Saturday, October 15, 2011

Big Boy Job

My favorite season has finally arrived. Fall. Autumn. Call it what you will. Either way, I love it. Unfortunately, the Dallas version of fall is a far cry from what I’m accustomed to. I suppose I’ve been spoiled by the beauty of Washington with it’s cold crisp mornings and all the colored leaves falling to the ground.  Down here we’re still having 90 degree weather (not that I’m complaining) and our leaves still have the parched and slightly green tint to them. I was informed today that the leaves here go straight from green to dead and gone. No room for vibrant reds, or oranges around these parts so I shouldn’t hold my breath for anything remotely New England-esque during this season. This morning was exciting because I woke up to cloud cover, a slight drizzle, and 70-degree weather. I was so happy. Finally a day that felt like fall in Seattle! In celebration I decided to throw on my new corduroy’s and a cardigan, turned up my new “Carpenters Gold: 35th Anniversary Edition” album (AKA fall soundtrack) and bought myself a Pumpkin Spice latte. I know, I’m so Seattle right now and I’m loving it.

This whole week has actually been really great because Robbie and myself both got jobs! I started work at a small design company called “Black Tip Media” and Robbie got offered a position with some company doing whatever it is people with biochemistry degrees do. The jobs couldn’t have come at a more opportune time because I had come to the point where I was wondering how next month’s rent was going to get paid. To make ends meet during this whole shit show of a job search Robbie had taken a job at the Walgreen’s pharmacy and I was working as a server at a Mexican restaurant called “Uncle Julio’s”. I’d never been a server before (although that’s not the story I gave the person who hired me) but seeing as I grew up in Eastern Washington I felt that Mexican food would be right up my alley even if  I wasn’t working at a taco truck. Turns out I am sooooo not cut out to be a server. I was a stressed out mess every shift I worked and everybody had to keep reminding me to smile.  Smile?? Really?? What’s there to smile about when you’re working a customer service job that pays $2.15 an hour plus minuscule tips that would hardly be enough to buy me a margarita after my shift to ease the pain. The worst part of the whole situation was I had to shave my face every day before my shift, which was an inconvenience and I felt so naked/exposed with my shaved baby face. I mean ever since No-Shave November of 2006 there have been very few times I’ve gone without my scruff so I guess it’s kinda become part of my identity. Plus every time I passed a mirror I would become startled because I didn’t recognize myself.  So when my new boss Kevin offered me the new job I pretty much broke down into tears of pure happiness. Pure happiness at the thought that I’d be able to put my beard trimmer back to use and pure happiness at the thought that never again would I have to ask the customers sitting in my section if they wanted green, red, or sour cream sauce on their chicken enchilada.

So far my newfound life as a young business professional is off to a great start. I mean there was really nowhere to go but up but I feel really blessed to have this job. There are moments where I really can’t believe that I get paid to sit down, listen to show tunes, wear cute and trendy work clothes and create art all day! Plus my boss buys me donuts and Sonic happy hour slushies on a regular basis. WINNING! There are days it can get pretty intense though, especially when we are working on several projects and trying to get them finished as quickly as possible. It’s only been two weeks and my face is already breaking out from stress of a big boy job. Side note: I’m really kicking myself for years ago not taking my dermatologist up on her offer to prescribe me Accutane. If I could turn back time…

The biggest non-perk of the new job is the fact that I have to commute to suburbia (suburgatory if you will) every morning. The town itself is called Carrolton and it’s big claim to fame is that it’s where Robert Matthew Van Winkle, more commonly known as Vanilla Ice, was born and raised. The drive itself wouldn’t be that bad except I have very little respect for Texans when it comes to their driving capabilities. I’ve never seen so many traffic accidents in my life or traffic jams that appear to be happening for no reason. Now I’ve somehow managed to make it through my quarter century of  life without ever being in a fender bender *knocks on wood* but I’m thinking my time is coming. It almost seems unavoidable, especially since the main highway I take to work every morning looks like a two lane highway that they somehow squeezed a third lane into. It's scary. The commute would be made more bearable if my iPod hadn’t plunged to it’s watery grave the weekend before the new job started. The last/swan song played was “ Monster” by Gaga before being dropped into a half cup of melted ice from one of my countless interview that got me nothing but a cluttered inbox full of messages saying “At this time, another qualified candidate has been selected for this position”. I attempted to revive said Ipod by putting it into a tub of rice for 4 days and although the power still works, the touch screen function is long gone and therefore completely useless. You’d think Steve Jobs (may he rest in peace) could have taken a little more time making these things water proof. Instead I‘m left with an iPod that would cost as much to fix as it would be to buy a completely new one. So for the present, I’m back to living my not so distant 2003 life where cd mixes were the rage.  Another side note: I’ve been reduced to listening to the radio on days that I’m bored of my mixes, and I swear to God if I hear Pumped Up Kicks or Last Friday Night one more time I may be forced to do something drastic. Like join a monastery.


In honor of the changing of seasons, here is a very under-rated pop gem by Britney. Happy Fall Ya'll!



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