One Year in CA!!!!!

I started writing this on September 15th, the 1 year anniversary of my coming to California.  Then I got busy (as always) and them my laptop monitor decided to go haywire.  At the moment I have a borrowed computer and a bit of free time, so I figured I'd proofread what I had and post it to let you all know I'm still alive :)

My blog has been neglected lately, sorry. I don't know if I'll ever get around to posting about the last 2 days of the Polkadot Cadaver tour because it was soooo long ago. I've been really busy with work lately. Our department is finally getting the hours we need, and we're all at almost 40 hours. I'm not sure how my co-workers that are in school manage. I'm not sure what we're going to do during the holiday season if we're maxed out now. They'll probably hire some seasonal people and hopefully we'll just have extra people running around helping out...?

Days off tend to be spent accidentally sleeping in WAY too late because I'm exhausted from work, or trying to catch up on things like laundry, grocery shopping, being social, dishes, cleaning my room, etc.  One day off was relaxing in Santa Monica.  I have a bunch of fun pictures from the trip, but my computer wouldn't read the card from Corey's camera, and bugging him about getting them to me hasn't been working. I've also gotten back into jewelry making. I registered for an etsy store and once I get more pieces finished I'll open it up and post a link.  I've also made a few One-Eyed Doll inspired pieces and been talking to Kim about them.  I'm not sure if they'll end up in my store or theirs.  I sadly didn't make it on their fall tour with Mushroomhead.  The timing just didn't work out with some stuff I have to take care of.  Part of me is wondering what the crap is wrong with me.  A few years ago I was just another average fan of the band.  Somewhere along the way I became a friend, helped them shoot a music video, and have gone on tour with them twice.  Now they're asking me to go on more tours and quit my job to work for them, but I'm like "nah, I got other stuff I need to do right now..." Seriously, who the crap does that?!?!?  Most fans would kill to be asked this by their favorite band.  Fans reading this now probably hate me for turning down the opportunity.  I hope they realize (and I'm sure they do) that I'm super grateful for the opportunities, there was just some other stuff I needed to take care of.  Especially to make sure things work out in the long run.  Part of me really just wants to drop everything and live life up in the air, but I know at the moment I can do some things that will make the future easier for me, so I feel like (or a change) I need to do the responsible thing and do it while I can. 

Now, let's talk about the reason I'm finally getting around to writing an entry.  September 15th was the one year anniversary of the day I finally made it into the state of California!  It has been a great first year.  I moved out here with one of my best friends, Corey, and I couldn't have asked for a better person to have moved with.  He's an amazing person, great roommate, and has become so much more than a friend :D  We also got lucky and found an amazing roommate, Mary, and a nice place to live.  We've found a great group of friends out here.  We found decent jobs and have awesome co-workers.  It really has been an amazing first year out here.  I miss friends and family back in Michigan, but moving to California was one of the best decisions ever.

Now let's see, what have I been up to since September?  Corey and I managed to get 3 days off for our Birthdays (his is the 31st) and Halloween.  We went out to brunch on both of our birthdays.  I wish I could upload the picture of the gigantic Benedict Florentine on a croissant I had for my birthday, it was goooooood!  We also threw a big Birthday/Halloween party that a lot of our friends made it out to, despite being a week night.  I sadly don't have a really good picture of my phoenix costume, but you can see most of it in the picture below.

Cupcake tower!

Grant as Ash from Evil Dead and Corey as a Lumberjack from Monty Python

Emily - pregnant girl, Mary - Barbie, Me, Dee - Going into labor?

We ended up hiring 3 seasonal people at work.  One used to work there and current works at another Starbucks, so she's already trained.  Another used to work in the food area at Target, so she's familiar with things, and has been picking up drink making easily.  The other girl is completely new and has been having some trouble getting the hang of things.  We should have pretty good coverage for Black Friday though.  My scheduled shift (though we'll probably work overtime) is 2am-10:45am.  I'll probably just take a nap then stay up all night and let the coffee induced, sleep-deprived craziness ensue.  It should be fun.  Now that we have 3 extra people, hours may get cut though.  Fortunately, my manager is going to work it out so I'll be getting paid to go on the winter One-Eyed Doll tour!  Not only that, but it ends the 21st in Michigan, so I'll be home for a few days for Christmas.  It somehow all worked out perfectly!  I have my flight out to meet OED, just got my flight home and  my manager is working out the schedule.  I'm really excited!!!

For Thanksgiving this year we're getting together at our friends Jeremy and Rachel's place.  They used to live just down the street, but recently moved into a house a little bit further away.  It's sad that I can't just walk there anymore, but I'm excited that they now have a 2 bedroom house for roughly the price of their 1 bedroom apartment, and have space to host things like Thanksgiving :)

So that's what I've been up to for the past few months.  Hopefully it won't take me another 4 months to post again :)