My Comments
I posted a comment on my sister's blog to a post she made (it won't let me link the post, so see April 9th) about voting for the next president. After typing it, I thought it worthy of a post on my blog. Let me just be clear that my thoughts are that you don't have to separate your religious views with your political beliefs, but political beliefs should be such that they provide for the common good of the world. Anyway, I certainly don't expect everyone to agree with me, but I welcome any responses you might have.
♥
Woohoo! Obama ‘08!! Thanks, Irisa. I think with making a choice on who we elect to the presidency is all about prioritizing what is the most important issue to us personally and as a country at the moment we cast our votes. As important as pro-life choices are to me, I must say that abortion rights is not the most dangerous and globally important issue facing our country at the moment. It’s so important to remember that the presidency does not involve legislation, so if we want to change abortion laws we need worry about electing officials that can actually change the law AND answer directly to the people - legislators (aka Congress)! So, write your senator and become involved in state elections if you want to change the law on abortion, but be socially and ethically responsible by electing a president that can truly change the sad state of this nearly god-forsaken country - for us and our children.
♥
Busy little bumble bee
It's been a while since I posted, I know, but I've been working these very weird hours (no more 8-5 for me!), so when I get home at sometimes 12:30 am, I'm usually in no mood to re-hash my day in writing! Work's been great, though. Only one more week before I start my real training - that is, for the job that I'll be doing at my "home store," as we call it. That will be in Bevery Center, which is in the heart of Beverly Hills and has a nice view of the Hollywood sign from the rooftop foodcourt. So, I'm pretty excited about that. Right now I'm working in Arcadia, just near Pasadena, and it's pretty cool, too. It's very weird to drive to work from the beach and see mountains when I step out of my car.
This is where I work:
And this is the view from my work:
Pretty neato, huh?
I have been doing stuff (that doesn't cost money, as I'm broke as a joke - moving to this expensive city and being jobless for 2 weeks!) since the last post. Let's see...Last Friday night, after work, Guillaume and I saw the Clippers play the Denver Nuggets at Staples Center, which was pretty cool. The arena's not as large as I thought it would would've been (I think the Alamodome might be bigger, in fact), but it was still a very cool game, and every seat (even our nosebleed Section 300s) had a good view of the court.
We didn't do much for Easter. We had planned to make a quiche, but some work friends of Guillaume's invited us to a barbeque in the late afternoon, so we did that instead. It was very good, but I'm still waiting to try Melynda's delicious quiche recipe!! I'll let y'all know how that turns out! But, life on the west coast has been good so far. I met a girl at work that lived in Austin for 4 years with a friend, which was really cool! She said she needed to move away from LA for a while and chose Austin, which she said was a very good choice. I didn't ask her why she moved back home to LA, but I'm curious to find out, so maybe next time I see her I'll ask. Oh yeah, and Guillaume's dad booked a flight for the 25th of May to come visit us here in Long Beach, which is totally awesome! And, Gui's friends who visited in Austin, Anto, Sev & Bapty are all coming around the same time to visit, too, which is just marvelous news. Now, if Irisa decides to make the trip for my birthday, that'll just be icing on the cake! Anyone else?!!
This is where I work:
And this is the view from my work:
Pretty neato, huh?
I have been doing stuff (that doesn't cost money, as I'm broke as a joke - moving to this expensive city and being jobless for 2 weeks!) since the last post. Let's see...Last Friday night, after work, Guillaume and I saw the Clippers play the Denver Nuggets at Staples Center, which was pretty cool. The arena's not as large as I thought it would would've been (I think the Alamodome might be bigger, in fact), but it was still a very cool game, and every seat (even our nosebleed Section 300s) had a good view of the court.
We didn't do much for Easter. We had planned to make a quiche, but some work friends of Guillaume's invited us to a barbeque in the late afternoon, so we did that instead. It was very good, but I'm still waiting to try Melynda's delicious quiche recipe!! I'll let y'all know how that turns out! But, life on the west coast has been good so far. I met a girl at work that lived in Austin for 4 years with a friend, which was really cool! She said she needed to move away from LA for a while and chose Austin, which she said was a very good choice. I didn't ask her why she moved back home to LA, but I'm curious to find out, so maybe next time I see her I'll ask. Oh yeah, and Guillaume's dad booked a flight for the 25th of May to come visit us here in Long Beach, which is totally awesome! And, Gui's friends who visited in Austin, Anto, Sev & Bapty are all coming around the same time to visit, too, which is just marvelous news. Now, if Irisa decides to make the trip for my birthday, that'll just be icing on the cake! Anyone else?!!
Long Beach, La Creperie & Mexican Food
Guillaume and I have really started to explore our new city. We really got lucky with the apartment we found so close to the beach and an amazing little area called Belmont Shore, which is very reminiscent of the new areas around 1st & 2nd streets in downtown Austin. There are tons of coffee shops, hole-in-the-wall and gourmet eateries of every genre and clothing & shoe boutiques galore! With a side-order of sand and ocean. It's really wonderful. We've decided to take advantage of our coveted location and explore a little bit each day after work. I got home early from work on Tuesday, so as soon as Guillaume made it home, we decided to do some exploring. I had noticed a bar a couple of blocks away called "Brit Bar," so we thought we start with a drink. The place was pretty dark inside, and the bar was expectedly empty at 6:00, with the exception of a few regulars. We sat at the bar and ordered a couple of beers, telling the bartender that we'd just moved to the area and were checking out some local places. He welcomed us and served our very cheap happy-hour drinks. It took me a few minutes, and I didn't really make the connection in my brain until Guillaume whispered in my ear, "this is a gay bar." Looking up at the neon signs with rainbows, the rainbow colored backsplash of the bar and the two guys sitting cozily beside us, I finally made the connection. Ah ha! But it was cool, and so was the bartender. We just sat there, had our drink and told him we'd be back...at least I would be! ;) I keep forgetting that Long Beach has a very large gay & lesbian demographic, but I guess it's not something I regularly think about.
So, after our drink, we decided to check out the beach at sunset. It really is a lovely city. Too bad Guillaume's camera is broken, otherwise the pictures might have been much nicer. That is on my wish list, though! ;) It was really very cold this evening...maybe somewhere around 50 or 60 with the wind blowing, but it was nice nonetheless. After our little trip to the beach, we headed to 2nd street, which boasts all the fun little eateries and shops in Belmont Shore. I've made a list of all the good places to eat that I've read about on Yelp, and La Creperie was pretty high on the list. This is for good reason, since both Gui and I really enjoyed our crepes (I had the chicken curry crepe, he had the carbonara crepe and we split the nutella & banana crepe for dessert). We both decided that the dishes were very very good, but the crepe was more of an addition than a main focus of the dish (am I sounding a bit like an Iron Chef judge?...because that's what I'm going for). We were both surprised to see kir on the menu, too, but it turned out to be our only disappointment of the meal when it came out as a huge wine glass with chardonnay and a splash of cassis. But, it was still an overall 5-star experience. Can't you see the content in Guillaume's eyes?
Today was my day off, so Gui and I met up for lunch. Trying to appease my craving for tex-mex, we decided give good ol' mexican food another try after my very dissatisfied experience with chicken tacos at El Torito. I'm glad I did. Although the food wasn't EXACTLY what I'd hoped to get at this hole-in-the-wall mexican joint in Cerritos, the beans were yum and the cheese in the enchiladas masked any unfamiliar ingredients. It definitely ain't mom's home-cooked goodness, but it'll have to do for now. I really need to get those family recipes down, by the way!! So, now I'm at my favorite little coffee joint around the corner, enjoying my hazelnut coffee, waiting for Guillaume to get home from work. I think we might try sushi tonight, but a guy just walked in with a Hooter's shirt on and we've both been pretty excited about checking that out! (Hey, the wings are good and the girls are funny!) We'll see...I know my little honey is tired, so maybe after a little nap. I must say that we have also been enjoying meals at home...like frozen CPK pizza, tomato salad and creamy brie with toast (that's all what we had last night). We'll have to balance out our dining out with dining in more, but it's just so hard with so many wonderful places to try only footsteps away!
So, after our drink, we decided to check out the beach at sunset. It really is a lovely city. Too bad Guillaume's camera is broken, otherwise the pictures might have been much nicer. That is on my wish list, though! ;) It was really very cold this evening...maybe somewhere around 50 or 60 with the wind blowing, but it was nice nonetheless. After our little trip to the beach, we headed to 2nd street, which boasts all the fun little eateries and shops in Belmont Shore. I've made a list of all the good places to eat that I've read about on Yelp, and La Creperie was pretty high on the list. This is for good reason, since both Gui and I really enjoyed our crepes (I had the chicken curry crepe, he had the carbonara crepe and we split the nutella & banana crepe for dessert). We both decided that the dishes were very very good, but the crepe was more of an addition than a main focus of the dish (am I sounding a bit like an Iron Chef judge?...because that's what I'm going for). We were both surprised to see kir on the menu, too, but it turned out to be our only disappointment of the meal when it came out as a huge wine glass with chardonnay and a splash of cassis. But, it was still an overall 5-star experience. Can't you see the content in Guillaume's eyes?
Today was my day off, so Gui and I met up for lunch. Trying to appease my craving for tex-mex, we decided give good ol' mexican food another try after my very dissatisfied experience with chicken tacos at El Torito. I'm glad I did. Although the food wasn't EXACTLY what I'd hoped to get at this hole-in-the-wall mexican joint in Cerritos, the beans were yum and the cheese in the enchiladas masked any unfamiliar ingredients. It definitely ain't mom's home-cooked goodness, but it'll have to do for now. I really need to get those family recipes down, by the way!! So, now I'm at my favorite little coffee joint around the corner, enjoying my hazelnut coffee, waiting for Guillaume to get home from work. I think we might try sushi tonight, but a guy just walked in with a Hooter's shirt on and we've both been pretty excited about checking that out! (Hey, the wings are good and the girls are funny!) We'll see...I know my little honey is tired, so maybe after a little nap. I must say that we have also been enjoying meals at home...like frozen CPK pizza, tomato salad and creamy brie with toast (that's all what we had last night). We'll have to balance out our dining out with dining in more, but it's just so hard with so many wonderful places to try only footsteps away!
My first day
Today was my first day of training for my new job. I was so excited about it and left 2 hours in advance to ensure an early arrival. Well, Mapquest screwed me over and I got lost for 30 minutes before actually realizing it, so ended up being late by 20 minutes...grrrrr. So, despite my late arrival, I got thrown right into the mix of things and could see that this was going to be the fast-paced environment I had really been craving! Everyone was cool and calm, but definitely busy - just like I like it! I had the typical admin stuff to sort out, but then we got down to the nitty-gritty. My first 2 weeks of training will be on the sales floor. I absolutely LOVE this idea...in my opinion, there's no better way to train someone than from the ground up, even if the position is management or the like. You've got to know what everyone does that contributes to your job, and this style of training is such an asset for attaining success in any position. Anyway, my trainer was trés cool and incredibly efficient with the training bit. She was definitely a better trainer than I think I would have been, and I totally give her kudos for that! It's hard to remember all the things that you need to teach someone who knows absolutely nothing about your daily routine. And, indeed, I learned so much. The best and worst part of training on the sales floor is seeing all the new clothes that you want to immediately buy for yourself or someone else. I couldn't help staring at this cute yellow dress hanging on the rack, and made it a point to walk by it every chance I could, just to sneak a peek. I promised myself I wouldn't buy anything from the store for the first 2 weeks, so short glances and subtle hand-grazing are all I'll have to appease my craving, for now.
The rest of the day was a blur, and it really flew by so quickly. I was told I'd have short, 6-hour work days instead of 8-hours since I'll be getting paid for my travel to and from work during the training sessions. That's such a cool benefit...and did I mention the others? I won't because they're so numerous, but anyone who's interested in working for an awesome retailer in SoCal, they are definitely hiring!
:)
The rest of the day was a blur, and it really flew by so quickly. I was told I'd have short, 6-hour work days instead of 8-hours since I'll be getting paid for my travel to and from work during the training sessions. That's such a cool benefit...and did I mention the others? I won't because they're so numerous, but anyone who's interested in working for an awesome retailer in SoCal, they are definitely hiring!
:)
Pinkberry
Our newest delightful discovery in our lovely LBC neighborhood is the trendy new Pinkberry that recently opened up in the area. I was told that it's a local favorite (by local, I mean born in L.A.) that keeps the crowds coming in droves, so I was a little worried about getting in and out. To my surprise, it wasn't crowded at all, and we were able to find a table and 3 chairs to sit and enjoy our pleasantly tasty yogurt (and smoothies for Gui & Albert). There was an interesting sign on the door that forbade photography in the store, so here's a picture that I found online of what these little yogurt delights look like. I got the original with mango and bananas...YUM! (P.S. Yes, that's Cap'n Crunch! They have all kinds of goodies to choose from.)
Orientation
Today was orientation day for my new job. I had to go in to sign my offer and see what my training schedule was going to be, but they also had me get orientation out of the way while I was there. I'll be training for 7 full weeks before actually starting my job, which I'm really looking forward to. I've never been in a job that provided so much training and preparation beforehand, so it should be very interesting, and I'm really excited about it! At the start of the orientation, I was given a huge Bible of a Career Guide that I was told I would live and breathe by once all was said and done. It was very informative, indeed, and it definitely gives me something to do while I'm waiting to officially start my training on Tuesday. I'll be training for 2 weeks at a store in Arcadia (close to Pasadena), then 4+ weeks at the store in Beverly Hills, which is where my first interview took place. The new store that I'll be working at in Topanga/Canoga Park will open at the end of May. I'm becoming more and more impressed with the company and am totally pumped about starting a career there. I still can't help but feel like someone's going to tell me that this is all a joke, or that they'll change their minds about hiring me...it just seems unreal that I'm actually working for a company I set my sights on as soon as I started job-searching in the L.A. area. I'm hoping my dubious feelings will subside once I start getting my hands dirty and begin my training. So far, everyone's been incredibly helpful, positive and just all around cool. My hours will be a little wacky, though, and there's already a conflict with the Clippers game Gui and I have tickets for next Saturday (which is Irisa's bday, too) and my work schedule for that day, but it might work out. It will be hard to lose my weekends since those are the only days Guillaume and I get to spend entirely together. But, I'm hoping my schedule won't include too many weekends, and if it does, we'll have to deal with it, won't we? This is gonna be a whole new ball game, but I'm totally ready to play!
Long Beach
So, Albert and I took a trip to the beach close to our apartment today. We didn't stay for it, but we wanted to see if it really was within walking distance and if it was worth a visit. We found exactly what we'd hoped for: beautiful sand and sun only a stone's throw away. The beach isn't the best beach in California, but it's definitely good enough for a Texas girl used to the dark, often dreary gulf beaches of South Padre and Corpus Christi. We came back to the apartment to meet Guillaume and took him down to see what we discovered. He took a few shots of the beach while we drove by, on our way to Trader Joe's (By the way, Trader Joe's is THE shizNIT! Guillaume found some of the best French wine - according to him - for only $10 a bottle, and they have all kinds of good, organic cheeses, syrups and sodas...even San Pelligrino Aranciata that I had everyday while I was in Italy...for super-duper cheap!!!!! Totally going to be my new hang-out). So, here are the pics...not too great, but just a 2 min. drive from our place.
You can't really see the sand in the pictures, but there's tons of it...I'll be sure to post more after we go to to beach this weekend! : ) Can't wait!
You can't really see the sand in the pictures, but there's tons of it...I'll be sure to post more after we go to to beach this weekend! : ) Can't wait!
Back in the loop
Sorry about the lack of posts this past week. It's been an adventurous time with lots of exciting moments and some good news. First off, I had 2 interviews scheduled for early Tuesday the 27th, so my brother Albert and I set off for California on Sunday morning around 5:30 am...we had a few delays with the car trailer, but we were still able to avoid major traffic during the day. We had planned to stop to rest somewhere in Tucson before heading out again on Tuesday, but after driving past the city we decided to head towards Phoenix and look for a place to stop on the way. We attempted to stop at a shady hotel in the middle of nowhere, but made a quick u-turn after realizing it looked like one of those creepy places out of a hitchcock movie. After talking to mom on the phone, we made a determined decision to just drive the full way through. I wasn't too tired at the time, and when I began feeling a little drowsy, we pulled over to a truck stop for a quick nap. Just as I was setting my phone alarm for an hour later, Guillaume called in to let me know he was home from San Francisco. He also told me that someone had broken the back window of his car while it was parked at his office in Cerritos. I was pissed! Who does that?? It's obvious the person driving his 1995 P.O.S. Saturn isn't someone who has money to throw away on buying a new window! Grrrrrr. So, needless to say, I was no longer in the mood to sleep at this point and we headed back out on the road. We finally made it to LA after a nice traffic-filled freeway commute from the north at 4 AM!!! Yes, even at 4 AM, LA has freakin' traffic! When we finally made it home, our truck and trailer were too big to fit down our little one-way street, which resulted in another adventure that took us around the neighborhood, down alley-ways and finally in our driveway to unload the junk from the truck. Phew!! What a day! At 9 AM Albert and I were finally able to catch some zees, but I couldn't sleep for more than a couple of hours before I had to get up to organize the new mess in our living room and kitchen. Fun, fun!
Since our arrival, we've found a nice restaurant and bar that serves amazing seafood just down the street, we've done some grocery shopping at the famous Ralph's (not my favorite place; I think we'll try Trader Joe's next time), completely organized our new living space, and done a bit of exploration around the 'hood - including a stop at Carl's ,Jr. Today, I'm taking my little bro to the beach that's a few blocks from our apt. I'll give a full report of that later.
As for my interviews....they both went really well. My first interview was with my preferred job, and I was really stoked about it. It was a pretty informal conversation, with typical questions about past experiences and such. It ended well, and a 2nd interview was scheduled for Wed. My other interview on Tuesday was with an asset management company, which went unexpectedly well, too. It was a very laid-back interview, and the job seemed to be much cooler than I had originally thought it would be. They told me they'd defintely be in touch for a second interview and thought I was the best candidate that they'd seen so far. I was really excited for both jobs!! But, yesterday I had the 2nd interview with my preferred job and it seemed to really go well. While I was making dinner with Guillaume last night, I got a phone call from my interviewer who offered me the job (which I readily accepted)! It's such a great feeling to be employed again and in the job that I had set my hopes on attaining when I moved here! It's sure to be a company I'll grow with and one that I expect to be very happy working for. So, I'll start with orientation tomorrow and begin training for the next 7 weeks on Tuesday. The store will be opening in the Westfield Mall in Topanga, and will be a 2-story store with over 100 employees. It's not very close to where we're living now, but I plan to be closer to that area after a few months. Exciting times are ahead!
Since our arrival, we've found a nice restaurant and bar that serves amazing seafood just down the street, we've done some grocery shopping at the famous Ralph's (not my favorite place; I think we'll try Trader Joe's next time), completely organized our new living space, and done a bit of exploration around the 'hood - including a stop at Carl's ,Jr. Today, I'm taking my little bro to the beach that's a few blocks from our apt. I'll give a full report of that later.
As for my interviews....they both went really well. My first interview was with my preferred job, and I was really stoked about it. It was a pretty informal conversation, with typical questions about past experiences and such. It ended well, and a 2nd interview was scheduled for Wed. My other interview on Tuesday was with an asset management company, which went unexpectedly well, too. It was a very laid-back interview, and the job seemed to be much cooler than I had originally thought it would be. They told me they'd defintely be in touch for a second interview and thought I was the best candidate that they'd seen so far. I was really excited for both jobs!! But, yesterday I had the 2nd interview with my preferred job and it seemed to really go well. While I was making dinner with Guillaume last night, I got a phone call from my interviewer who offered me the job (which I readily accepted)! It's such a great feeling to be employed again and in the job that I had set my hopes on attaining when I moved here! It's sure to be a company I'll grow with and one that I expect to be very happy working for. So, I'll start with orientation tomorrow and begin training for the next 7 weeks on Tuesday. The store will be opening in the Westfield Mall in Topanga, and will be a 2-story store with over 100 employees. It's not very close to where we're living now, but I plan to be closer to that area after a few months. Exciting times are ahead!
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