GASP

In my most recent post, I wrote "wait to HERE back from...". I am HERE to edit said post with "wait to HEAR back from...". And you should know I was mortified to read that mistake. I do apologize for my lack of editing and those of you who, like me, judge people for poor grammar, judge away....

:)

The Waiting Game

Being a new graduate, I could go pro if there was such a team for the Waiting Game. Hey, maybe that'll be my newest job prospect...

I interviewed with the Board of Directors for Junior Achievement on Friday. I feel it went well. Everyone was so nice. Unfortunately my 22 years of age is still working against me, so I'm hoping they are overlooking my "youth" and see the hard-working, motivated employee I will be for them. I'll be in touch with my potential boss at the end of this week, so I'll share what I hear then.

I also did a really interesting article for Orlando Style. Well, the interview part, I haven't started the article part. Two 30-somethings in Downtown Orlando are throwing a huge party to raise money for a patient in one of the hospitals. More specifically, a spinal cord injury patient. They are putting the money toward a new vehicle to make their new life transition a little easier. These women were incredible to talk to and I wish them all the best in their efforts. I may even try to get tickets! I'll post links with information when more is available online, then you can see the work these ladies are putting into it.

In other news, my roommates are here! Grandma and Grandpa arrived safely on Saturday evening. It was nice coming home from work to someone being at the house. And there's actually food in the house! Many of you know I love cooking and food in general, but living by myself with the schedule I keep has left the fridge a little emptier than normal. Grandpa has been busy working on projects around the house that I couldn't take care of and Grandma is getting the house decorated for the season. I spent my day off yesterday laying in the pool reading Twilight thanks to Aunt Joyce. I also made us a version of chicken pot pie that turned out pretty good. As Grandpa said, "it's very different, but good." I have new palates to cook for, palates that differ from my brave sister. Hopefully I'll come up with some things we all like!

This week I'm working on my article, working at the Pub, house/dog sitting for my manager, all while waiting to here back about the job. At least I have some things to keep my brain occupied.

I know what I know

People keep asking me how long I'll stay in Florida. 3 months? 6 months? What happens if you find a full-time, "real" job? How long will you stay then? What is you don't find your dream job?

Here's the answer: I don't know.

This specific journey started for me one year ago. My sights were set on Chicago; that's where I'd wanted to live since I could remember. Chicago prospects came and went. My newly-graduated self thought perhaps the job market would be different somewhere else, hence the move to Florida. Plus, my living expenses are paid for the time being. Now I'm here. STILL figuring out what it is I'm going to do. And no, I don't know how long I'll live here. But here are some things I've figured out so far:

-I have little to no desire to stay in Davenport for an extended period of time. When I'm able to afford it, I'm moving on.
-The South is not so bad. It's wicked hot, but so is Indiana in the summer. And if you're near water, you survive.
-I'm within an hour and a half from the ocean. And I like it that way.
-Orlando shopping is amazing. Having an outlet mall within 20 minutes of where I currently live is spectacular.
-My job at the Pub is fun. The majority of the customers are super nice and the British seem to find me entertaining.
-I do not want to continue serving for an extended period of time. It's nice for now because I'm making easy money to pay my credit card bill. After that, my sights will be set higher than they are already.
-I know I'll miss autumn at home, but I plan to visit during that season. I know I won't miss snow in January, but again, Christmas will be nice in Indiana.

While I don't know what's going on as far as my career goes, these are some of the life things I do know. There are no exciting job updates today. Just the thoughts of a recent college grad who's figuring out her place in the world.

Real Life: in it and waiting for it

This blog may appear to belong to someone who has no clue what she's doing. And that's true. I'm playing it by ear all day every day, but it makes my life a little more interesting.

I'm making money at the Pub. Hooray! I opened a bank account last week, which makes my Florida stay a little more permanent, though I'm not investing too much in this state yet. Time will tell if this is where I'm meant to be. In the meantime, I'm taking steps to become what I call a "real adult". This means having a schedule that doesn't entail sleeping all day and working all night. This means exercising and meeting marathon goals that I can't train for right now because as you probably know, it's about 100 degrees in the middle of the day, which is when I have time to run. (I'm not running, needless to say) This means having health benefits, having a new car and being able to afford the insurance, having an apartment, and paying my own bills. I'm grateful for all the help I have now, but my independence kicks in sometimes and I start hoping for my "real life" to start.

In fact, "real life" called last week. I talked to someone from Junior Achievement about a job and I'm so excited. It'd be a great start for me and I would meet so many people in the community. I would be working really hard, as any non-profit employee does. It would be such a great experience that it'd be totally worth it. Here's hoping I find out more in the next week or so...

While on this quest for my "real life" I took a break and hosted Ladies Labor Day Weekend. A friend from Chicago flew down and a friend from Tampa drove up. I seem to know a lot of guys here, which is fine, but sometimes you just need your girlfriends. Thanks to these ladies, the weekend was exactly what I needed. We shopped, attended happy hours, shopped some more, ate, drank, all of the above. The weather sucked Saturday and Sunday, so our pool time was limited to nighttime hours. We woke up early on Monday to have breakfast at the Polynesian, which has amazing stuffed french toast. We walked out of the Polynesian, still groggy from going to bed only a few hours before, and the sun was shining. There were clouds out, but the sun was there. We shouted with joy in the parking lot and sped home to throw on our bathing suits. We spent the whole day in the pool, it was GLORIOUS. We listened to music, read magazines, napped, and got the neighbors out to be social for dinner. The guys grilled burgers and we supplied beer and dessert. We ended up having a lot of fun, even though we were all delirious from our whirlwind weekend. Altogether, we had a blast this weekend and I couldn't have asked for anything more.

Oh, and when did September get here? Oh well, I guess that means my trip home in October is that much closer :)

The Pub Factor

As many of you probably know, I'm a planner. I like to know exactly where and when my life is going, no matter how many times I know the plan will change. Things almost never turn out the way you expected them to, yet, I naively think I have that much control. My planning trait created my 2-year plan. I made it for financial purposes. I wanted to put down my financial goals for the next two years. Some of these goals include paying off my credit card, buying a car, etc. The only revolving factor was how I was going to get the money to do all this. I'm here today to tell you that I think I found it: the Pub factor.

In my previous post, I mentioned my new job at The Pub. My first few days of training, my manager kept telling that I'll be great, I'll make a ton of money, yadda yadda yadda. You never know until you try, so my first night on my own was a little scary at first. Making sure my tables are happy, making sure my orders are entered correctly, all things that can make or break your night. The night started out super slow, probably due to the first sunny day in a week, meaning the tourists were in the parks all day (as in Disney/Universal/whatever else there is). I knew there would be nights like this, so I tried not to dwell on it. I had a few tables, which I was perfectly comfortable with because it was my first night without someone following me to make sure I didn't screw anything up. I ended up getting cut early, which was also fine. As I was counting out my cash to give to my boss, I realized: I did pretty well for it being such a slow first night. I practically danced out of there with the idea that I could add to the almost-nothing in my bank account. Oh does it feel good to have some cash-flow again...

Now, I'm a believer of retail-therapy, so some of you may be a bit concerned. But having gone a few months with no income at all, I like seeing money in front of me and I don't want to let it go. I'm so motivated that my goal is to have my credit card paid off by the time my next bill is due. And that's a great feeling. It's also great to think that this job can get me the things I want in the next 6-8 months. Obviously, I couldn't do it without the help of the grandparents, so a HUGE thanks to them for helping me get on my feet. I'm sure they'll be happy to hear the money I'm making won't be taking me on luxurious vacations and shopping sprees anytime soon.

So the Pub factor is good. The people I work with are super nice and patient with me when I have questions. The Irish owners are crazy and expect me to drink like an Irishman, which I politely decline. The Pub factor is good and I'm confident it can sustain me for awhile.

During the day I'm working on a small article for Orlando Style. I'm contemplating joining a freelancing website, but you have to pay for it, so I'm holding off for now. Maybe after more research and time I'll be comfortable spending money to make money.

On another note, Purdue starts school today. It makes me a little sad, but at the same time I'm glad I moved away. I think it would have been harder living at home while my sister and friends are nearby going to classes. I miss Purdue, I miss my friends from/at Purdue, and I'm bummed that it'd seem inappropriate to partake in Breakfast Club. But, I'm SO excited to visit at the end of October and reunite with some of my favorite people.

In the meantime, I'm getting used to a new schedule (working late nights, sleeping late during the day) and enjoying my new workplace. I'm also happy Fay has passed and I can finally spend some quality time in the pool.

Hey Fay.

It's been awhile, so this is long.

My days have been spent job searching and laying in the pool. Last week was actually very busy. I had a meeting with the president of Central Florida's Junior Achievement. We chatted for a couple hours and he now knows every detail of my college career. He put me in touch with the person in charge of JA of Osceola County for a potential job opportunity. She's yet to get back to me, but she's running the county herself, so she's a busy lady. I also went for a copy writing interview, which consisted of a human resources person administering a 50-question test to make sure you understand the English language well enough and have some sort of math skill. My math skills = nearly non-existent. I haven't heard back, so either my Purdue degree doesn't make me as smart as I thought I was, or I just don't have enough experience. My bet is on the latter, but it's possible my test-taking skills are rusty.

Friday was a great day. I had a meeting with the editor of Orlando Style Magazine. She briefly looked over my stuff and talked about the magazine, then proceeded to tell me about the position of being a contributing writer (!). She liked me, we bonded over my love of writing about fashion and health. Then she broke the news: the job is unpaid. Right now, the magazine thrives with the help of unpaid contributing writers who work full-time jobs and write in their free time. Basically, this is just like what I was doing at Purdue for HELEN. Which means I don't know any different, so I tell her I'm totally excited to work for them. I just sent her some pitches for November stories and she should be getting back to me soon with story assignments. My writing could be reaching over 180,000 people in the Orlando area come November. (Hooray!)

I left that meeting feeling great and excited about my upcoming assignments. I felt focused on my writing career, thinking about the experience I can put on my resume and how I'll be soaking up everything Orlando Style can give me. Obviously, I need to work somewhere for money, so I start thinking about my options. While focusing on my writing career, it'd be best to work somewhere flexible. I also want to have a life, which I'm realizing would NOT happen while working for Disney or a Disney equivalent. My lovely sister had recently pointed out one job venture I hadn't considered: bar tending.

One delicious hazelnut latte and a sister-convo later, I walked into this little bar near the house. The girl behind the bar looked nice enough, so I asked her: "Hi, um, I don't know if you guys are hiring, but I'm looking for a bar tending job. I've never bar tended in my life, but if someone is willing to train me or you know a place that would, I'd really appreciate it." She recommends a couple places and tells me she's been doing it for 6 years. She started bar tending to pay for school. She's been doing it ever since because of the money she makes. Excellent. I make my way to The Pub. An Irishman gives me a cup of tea while I fill out my application. We chat and bond over my recent travels to Florida and his worldly trips. Then he asks me about my experience in waitressing, which I proceed to admit that I basically know nothing, that my hostessing duties consisted of busing tables and helping servers with beverage orders. Once he realizes he'll have to train me in everything restaurant-related, he asks me when I can start. So, I'm training this week at The Pub, where I will be learning the ropes of the restaurant biz while looking forward to bar tending.

I'm employed. I have a writing gig. It's not what I thought I'd be doing 3 months after graduation, but I'm excited to be making money and working on a writing career.

I also had a visitor! Aunt Joyce came down for a few days. It was great having someone here with me and we had a blast. She showed me around Winter Park, which I LOVED. My favorite place: The Wine Room. It's basically a dream place made for wine lovers. Winter Park was beautiful and I can't wait to explore more of it. We did some shopping. I got a few new dresses, now that I've figured out that the weather here really doesn't allow for a girl to wear anything but a dress to be comfortable. We also bought me some provisions in preparation for Fay's arrival. By the way, the sky is cloudy and it's rained a little. This hurricane/tropical storm thing doesn't have me convinced yet, but maybe it will by the end of the day. She took me to see Mamma Mia, which was fabulous! My newest addiction is the soundtrack, which plays on repeat in the car (sorry fellow Orlando drivers). We went to Disney for awhile on Monday (thanks, Grandma!). We went to Magic Kingdom where the air was hanging around all of the sweaty, screaming kids. It was wicked humid, but luckily the sun wasn't out much. We went to Epcot later in the afternoon for the sole purpose of going to the World Showcase's Mexico for dinner and margaritas. It was delicious! All in all, it was a fun-filled weekend and I'm so lucky to have a family that takes care of me during my unemployment.

Interviews, Irishmen, Pool Time, Family Bonding, and Hurricane/Tropical Storm/Glorified Thunderstorm Fay. A packed couple of weeks it's been.

Sun, Sand, and $5 million houses

My August is going good so far.

I went to a wine bar last week called The Vineyard. It was a small place with wine lining the walls. I had a delicious sauvignon blanc thanks to Annie's great friends. Her fiance was doing stand-up at this bar, and he did a great job! It was s fun night out with good friends and family.

I also met my neighbors. They are doing internships at Disney in sports management. We bonded over Corona and agreed the tourism is a little intense if you're not used to it. One of them is doing a half marathon in December and he's trying to recruit me. Luckily, he lives next door, so I'd be more likely to train if I have a buddy. We'll have to see, but I think it'd be good for me and a great new exercise regiment.

I visited Tampa this weekend. A friend from Purdue lives and works there now, so she and I had a ladies night complete with a scary movie and delicious Italian food. And a $5 million mansion. She was house-sitting this weekend and this house: ridiculous. We concluded that about 90% of the house is marble, both floors and counters. They have a movie theater complete with 4 loveseat sofas, 2 armchairs, and THX speakers. Of course, there was a huge pool, picture window overlooking the lake, a wine fridge, and murals on the ceiling. We stayed one night there, so of course we spent the better part of it looking around, but not touching anything. It wouldn't surprise me if the owner took measurements of where everything was before she left. She was a little nutty, which showed in her decor.

After breaking and fixing the gate for the house, we spent a few hours at the beach! We went to Clearwater and it was beautiful. The water had a lot of seaweed at the beach we went to, which was the less crowded one, but it was as warm as bath water. The sun was hot, but the wind on the water was glorious and the water felt good once we got over the seaweed wrapped around our legs. We snacked, we chatted, and spent way too much time at Target finding the things we forgot to bring.


I'm amazed that I live so close to the ocean. The scenery as we were driving yesterday looked so serene. Clearwater is very expensive to live in, so I doubt I would ever try to live there. Well, at least not until I'm making millions. :)

I'm getting used to Florida and what it has to offer outside of the tourist society I live so close to. Though I was happy to join the crowds at the Outlet mall today.