getting by and traveling along

Today was my third day working at Someone's In The Kitchen. Its wonderful! I already feel at home. This is a very good thing because I'm getting sick. My body hurts in ways that it hasn't for years. Though its slightly scary, at least this time I know what causes it and how to care for myself. I need balance and routine so I can stay healthy.

I'm planning a trip home to Illinois for mid-September. I'm hoping that Carl and Leo can come with me. If they do, its a lot cheaper for us to drive than it is to fly. If they don't, it only cost's $80 more to fly than it does for me to drive. I plan on spending a chunk of the trip at my sister's new house up north for Chloe and Jack's birthdays. Then I'll visit CU for a day or two before heading back here. As much as I wish I could tack on a few days down south at my folk's house, that would add an extra 12 hours of driving. I don't think I can fit it all into a week.

I need to spend the rest of today cleaning our house. It looks like a bomb went off in here. I just haven't had the time or the energy to clean this past week. I've either been too busy or too sick. I wish I could afford to hire a friend to clean our house, but its just not in the budget.

Yippy Skippy

Yay! Betsy from Someone's In The Kitchen called and offered me the job I wanted today! To start out I'll be working Part-time running the coffee bar and helping customers on the floor, but she'd like me to take over some of the receiving in a month or so. This means I get to give notice at Seattle's Best tonight. I'm going to offer to stay on Part-time until I go Full-time at the other job. As much as I dislike the people I work with there, I do like my boss and I don't want to let her down when I know she needs my help. Plus, we just had a conversation about assholes who no-show, no-call the other day. I don't want to leave them in a bind, but I don't want to work there either. I start at SITK on Thursday morning, can't wait!

The call couldn't have come on a better day, I was very depressed this morning. I cried myself to sleep on the couch, because I was so lonely today. I often feel out of place in this town. I come from the land of liberals. I find myself sensoring what I say and what I tell people about myself here, far more than I did in Illinois. It makes me sad. Everyone I've met at SITK have made me feel like I'm at home. I'm hoping that continues as I work there.

Well work went mush smoother last night. Last night's shift supervisor overcompensates for the fact that no one else cleans. Which would be fine if she tried to communicate with the other employees about what needs to be done and why, but instead she just jumps everyone's ass and complains. I did get to come home early last night, but cutting me early doesn't help me learn how to close the store. I'm excited about my interview this afternoon, I have wishful thinking that Someone's In The Kitchen will be my new Art Mart.

Which would go a long way to make me feel far more comfy here in RC. I'm in the process of formulating a plan for how to make this place my home. I realized the other day that being out of my routine is a huge part of my being homesick. I'm the only one who can change that. I need to do the things that helped enrich my life and root me in CU. I've begun to look at the things I did when I was living in my studio and trying to figure out how to balance my relationship, and my new role as a "step-mom", while doing those things as well. I'm working towards happiness!

This is a bad sign.....its only my third day of this job and I already don't want to go to work.....Its not Barista work when all you have to do is push a button to make a shot of espresso....there is no skill involved, which sucks all the fun out of the job. Plus....I'm not fond of many of the other employees. They don't take their job at all serious. Two of them actually argued about who was going to show me how to make something because neither of them wanted to. None of them know the recipes. The shift supervisor last night spent the last hour on her butt watching tv out in the cafe.....

I have an interview tomorrow at a store that is a lot like Art Mart.....I really, really hope they offer it to me.

I started off the day in a wee bit of a funk. I'm feeling better now and hope I can hang on to this up swing. My criminal background check finally came back, so I can start my job tomorrow morning. As far as tonight goes, its just me and Leo. Carl has to work a double today at the bar, so me and little man are on our own.

I spent part of my afternoon sewing cute little clutch bags. I was hoping to make curtains today too, but for some reason my machine wants to eat the curtain fabric. I played with the tension setting, but had no luck. Perhaps another day.

I have a booth at the 4th of July festivities to sale my artwork. I hope it goes well. I'm going to start carving a new block this weekend. This one is the image of a teapot.