Accepted

I just got home from house sitting Tony's lovely home in Mission Viejo and it feels good to be back.  I love to get away for awhile and as my mom puts it "play house" with Mike but I miss my own bed, pillow, and furniture.  Most of all, I missed my precious Sassy.  I guess she acts a little weird when I am gone.  She makes sounds in the middle of the night as if she needs her mommy.  So, it feels good to be back!

In other news, I received my acceptance letter from Cal State Fullerton for the Spring 09 semester.  Hooray.  I was 98% sure I would get in but now those 2% fears are put to rest and I can finally get ready for the move again.  This time wont be as nerve wrecking though because I am not seventeen years old, going to drive 45 minutes to school, and not knowing 

what to do with my academic career.  I am now a more confident individual who knows exactly what she wants out of her college degree.  Cal State Fullerton is also closer, cheaper, and more convenient with class scheduling.  I believe this is a good move for me and I am certain that Cypress was the best move I made in my college history thus far.  I have seen so many types of college styles and it will be interesting to see how CSUF works and operates.  As for now I am just working towards that bachelor's degree then we will worry about my master's program (maybe even law school :]).  Let's get through these next two-two and a half years first!

I just finished watching the last night of the Democratic National Convention and wow... I absolutely love Barack Obama.  I have been a fan since the entering of his campaign but tonight strengthened my dedication.  Obama is an amazing speaker and inspiring with his words.  It will be interesting to watch the Republicans next week and the debates coming up.  Politics are so interesting but take a lot of brain power.  I get frustrated, excited, and tense all in the same minute.  Good stuff.

<3

Jewelry Galore!

Yesterday was the awaited date of the Silpada jewelry party.  Karen, one of my co-workers at the office, hosted this great get together.  I tagged Mike along so I could maybe test the champagne punch that Karen had been talking about a week before.  It was magnificent actually.  It was a mix of champagne, ginger ale, pink lemonade, and strawberries.  Delicious.  The party was great with amazing jewelry all around.  The necklaces were elegant, the bracelets to match, and the earrings were phenomenal.  Too bad I was low on cash and could only get one item.  I chose the garnet necklace that features a bunch of little purple stones all around.  Very elegant and sophisticated if you ask me.  I needed a "big girl" necklace like that for special occasions.  It cost me $45 for the necklace, tax, plus ship and handling but it was worth it... hopefully.  Now I await my little package in the mail this week.  

Karen's house was great.  She had an amazing backyard that made you feel as if you were in a Hawaiian resort.  Calm music played the entire afternoon and it was just relaxing.  Good to get away and have fun with the work girls away from the office.  Not only did I meet some of Karen's friends... I also met Clarice and Hannibal, Karen's two little puppies. They were so sweet and adorable.  They just laid flat on the dining room floor as people walked around the jewelry table and minded their own business but they enjoyed a good rub down as well.  Overall, the party was great and we should do it again.... maybe lingerie next time ;)

The Wall, McCormick girls (top: Karen and Deanna; bottom: Julie, Annie, and me).

The hundreds of dollars worth of jewelry... I wish I was rich!

Mike petting Clarice.  She loved him.

Thanks Mike for going!  Mike was surrounded by women... why wouldn't men want to go to a jewelry party?!?!?

Little Hannibal striking a pose.

Clarice was getting anxious.

The yummy concoction that Karen had made for the girlies. 

<3

First Day

Back to the grind.  School is back in session and today was exhausting.  It wasn't the going to school part that was tiring.  It was the getting up and driving part.  Even though I got up the same time as usual to go to work, it was different.  School takes brain energy.  Sounds funny but it is true!  By the time I got to work I was tired!  My body just needs to get back in its "school state" to be functional.  It only takes about a week to achieve this so-called "school state."  

Thankfully, today went as planned.  Got the syllabus for two of my classes and it was relatively relaxing because it was the first day.  You go over what you will be doing for the next four months of your life and think to yourself... How the hell am I going to finish all this?  Somehow I always do.  It just seems like a lot when you are sitting there examining it all, week by week, test by test.  Spread out it is no big deal.  Today was a success and I am really looking forward to this semester.  I love both teachers so far (as far as I can tell in an hour and a half I was with them today).  I already know tomorrow will go well because I have Cavin's philosophy class.  Love him!  That will be fine and dandy and then history.  I'm sure tomorrow will be a breeze as well considering it is the first day all over again with Tuesday/Thursday classes.

Our school underwent a huge make-over this past year and the new parts are finally open and they are absolutely beautiful.  We have a new cafeteria, bookstore, student union, and administration offices.  The older buildings were re-modeled and look great.  Every classroom I have been in has been a great room and looks amazing.  It makes me not want to leave!  I wish I could just get my Bachelor's degree there.  I will have to soak up all the newness, niceness, and loveliness this semester because after December it will be bye bye community college. 

<3

The Office

A lot of people think that I have this amazing cushion job where I go to work whenever I want and barely do anything and get paid for it.  That would be nice but it isn't the case.  Sure, I make a good amount of money for my age and yes, my mom got me my job but I work hard and always put work high on my priorities because I am a dedicated employee.  Over two years ago I got a job as the file clerk position in the mail room from my mom.  She got me the job and they hired me based only on the fact that my mother was an excellent worker so why wouldn't her daughter be?  In many cases, the company could have been disappointed.  My position was a full time position and at the end of summer the then office manager figured I would leave and find a job that would fit my school schedule but luckily there was another opening in the new files department of the office.  I am very thankful that I got to train into that position because that is what I do today.  It can be a part time position or a full time position and I do both at certain times of the year (when I work part time, I rush from school to get to work and work five hours a day).  At one point, I was with another employee and we would open new incoming files together and do secretary projects (integrating letters and medicals into the file, exhibit packets for trial, copy jobs, making sure the file is presentable, etc.).  Somewhere along the way, my co-workers got new jobs and I am now doing a job that usually takes two people on my own.  It is great because I am usually always busy.  The job itself can get repetitive and boring sometimes but I manage.  

Working with my mother is not always the best of times.  If we get into a tiff at home then it carries over into work and vice versa.  Or, we both assume that if we need help with something the other will do it no matter what.  I love my mother in her new office manager position; she is doing such an amazing job and I wouldn't want to work for anyone other but it gets tough sometimes.  

The point is,  the partners at my law firm obviously see potential in me and I do a great job at my job.  I didn't just get raises because my mom got me the job.  She has no real say in how much money we make, it is the managing attorneys who make all the decisions.  I have established relationships with most of them and if I got raises based on being the person I am then great!  I put a lot of hard work into that company and people obviously see that.  It isn't easy working for fourteen lawyers who all want things done a certain way and fifteen secretaries who need projects done and calendar that needs to be perfect or else an attorney will flip because they went to court at the wrong time or the wrong venue.  It can get stressful and it is.  Somehow I manage though, and even after all that hard work people assume I just have a cush job and make too much money. 

It just gets frustrating when people assume you have all this money flying around and think you don't work for it.  I have bills, more than a lot of people my age that I know.  Almost all my friends don't pay for their car insurance or cell phone bills.  Basic bills like that can add up when you work part time and I pay for them myself.  Some may be reading this and are thinking man bitterness but I am just sick of the same comments about how I have this awesome job and I make so much money, when in reality it is all perspective.  Don't get me wrong, I love my job to death but just because I make more than someone doesn't mean I have more money.

Tiny Surprises

Everyday this week has been full of tiny surprises and when I say tiny... I mean minuscule size. Simple things make me happy. I ordered some panties from Victoria Secret online a week and a half ago and even though 3 of the 5 were backordered until 8/22 I still got excited today when my little package was sitting on the dining room table. I also got excited yesterday when my first college book came from Amazon. Even though I paid for it, it still has a Christmas feeling to it. I believe the little things in life are important and I wonder what small surprise will be waiting for my awe tomorrow.

This past Saturday was relaxing with a good ole trip to Jessica's house. I could literally hold my god daughter for days without getting tired or wanting to give her away. She is the most precious thing I have ever held, besides my cat of course. Jennie is the calmest baby I have ever laid eyes on. Absolutely perfect. We just did the usual. A trip to our sanctuary (Target) and came back to her house for some time in the sun and lazing around. That is what we do best on Saturdays. After I came home, after leaving my little Jennie, I was thinking about how long it had been since I had hung out with Adriana. I estimated a good three weeks, which is unusual for us! So, Adriana came over and we watched P.S. I Love You on my laptop and ate a white-washed version of Mexican food. Considering Adriana is full Mexican, it was the ultimate test on my mom's version of Mexican cooking. Adriana approved! She said it was pretty good for it being a white family, even though my father is Mexican... the night was grand. Good company and yummy dinner.

On to Sunday. Mike and I are starting up a new form of exercise and it is this thing called... tennis? I have never played tennis in my entire life and then I went to Chicago this past May and my grandma had a tennis court behind her backyard. There is where it all began. Mike and I usually hike Sunday mornings to get our cardio in for the weekend but we recently bought tennis rackets and drive over to Pearson park Sunday mornings. It was a lot of fun. Embarrassing but fun. We are the only two under the age of 45 playing on a Sunday morning. I think all the twenty year olds are either at church or have massive hang overs from their Saturday nights. One extreme or the other. The foursome next to us were all older Asian men playing doubles and making Mike and I look like fools. A few times we hit our ball over to their side and had to ask them to fetch after it. Whoops. It was all well though. We are going again tomorrow night and are hoping to get better and better as time goes on. After the quick tennis adventure we headed down to Mission Viejo to have lunch with my boss and check his pad out because I will be house sitting for him in a couple weeks. It was fun, we had some brunch, watched Children of Men, and chatted the afternoon away. Pretty soon it was five o'clock and it was time to go. Oddly, my "boss" Tony and his wife are some of the coolest people I know even though they are over the age of 60. They are like grandparents to me. It is really nice how life brings you all sorts of different people for different purposes. Everyone is special in a distinct way.

These past few days have been very emotional for me and I do not know why. I have cried a few times but for no particular reason. It's odd how that happens. I start crying and think to myself... why am I crying?? It felt good though, as if my tears were a release of tension in my body. It also made me tired which made me sleep better that night. Now I know why babies clonk out so good after a good cry.

I got my admission paper in the mail yesterday from Cal State Fullerton. It basically said to send my transcripts from colleges I have completed all course work at. UCI transcripts here they come. I got my e-mail and stuff as if they accepted me already but they haven't. Imaging getting everything ready and all your transcripts are set then you get a denial letter. That would suck. That will not be the case here hopefully. I'm ready to just get in and get it done!

Speaking of school... my fall semester, and last one at Cypress, is starting in six days. I'm real thrilled for this upcoming semester because I am taking all elective courses. I am done will general education but just need units to transfer. I am taking: Geol 130 (Oceanography), Phil 170 (Philosophy: Logic and Critic Thinking), Hist 171 (History of the U.S.), and Soc 275 (Sociology: Marriages and Families). All but the history class were my choices and the Soc is towards my major. Logic should be pretty interesting and I took the professor last semester and he is great. He used to teach at UCI but decided to commit full time to community college about ten years ago because he liked the interaction better. So this should be a great semester.

It doesn't feel like a good blog without some pictures! But that is all for now! =]

I'd like you to meet... Adriana.

<3

Let the Games Begin

How can I not blog on 08/08/08 (I love days like these... I think of how whoever was born on August 8th, 2000 is going to be turning 8 on 8/8/08.  That is awesome for that kid!).  I know I am a little strange. Today is the kick off of the summer Beijing Olympics and I am super excited.  I have always liked the summer Olympics more than the winter ones because I love watching the women's soccer team dominate and gymnastics is the coolest thing to watch.  This year will be no different and I will be taping all the 2am soccer and softball games so I can watch them when I get home from work.  The Olympics are an amazing event that brings all the countries together as one.  Sounds sappy but I still like to believe that there is still good in the world.  

Other than the Olympics starting up today, it has been exactly one year since my brother got bit by the black widow.  For those of you who don't know the story... he got bit and was hospitalized for three days, needing muscle relaxants and vicodin constantly.  That's the story in a nutshell.  To celebrate, we are going to Soak City this afternoon.  It should be fun, as long as we don't think about how much urine is passing by us in the greenish tinted water.  You only live once right?  Hopefully I even up my tan today but I am not expecting too much. 

The Getty

Today was the first day of my vacation with the fambam.  Oddly, I took Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday off this week to spend time with la familia because all four of them are completely off this entire week. Good for them!  So this whole week has been about day trips here and there and today we visited the Getty Museum.  I was thrilled to be going because I wanted to compare the visit to the Art Museum in Chicago.  There was a lot of similarities but The Getty was more beautiful on the outside than any museum I know.  The architecture was amazing and the gardens were gorgeous.  Every part of this "art" museum was truly, well art.  The sculptures and paintings ranged from 100 A.D. to the 1800's.  My favorite part of the whole trip was the pieces of furniture and mock rooms.  I love seeing how much effort and beauty is put into something as simple as a side table.  Furniture is not made the same way these days.  We are happy with our choice of wood (maple, cherry, or oak).  The Italians and French put their artistic flare into all pieces of furniture, silverware, rugs, and mirrors.  It was beautiful.

After we finished up the museum we headed down to Marina Del Rey for some dinner.  We went to this restaurant on the bay called The Warehouse.  Sounds strange but it was a great dinner.  We sat outside next to all the yachts and watched the sun set.  Great night with the family.  We don't get to go out as our party of 5 too often.  It was nice spending a whole day together.  The last time we all went on vacation Josh got bit by the black widow.  The one year anniversary of that incident is coming up this Friday.  It is amazing how that year went by so fast and we still have that evil black widow in a jar in the garage too.  That was a "vacation" we will never forget.  Anywho... I have some pictures for all to see.  They are all in random order but I will have info underneath. 

The kids on the top floor of the Getty.

The king of all day beds.  Huge!

My dad would name this one, "After Jenny Craig."

The amazing artwork and architecture of The Getty.  All floors and walls were marble.

Side swoop.

Down in Marina Del Rey (the view from our table).

I want this in my dining room.  A chandelier from the late 1700's.

My beautiful mom and dad.

Myspace photo in the ancient mirror.  The guard of this room was getting kind of nervous, as if we were going to touch something.  He needed to chill out.

Last but not least... a garden view.

Think Blue (for the night)

I guess I should start off by saying I am a die hard Angels fan and love them to pieces. With that said... my family got four free tickets to a Dodgers game this evening and who could give these up? If you love the game then it doesn't matter who is playing. I hadn't been to Dodger Stadium since I was about twelve years old so this was an exciting adventure. My mom, dad, brother, and I all went to the game tonight and had a blast. There was no expectations and it didn't really matter who won, all that mattered was that we had fun. Truthfully, I was looking forward to the honorable Dodger dogs and I was not disappointed.

There is something about the Los Angeles Dodgers that has a different feel to it than the Angels do back home. There is history to the Dodgers franchise and dedicated fans. I know Angel fans come with their strong spirits as well but not like the Dodger fans do. I also realized how much more simple a Dodger game is. There aren't any funny videos to keep you entertained throughout the game or little Angels girls throwing around peanuts, the game is simple and it's baseball. The big screen is still in black and yellow. Not HD TV or anything but it doesn't matter because no one pays attention to the technology being provided. Everyone is focused on watching the game.

The biggest excitement of the night was the fact that Manny Ramirez is now in Dodger blue. Manny's first game was last night and we got to witness his second. Bottom of the first, Manny hits a two run home run into center field (428 ft to be exact) and the Dodger fans go wild. "Manny, Manny, Manny," are chanted everywhere. I was amazed by how accepted Ramirez was into Los Angeles. It was as if he was there his whole career. I am real glad that the Dodgers got him in a trade because he is exactly what they need for the end of this season and seasons to come. A true boost for the Dodger's franchise.

The whole night was fun and I haven't been to a baseball game with my family (minus Kendra) since senior year of high school so it was good to get back in the groove with them. The Dodger dog was excellent, the game was thrilling, and the fans were wild. What more can you ask for in a baseball game? Dodgers won 4-2 against the Diamondbacks and that was that. For the record... I am 0-4 on Angels games this year that I have attended and 1-0 for the Dodgers. What does that say about me?

Some pictures from the Dodger night: