One More Week!

School starts next Monday and I am sooo stoked! I absolutely cannot wait to be submersed in culinary classes finally! I think I'll feel a little a little more stable and secure. I'm not exactly enjoying this feeling of limbo.

Apparently, I'm not as awful at frosting cupcakes as I thought I was- after realizing that I was what had "happened to the cupcakes" the girls at work said that I was doing well for having only been working a couple of days! It's a really fun job- the girls are crazy and fun. Still no real luck on the phone confidence...



Some random photo collection to come once I figure out this mystery of a phone...

I Don't Have a Creative Title Today

But things are going really well all the same! The job is magnificent! I'm learning the pricing slowly, but oh so surely. The customers so far have been pretty patient while I ask Stephanie a million and thirty-four questions, but I have the cash register and credit card machine down and I'm almost comfortable enough to answer the phone without hesitation and wincing! It'll take a while before I can handle taking special event or cake orders on my own. People here are unforgiving; a woman last week claimed that we ruined her daughters first birthday because the color frosting didn't match precisely the pink of the table cloth and napkins. Mind you, she never gave us a color swatch... Other than picky picky Plano and Dallasites, the job is really fun! I'm awesome with the sprinkles and practicing my cupcake frosting in the down time! I love our little brown aprons!

Interesting tid bit for your enjoyment: I figured since I've been working and babysitting but not spending a cent of it, I could justify some new tennis shoes. I've had the same pair since the beginning of high school which are now smelly, falling apart, and squeak when I make any movement in them! So I went to the New Balance store earlier to get the help and advice I needed in my purchasing endeavor and found out that my foot sizing situation is a little more ridiculous than I had realized... I knew from buying pointe shoes years ago that my left foot is larger than my right; in the pointe shoes, it was only a half size difference... Today was the first time I've had my foot measured since 11th grade and it showed that my right foot is a 9-9.5 while my left foot is a 10.5-11... Awesome. I've never seen a sales rep so thoroughly disturbed before! He recommended a size 10 as a happy medium, and it works in that it's not too tight on the left nor too loose on the right. I really want to put them on and go for a run right now, but it's a little too toasty out for that. I'll just have to be patient for a few more hours...

Come On Already!

Good night nurse, I'm ready for things life to pick up again! I really want to work and I am so excited about starting classes that it almost hurts! Fortunately, the job starts Tuesday at 10am! And with any luck, I'll come home to a newly carpeted bedroom and study! Then after exactly one month to the day, I'll be able to move myself in... Mom and Pops absolutely cannot wait to get their dinning room back, I'm sure! And I can't wait to have my life organized and back in order, but most of all, I'm excited to not be living out of boxes and bags any more!

Completely unrelated- I love babysitting in this town. People here have too much money and will use it to ensure that you'll actually answer the phone when they call to schedule the next date or appointment. Apparently, I am in high enough demand around here that I can incur $12 per hour as the going rate for the family wanting first place in the pecking order of my calendar... I'd say that's a little gratuitous- $7 or $8 per hour is just fine by me, but why negotiate for less when they want to throw their money at you? Better yet, agree to babysit a few kids from a couple families so all of their parents can go party together- you get paid a solidly huge chunk from the coordinating parents AND have other parents tip you as well! Yeah, that's fine; I'll buy myself a tank of gas and some croutons for a drive on up to Noma off the bonus bucks.



I'm really hungry but having just finished reading Night by Elie Wiesel, I almost feel bad walking out to my excessively stocked pantry and/or fridge in the middle of the night at my own freedom.

It's Official!

I have a job at Tart Bakery! I'll be receiving my schedule by the end of the week and I'll start sometime next week! For the first few weeks, I'll work along side the managers until I feel comfortable and confident on my own. Until then, I'll be studying the menu and learning the pricing; Kristen said that I don't need to worry about precise memorization yet because that will all come along later in time with experience. But it'll be easier on me when I start if I have a decent idea of the dollar range for different items.

I am so ridiculously excited! I need something to do! Since completion of room painting, I've been wickedly bored. Mostly enjoying the novelty of my new bed and phone--either napping or playing... And room reorganization will occupy a substantial part of my time once the new carpet is installed, but that won't be for another couple weeks.

Regardless, I do look forward to working for the sake of working and not just because it gets me out of the house. This bakery seems like it'll be great experience and really good fun! Many long hours on my feet, plenty of smiling and sales, but all exactly what I want to do.

Oh, I can hardly wait!

PS- check out Spiders on Drugs- it's a quality vid :)

The New Gig

It's not official yet, but the interview yesterday went really well at the bakery (Tart as I finally found out it is called)! My hours seem to fit what they're needing, what I was requesting for pay was reasonable, and the lady seemed to like my personality. And when she was talking about different aspects of their business, she used inclusive terms like, "you'll be helping with..." and "we'll need you for..." That's always good, right? We'll see, I guess. I'll be getting a call either today or tomorrow!

I'm really excited; Tart seems like a fun place to work! The Dallas location has been open for something like four years, the Plano location just opened in January. All of the food is made in Dallas and sent over because the Plano location doesn't have a kitchen. God willing, if I get the job, I'll be working behind the counter doing sales and orders. In our down time, we frost cupcakes and glaze cookies. And on weekends, I'll help with events on location! Although, Saturdays will forever be considered a optional thing for my schedule, because Tart understands I'm a student and they want to be able to give me a weekend too! Which might not be terribly necessary granted they're closed on Sundays and Mondays! We'll just have to see about those Saturdays- I'll probably work them anyways, because I'm poor.
Anyways, they also told me that as my education progresses, and I complete the baking unit and the pastries and confectioneries unit, they could find a need for me in the kitchen at the Dallas location! So this job looks like it'll have possibilities for advancing!

It's super convenient that Tart is closed on Sundays because I'm looking into ways to help at church with the youth group! Stacy called me the other day and asked if I'd be willing to help her teach 6th grade girls Sunday school. The answer to that is obvious, no? I love Stacy and I want to help? It was perfect! Now I just want to talk to Tim, find some way to help with choir maybe? Maybe.

It Feels Good

To have a day like today!  First I finished my book, Breaking Dawn (yes, I'm part of the Twilight craze), I scored a job interview (Tuesday 3pm- prayers please?!), joined the c club, and came to a fair compromise with Dad over the vacant room at the end of the hall!  Mom and I also got a jump on finishing up the cleaning of said room so I can paint as soon as Dad provides the paint!

A good day indeed!  Now I'm just chillin' at the Price's with Misty and Onyx, watching Legally Blonde.  The only thing that could possibly ruin my day would be one more stupid Hannah Montana commercial...

The Official Update

Tracy brought it to my attention that "The Norman Life" is no longer appropriate for my life, but "The Plano Life" just sounds lame...

So starting in October, I look forward to searching for a parking spot at the Parker Station for the DART rail system super early, reading all the way into Dallas.  And after a couple of weeks, my kitchen skills will be boss and after a couple months my meals will be delish!  I won't just be knocking around the kitchen like I do now.

Now, it's just a search for a job...  I'd like to be at a bakery, but I'll probably have to branch out more than that.  I just don't want to be waiting tables at Chili's or flipping burgers at McDonalds.

In other news, I love Olympic rhythmic gymnastics!

Pushin' It

Normally, I make it from the corner of 4th and Speight around to Bagby, up to University Parks and over to the flagpoles at the main north entrance to Baylor. In all, we believe that

it is about a mile. I've been running to the flags for about a week and a half, but this morning it felt too easy! So I kept on, making it almost to the north east corner of the campus. It's not a lot more, but it's still further than ever before!

Like Father Like Daughter

Akira farts in her sleep...

Sweet Akira

While I sit here on Tripp's couch, watching Akira sleep without shivering or nervously waking up every few minutes, I have to assume that rescuing a dog from a shelter has to at least parallel with adopting a child. This beautiful heeler mix has spent the past month and a half of her 7 months of life at the Waco Humane Society. They do a great job there, keeping a clean facility and taking care of the animals, but it's obvious that the shelter is not a home.

Between the drugs from being spayed and the shock of being in a new place, yesterday was a very exciting but still over stimulating day for our (technically Tripp's, but I'm pretty sure that becomes a grey area in about two years) new baby girl. She was so tired yet refused to sleep because she was enjoying being loved on so much. When I pulled her up on the couch with me, she was much more comfortable and couldn't fight off sleep anymore. All the same, she'd wake up every few minutes. Every time she awoke, she'd frantically look around until she met either Tripp or my eyes, relax and let herself fall back to sleep... It seemed a lot like she was afraid this was all going to go away if she let herself sleep.

She's an incredibly darling little girl; Akira gives kisses all the time and loves to be rubbed and scratched! She doesn't seem to be much for barking, so that's pretty nice! And I don't think she's much of a chewer, even when they are her toys to chew on! But she's a little neurotic about some stuff- she doesn't like to be approached for petting from above, the idea of ascending or descending the stairs makes her hyperventilate (literally), and moving vehicles send her running (and I don't mean chasing). We don't really have a story of how she ended up in the shelter... My guess would be she was dumped somewhere and was rescued off the streets.

All in all, Akira is settling in well. Her tail is almost always wagging when she's awake! She's even starting to smile...