month. My goal by the end of this exercise will be to come out a better person than I came in: a person with good habits. As a consequence, each progressive month will be more difficult than the last, since everything is cumulative, but the hope is that the month of daily practice will be enough to make the good habit second nature. The monthly resolution can (and should) be small and doable in scope. Without further ado:

January: no more escalators or elevators (within reason).
This was pretty easy, and a good one to start with, since this kept me going into February.

February: reduce sitting time, especially at and to/from work. This took slightly more willpower to accomplish, but doable. This meant standing up when printing at my desk (which I do on a daily basis) and not sit or lean on anything when waiting for the bus.

March: I wanted to start a daily exercise regimen, in anticipation for the summer, but I failed epically by spraining my lower back. I taceted this month.

For some reason, I was convinced that this home workout regimen I saw in an infomercial would work best for me, so I shelled out the dough and gave it a shot. On the first session, I squatted too low for my back to support, and I collapsed into a pathetic pool of failure on the basement cement floor. I can honestly say that was one of my best and worst moments: me writhing in pain on the cold floor for an entire night until my alarm clock rang the next morning. At that point, I gather every trace of willpower from every fiber of my being and excruciatingly got myself to sit up and eventually stand on my feet. My father took me to the urgent care clinic (I refused the hospital), and got a week and a half off from work. Not my the happiest week of my life, let me tell you.

Long story short: lumbosacral sprain taught me to set the bar low each month.

April: no more taking the car to the bus stop. This forced me to plan my mornings so I had ample (or for me, just enough) time to walk my way to the bus stop going to work. Getting up earlier was a bit of a struggle at first, but now I've changed my daily rhythm enough to accommodate.

May: breakfast. Every day. I'd been skipping breakfast regularly, and knew that it needed to change. I didn't need much in the morning, just enough to tide me over until lunch, but I definitely needed something. So I bough a box of Clif bars and ate one every morning. And it worked! I felt less sleepy in the morning, and I gorged less at lunch. I also started taking a daily fish oil supplement.

June: reduce and eliminate overtime at work. This was tricky. I'd be accruing overtime monthly by missing punch times a couple of minutes at a time, enough sometimes to get an extra hour of overtime pay each paycheck. I knew this was a bad habit I needed to break, and fast. So in the last hour of work you can always see me hauling ass and scurrying about, in a mad dash to get as much done before I clock out at 6pm. It worked for a while, but I usually ended up working past punch-out, just to get things done right. So I essentially broke a rule to avoid breaking another. This one is still a work in progress.

July: embarrassingly, brush my teeth daily. Through my efforts, I had neglected to brush my teeth on a daily basis. It was gross. (I did floss on a regular basis, however, lest you think me a boor.) This is totally appropriate because I found out just a couple of days ago that my biannual dental appointment is this Saturday. Hopefully I won't have any cavities this time around.

I'll write another update when August comes around. Geez, time flies when you're too busy working to notice.

A year later

Wow, it really has been a while since I last visited this blog. Lots has changed.

For one, I'm writing this in the bus because I'm stuck in traffic at the Lincoln tunnel, as usual. But I finally have a smartphone to call my own: an LG Nexus 4. Traveling with in in Canada was a challenge but I've had very few problems with it stateside.

For two, I've been working in the city as a data administrator for just about a year now. It's really helped me get out more. And the money, while paltry, is enough to get by for now. At least I'm really enjoying what I'm doing.

Speaking of what I'm doing, I had an interview yesterday for a data entry position at the regional office. I didn't get the job, but I got some more very valuable interviewing experience. Permits me time to really evaluate where I'm going, where I want to go, and what I should do to get there. I learned that I would enjoy a job where I'm on my feet doing more technical work, rather than be stuck at a computer in a cubicle all day. At the very least, this means I have a LOT of work and proving to do.

Hopefully this new mobile app I'm using will help me blog a lot more.

a sporadic late-night update, as usual

mood: sleepy/meh
music: "Tired" by Adele, only because the CD I ripped it from kept skipping

It seems like the only time I can find to update this blog is when I really shouldn't, because right now I really should be sleeping for an early start tomorrow: leaving the house by 7am to get mom to work by 8am, and me to work by 9am. Yes, I'm still driving my mom's car and taking her to and from work most every day. And yes, I'm still a cashier at ye olde local Whole Foods. But more on that later.

Right now, everything's mostly okay. Sort of. Student loan debts are slowly being paid, and most of them are current, which is due in great part to having three paydays last month. Now, with my very first federal tax refund, I can keep the ball rolling; that is, unless I happen to fuxx0r up somewhere, somehow. Money's tight in the family all around: federal taxes hit my parents especially hard this year because they had to take from their 401(k)s last year to pay my brother's lawyer fees (but more on that at a later date). The sis is finally scratching her itch to move out and be on her own. I don't blame her: she's been nothing but helpful financially to the family since she started working, and even with her contributions, she is confident enough in her finances to get her own apartment (at least, with an old friend from high school) in the city. The bro is still at home, as lazy and unresponsive as ever, until his fiancé (carrying their baby (surprise! no, literally, it was a surprise for everyone)) comes over, then suddenly he's affectionate and happy. And me: I contribute what I can, from chauffeuring mom to and from work and cooking whenever I can (as opposed to wasting money on take-out), to keeping the house in good order, inside and out. There's a lot going on, and not everything is hunky-dory, but life goes on.

But on to happier things! With the spring came lots of changes to the garden. Last December I slaved over a new planting bed that bordered the edge of our property. I planted a daffodil naturalizing mix, white tulips, a couple of peony divisions from an overgrown planting, coreopsis, miscanthus, Russian sage, and crape myrtles. (I was going for a pinkish-bluish-white theme, with a splash of red. That was the best I could do without a color wheel handy.) And since late March everything has been blooming nicely, with plenty of daffodils and tulips to enjoy; I even cut my first flowers and put them indoors, which I think is a milestone/rite of passage for gardeners. There were a great many kinds of daffodils in that naturalizing mix I planted: white ones, yellow ones, doubles, orange-centered ones, pink-centered ones, big ones, and really tiny ones, but they all smelled amazing, especially indoors. And right about now, the tulips are looking rather stately, in an elegant row at the edge of the bed. Next to bloom are (thankfully) the peonies, which already have large buds. (Sorry, not pictures of anything yet: I'm still too poor to buy a camera. Maybe when I get a better job, I can finally afford a good one to last me a good while. For now, use your imagination!)

And the ch-ch-ch-changes keep coming! Almost a year into my job, I'm finally starting to move up and get recognized. I got involved in a committee to make the store better, I volunteered to revamp an old reference book, and now I'm training new guys. I even got a raise: 60 cents/hr! Huzzah! And recently I was hired to help "green" up the dismal state of our sustainability efforts, and was encouraged to apply for their leadership development program. What that will translate into dollars, blood, sweat, and tears I don't know yet, but it all sounds exciting and promising.

With all this recognition, however, I can't help but wonder if I can find a better job elsewhere. Sure, I'm getting cred and lots of experience in a company I like that is going places and doing awesome things, but I know I can so much better than the paltry $10.60/hr (plus benefits, admittedly) I'm currently getting. This may just be some grass-is-greener thinking, but it may be high time for me to seriously consider a new job, since I'm in a much better position now than I was this time last year.

Speaking of plans, a re-evaluation of my goals is in order.

1. Last February I scheduled my A+ Essentials exam for M 14 May, which gives me only THREE (!) weeks left to study. Holy &^&$%#, it's crunchtime!!!
2. I've been pretty bad with sticking to my study schedule, so I'll have to double up my efforts if I don't want to waste my hard-earned money. Both the Ides of March and Friday the 13th have passed, so I have no more excuses. Hopefully I won't have to resort to cramming the night before, biochem-style.
3. I need to start applying for Tier 1 helpdesk positions. I've been eyeing this one job listing for ZocDoc for a while, and I really should get around and actually apply for it.
4. 50%? How about 6%? I managed that. This goal was rather unrealistic.
5. I've been slacking on the keeping-up-with-technology effort. I could go for days without using the family PC. Does my iPod touch count?
6. A month ago I installed some more memory, does that count?
7. Chinese? What Chinese? This fell by the wayside almost instantly. This could seriously use a good routine and a ponderous smackeral of discipline. And lots of confusing Cantonese AM radio.
8. Pssh. Not enough time for that.
9. I gotta call up the local community college and snoop around.
10. Nope. No volunteer opportunities outside the city.
11. As of this moment, I weigh approximately 191 lb. I'm (still) a fatty. But I bought a digital scale, does that count?
12. Not until some loans are paid off. And I'm in better shape.

So, yeah, there. Lots of things going on, so I need some rest. Good night!

it's the end of the year as we know it

mood: sleepy but rested?
music: "it's the end of the world as we know it" Great Big Sea cover

... and I feel fine.

Wow, how time flies by. I've been working at the local Whole Foods for more than seven (!) months now, and I can't believe I'm still surviving, but mostly I can't believe I'm still in the same job. By now I'd have thought that I would be somewhere else (a big pharma corp or a soul-sucking office, perhaps), but nope, I'm still here.

And still a cashier. Be that as it may, I'm told I'm actually a good cashier: people look for me when they check out, I get rave reviews, I'm due for a raise, and I'm getting promoted to full-time status soon. (Besides, I think everyone has had a stint in retail at some point in their lives; I consider it a rite of passage, or a payment of dues.) And I've never really appreciated having benefits until I started working. It started with their 401(k) on day one, then paid time off, and now health/dental/vision insurance! I'll still be covered under my parents' insurance until I'm 26 years of age (thanks Obamacare!), but it's good to have something I can fall back on and call my own; more importantly, it's a step closer to self-reliance and self-subsistence. I guess this is what crawling into adulthood feels like.

And still in debt. Hoo boy, am I still in debt. I'm current with my federal loans, but the privates still hurt, as I struggle to play catch-up on owed payments. And the collectors call multiple times every day; I'm sure that my parents have an idea of what's going on, but it remains unspoken. And I'm sure we're not the only family who refuses to pick up calls solely based on caller ID, where any unrecognized or 800 number is ignored or hung up on; the thinking behind this is that they're mostly robocalls and telemarketers anyway. But back to the debts. I know my credit scores are laughably in the shitter, so I don't even bother to check them. And I don't anticipate having to take out any future loans or buy any cars/houses/yachts/engagement rings/etc any time soon, so I have ample time to be on my best behavior and diligently work to pay it all back in a timely fashion so my credit scores can recuperate. Which could take until my early 30's, but I'm actually okay with that as long as things don't change for the worse.

As the end of the year and, allegedly, the end of days, draws near, I think it's time for a status check, re-evaluation of goals, and some soul-searching. I'm doing rather well at my job, and the higher-ups know it, so as long as I keep it up, I should continue to be more okay. In terms of my career, I'm building up a valuable work history with a reputable company, with a desirable skill-set of (mostly) soft skills, which should get favorable consideration for any customer-service jobs in the future. Optimistically, with the skills and experience I have now, I would have only minimal trouble getting an office or clerk-type job somewhere.

However, looking to the future, I don't see myself working as a secretary for the rest of my days. So instead, the two career paths I am seriously considering now are IT/helpdesk work and landscape/horticultural work. And of those two, IT definitely has more promise, and more cash in the short and long run. So for the new year, my plans are as follows.

1. Schedule the A+ certification exams about the end of March, giving me a good two to three months to study.
2. Take and pass the A+ certification exams. Ides of March be damned.
3. Apply for Tier 1 helpdesk positions.
4. Get a 50% raise at my current job in the next month.
5. Re-acquaint myself with the computer world in my spare time. Moore's Law be damned.
6. Work on building a computer for the family from parts.
7. Re-teach myself Mandarin Chinese, or at least teach myself to read, speak, and listen. Do this by going through the book a little bit per day, and immersion via (Cantonese) AM radio and (Mandarin) Internet radio.
8. Explore the possibility of being an EMT. Go to the volunteer ambulance corps in early January during their membership drive, and see if I can afford the time.
9. Seriously explore the possibility of going back to school for IT or horticulture. Inquire at the local community college. See what financial aid is available. See what they can do for me and what I must do for them.
10. Explore the possibility of volunteering my computer skills at a local nonprofit. Build experience, a loyal clientele who can vouch for me, and show future employers that I care.

and lastly...

11. Get back into shape. Currently, I weigh 190lb. (Thanks a bunch, holiday eating season!) Get down to 180lb by February, and 160lb by May. Accomplish with a combination of running on the treadmill and body weight exercises.
12. Seriously consider enlisting in the Navy or the Air Force. Meet their physical readiness standards by the end of June.

Whew!

As one of my customers told me, this whole "end of the world" business is not really the Apocalypse or the literal end of existence, but just the end of the world as we know it. To be sure, things will definitely change, and from the looks of 2011, 2012 will be an interesting year. Upheavals. Upsets. Toppling of regimes. Governments in flux or threatening flux. Plenty of failures. And maybe the end of days, as many before us have predicted. But whatever will happen, I'll still be here, still keepin' on keepin' on, still in debt, and so will everyone else. Whatever the change, come what may.

the simple things

mood: sleepy, from reading all night
music: "the simple things" from "Hey Arnold!"

I've had to deal with a lot of money matters lately, and it's really made me appreciate the little things in life that we take for granted, that usually cost little or nothing at all. Some examples:

-reading a good book for hours on end (currently reading Memoirs of a Geisha)
-the absolute joy of feeling the cool breeze at the end of a sweltering summer day
-a stunning sunset, followed by the stars at night
-a full night's rest, well-earned after a long day of work
-the first bite of a perfectly ripe in-season melon from the farmer's market
-a day spent blissfully free from electronic distractions
-the refreshing feeling of a gentle summer rain
-knowing that said rain is washing my car and keeping the grass alive

I could go on, but I'd rather sleep on it. Or continue reading, and gently fall asleep.

(did I mention how much I liked sleep?)

cheese and music galore!

mood: hot and cold and icky
music: handel's messiah, and various musicals

On a lighter note, I have way too much cheese to know what to do with. They're all relatively small quantities of select cheeses that were all sold for under $5 each. Each has a personality that may or not play well with others in different applications. So far, I've bought (* = still in the fridge):

Saint Agur (a French double-cream blue - rich and delicious)
Capricho de Cabra (a mild chèvre)
Seaside Cheddar (English white cheddar - a good basic cheese, and cheap)
P'tit Basque (a semifirm sheep's milk cheese - my favorite so far)
3-year Gouda
Camembert
*Piave (an Italian hard cheese)
*Anco Etorki (a firm sheep's milk cheese)
*Istara Ossau-Iraty (a firmer sheep's milk cheese)
*Smoked Gouda (delicious and cheap)
*Asiago d'Allevo
Asiago Fresco (a young semisoft Asiago)
Young Fontina
*Willow Hill Butternut (a firm cow's milk cheese)
*Cypress Grove Midnight Moon (a hard goat cheese - very good)
*Beehive Promontory Big John's Cajun (a spiced cheddar)
*Blue Castello (a Danish triple-cream blue)
*Morbier (semisoft French cheese, the most personality so far)

So, yeah, I've got a lot of cheese. And I'm still looking to try more. Of course, I've tried countless more (it's part of the job), so my job now is to hone my taste memory and sell sell sell.

But what do I do with all that cheese? I can only eat so many grilled cheeses in one day, and I just ran out of bread. Fondue, fromage fort, and mac-and-cheese are definitely options, but it just seems wasteful (I can't imagine putting Taleggio and Alsatian Munster in a cheese sauce, for instance). I should look more into this.

Now time for some job-related research: look for cheese producers that have host of properties that I have to learn, including:
organic,
cow/sheep/goat/water buffalo/moose/mixed milk (from grass-fed animals),
kosher/vegetarian,
soft/semisoft/firm/hard,
washed-rind/smeared-rind/soft-ripened/etc,
low fat,
low sodium,
alpine/monastery/dessert/... ,
and so on.

In other news, I'm starting to prepare for the summer choir audition season by looking for pieces to add to my (admittedly non-existent) repertoire. I already have a book of Italian art songs (which includes a very helpful piano accompaniment CD), and I recently bought a book of musical theater pieces (apparently targeted to classical-style singers). Under my belt so far are a couple from the "Songs of Travel" series by Ralph Vaughan Williams and maybe an oratorio solo or two. Not too many, I know, but I am earnestly looking to fix that.

The main problem is how to learn and practice new pieces: should I shell out bucks for a voice coach, mooch off of music professionals (i.e., past teachers/directors, current teachers/directors, current music students, and/or anyone who can play a piano) that I know, or just try mastering pieces by myself? As a total n00b in the music business, I have no idea.

It finally rained late today, putting an end to the stifling heat. I should follow suit and shower before bed. Goodnight World.