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January 4th, 2009
11:26 am - Living in a Material World
I've never really considered myself materialistic. Sure, I like THINGS but I've always felt I could live without a lot of stuff if needed. I'm not the type of girl who would ever buy a purse for more than $100 and a lot of brand name/designer clothing/shoes don't interest me. One reason being that they're probably not in my size. But this last week, I realized that I AM definitely materialistic to a point.
I misplaced my phone on New Year's Eve. I looked all over for it and couldn't find it. Turned out I left it on the kitchen table at a friends house under some plastic bags. I don't even know how I managed that one. But I finally got it back last night. Three days without my cell phone drove me a little crazy. I had my work cell phone as backup, but that wasn't the same.
I also still like having those unique things. Or wearing things that I think look good. I'm not going to get compliments for my natural beauty, so it feels good when someone compliments my purse, my wallet, my jewelry, my clothing, etc. Those things I have to make a conscious decision on and it's nice to have compliments on my taste. Again, being materialstic in that *things* make me happy.
The last week has been good but still super busy. Hung out with some friends on New Years Eve. Two different houses, but both very low-key. Then some newer friends at THEIR house on another night. Met some people through them that night and had a GREAT time. Last night was a Lumberjax game. SO much fun, and cheap too! Too bad we didn't win. But at $10-$20 a ticket, I'll definitely go again.
Tuesday I spent the whole day out in Sandy with my manager and some other co-workers trying to inspect a truck. It had a lot of damage and it took awhile to write the estimate, mess with my computer to get it to work in the middle of nowhere and do all the necessary stuff. $16,000 later and the truck was repairable! We left the office at 900 and didn't get back until 630. Augh. Not a lot done that day. And since we've been super busy, I feel like I keep falling behind. I've got to go in today for some time to get some more done.
I feel like I've been trying not to stress out, but my body is telling me otherwise. I've had canker sores in my mouth the past few weeks and I, unlike my mom and sisters, do NOT get those. I can't even remember the last time I've had one. I have been trying to get enough sleep. And doing pretty well at it. Around 8 hours a night, if not a bit more. Only one day this week did I get about 5.5 or 6. It's just entailed me getting up, going to work, coming home and eating some dinner and then to bed by 1030. So it's not the lack of sleep that's causing the canker sores. I think I've also lost a few pounds over the holidays. My pants are a little looser than normal. Not that it's a BAD thing to lose weight (duh) but when I'm not trying? Oh well. I keep telling myself that things will have to get better. Work will settle down when we go over to 2.0 and I don't have to do outside AND inside stuff anymore. Until then, I think I'll manage.
Guess I should go shower so I can take off to work!
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December 19th, 2008
12:03 am - Concerts!
It makes me so happy to go to a show, especially when they were as enjoyable as tonight's! I will go to bed a pleased girl.
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December 10th, 2008
08:29 pm - Attraction
Attraction is a weird thing. Sometimes you're attracted to people you never would have thought you'd been. Other times there's someone who seems great "on paper" but when you're together in person, they just don't do it for you. There are often times where I think a guy is super good looking and I think they're hot, but they don't elicit that feeling of "I would love to spend a night with them" or whatever. You fill in the blank. It doesn't have to be quite to the extent of sleeping with them, but you get my drift. I can only think of a couple of guys where I've felt that. Whether that's upon first meeting them or if that happens later on. There's one guy I met more than a year ago, and I had that instaneous attraction to the first time we've met. It didn't help that he was kind of fliratious too. I've talked to him on the phone a bit and last saw him in January. Saw him again then today. I still feel that attraction and flirtation. He has a girlfriend tho and is out of my league, but that's ok. Flirting is fun. I don't know what it is about him tho. Not everyone would find him attractive. Must be those pheremones.
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December 8th, 2008
10:58 pm - Video!
xposted to DamnPortlanders
I'm bored so thought I'd post a funny video if you haven't seen it before.
Proposition 8!
"Prop 8 - The Musical" starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, and many more... by Jack Black
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November 28th, 2008
11:16 am - ADIML October 31, 2008
So this is what I posted in the ADIML community earlier today. I copied it over here to make sure the HTML looked ok!
Hi! My name’s Star and this is my 5th ADIML that I’ve done. I’m 28 and from Vancouver, WA (right outside of Portland, OR) It’s a little late, but I finally had the time to do it. My mom and stepdad have been together for 14 years and this the year that they finally decided to get married. They’d always wanted to do it on Halloween, and so this is my day!
( Click for more Halloween wedding fun! )
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November 23rd, 2008
11:44 pm - Happy
My sister shared this with me earlier today and I enjoyed it, so thought I'd share. It just makes me feel happy =) And they used 250,000 real bouncy balls, no CG stuff.
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November 4th, 2008
11:17 pm - Yes, we can
After September 11th, our country was in a weird place. Our sense of invincibility in our own homes was shattered a bit that day. I remember that sense of insecurity and the feeling that this was something that happened at home. But what stands out to me about that time was the week or so after that day. The country banded together and patriotism was rampant. I would drive to work and see so many flags on cars, on streets, on buildings, etc. It made me feel proud to live in this country. I felt that we were united and I was glad to be a part of it.
Tonight was another night in history that I was proud to bear witness to. We elected a bi-racial candidate, part African-American even, as our next President. Jess, Matt, Jeremy, Hayley and I decided to trek on over to Grand Central for the Willamette Week commiseration/celebration. Driving there was crazy. There were so many people out for the party and trying to get those last minute ballots in. We made our way into the bar and watched the electoral votes slowly add up. At just before 800, a countdown clock showed on CNN, ticking the seconds until the polls closed on the West Coast. As a bar filled with hundreds of people, we counted down along with the clock. As we all said, "3, 2, 1!", we started cheering; feeling confident that our candidate had won and it was just a matter of time before we could celebrate. Within the next 10-15 minutes, it became apparent. Obama was ahead! As CNN officially gave their prediction as Obama as our next president, the bar erupted in cheers and screams. There are only a few times where I felt more elated, and nothing immediately comes to mind right now. We watched as a cohesive group as the win was solidified. The local radio station reported. At one point, a woman started singing "The Star Spangled Banner" and the crowd joined in. McCain gave a great concession speech and I cried a bit with the pride I felt for what we were able to accomplish in this election. The bar became utterly quiet as we all listened to what McCain had to say.
We left the bar and headed for food. There was still a line of people waiting to get in! 20 minutes later, at another bar/restaurant, we watched Obama give his acceptance speech. That man moves me and again, instills more pride in myself and others around me. It's going to be a long, hard road to get this country out of the situation it's in now. But I'm glad that we have Obama to lead the way. My heart is extremely happy right now.
I'm so glad we went to the election celebration. To feel a part of a change so monumental was amazing.
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October 22nd, 2008
12:22 am - Just go to bed, damnit!
It's almost 1230. I should be in bed. I'm tired even. I've just got this feeling like if I go to bed now, I'll be missing something. Weird. It's not like I'm waiting for anything that might happen now. What's up with that?
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October 17th, 2008
10:30 am - Delayed Gratification
About two months ago, Amanda and I were approached about a possible position opening on our complexity team. This is a promotion within our office. The job would be the same that we were doing at the time, with the addition of handling injuries to people when our insured was at fault. It’s the next step in our company and basically something that you need to do should you have any other position. It’s also a pay increase, so that’s good. Anyway, Amanda and I both interviewed for the job. I think we’re both pretty evenly matched when it comes to skills, and this was reinforced during the interview and selection process. However, Amanda got the job. Now I was told at the time that it was very close “like grains of rice on a scale close” as told to me by one of my managers. The one thing that they said they thought was better about her? That she had a more “salesmanship” type quality. That perhaps people would relate better to her in their living rooms when trying to negotiate. I get that. Not that I’ve ever had a problem with sales for the most part. I mean, one of my other jobs is totally about marketing and sales. And I kick so much ass at that job that they let me come back this year after I quit in ’07. But anyway, I was totally cool with Amanda getting the job. Especially because my branch manager told me that while Amanda was getting the job then, I would be moved into the same position in about a month. It wasn’t that I wasn’t qualified for the position, but they had to wait for some new people to come to the general population and get situated. Then when they moved me over to complexity, they wouldn’t be killing the rest of the office. Great, I figured. I’ve got another month to fine tune the job that I was already doing and make sure things are in line.
Cue last Friday. My branch manager asked to speak to me about moving over. Turns out that staffing needs have changed a bit. Complexity was handling their features ok. PCS (my side) was still a little busy and one person may be leaving soon for another job. I told him that these were things that I was aware of. I kind of figured that I wouldn’t have been moved over at the time they figured (because this would have been the first week of October). I was ok with this as well. I would feel better if I was where I was needed rather than where I wanted to be. I would hate to go over to complexity and the PCS team be super overwhelmed. My branch manager agreed as well. He basically told me that there was no need for a new complexity rep, but hopefully something would be open soon. It might not be for a few months, but as we are starting a different way of handling claims in March, things could definitely open up. Fine, I figured. Taking it to mean that I should be patient. When a new complexity position opened, I’d be available and ready for it. Yeah, it kind of sucked; but nothing in my control. What could I do? Tell more people to get in accidents and be injured? Haha. I am good at the job that I do now. It’s only recently that I feel very comfortable with what I can do. Not like I’m treading water anymore. I figured when I get my annual salary/performance review I’ll have a better review in my current position than if I was in a new position. So that’s ok. Our conversation that day was actually pretty good. We chatted for about 30-40 minutes about lots of things and he asked me for my opinions on stuff going on in the office. He told me that I was a very valued member of the team. I thanked him when he said that and he kind of looked surprised. He said he’d hoped that I already knew that. I said that it’s always nice to be told those kind of things. All and all, I really enjoyed our talk and I left feeling pretty good about everything.
Yesterday, I’m in my weekly review with my team manager. The branch manager comes in and says he wants to talk to me. Apparently there’s someone moving from Eugene into our area. And yes, you guessed it; she was a complexity rep in that office. She’s coming to Vancouver and will work here. So the complexity position that didn’t exist, still doesn’t. But rather than lose this new person to another company, they’d rather make a place for her here. I get it. But man, if I’m not disappointed. It just feels like any chance I had at a promotion just gets farther and farther away. I still like my job but am a little disenchanted. *sigh* My branch manager DID ask if I’d thought about being an MRR – a field rep who handles all the vehicle damage on a claim. This is part of our new process and wouldn’t really start until March or so. But the position will most likely pay more than the “inside” part of the claim. He said that they haven’t officially finalized who would be the MRR manager but that he would be lucky to have me on his team. I explained that this is not really the part of the team where I’d want to be right now. I’m not against handling property damage ever again. If I intend to have a leadership role at some time (which I do), I know that I’ll have to spend some time as an outside rep. I’m ok with that. I get along well with shops and think that I do fine on inspections. But I like having the more customer interaction that an inside rep will have. And I think I’d like to see more about how the outside stuff works before moving into it. But man, I was so ready to move into complexity. I’m glad my branch manager told me face to face about the other person coming to Vancouver. He had told the team leaders earlier in the day but asked them not to say anything yet, because he wanted to talk to me first. After he spoke with me, he sent an email to the entire office about our new co-worker. Augh. I hope she’s cool. Cause if she’s not; I hope I don’t hate her just a little bit. =)
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October 13th, 2008
10:59 pm - Beauty
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are a beautiful couple. I've always though they were both incredibly good looking. Brad took these photos of Angelina for W magazine. I'm amazed at the quality.
http://www.wmagazine.com/celebrities
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September 27th, 2008
10:50 pm - Things Star has realized (again, in some cases) she loves Vol. 697
* Her name
* Root Beer Float ice cream
* Starburst in the green package
* Playing hooky from work to drive to Seattle to see two of her favorite artists
* The Office
* Fun and unique clothes and accessories
I'm happy. That's good.
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September 23rd, 2008
10:46 am - Man, oh man...
I haven't updated in FOREVER. What's wrong with me? Well, I now have my computer hooked up at home (no more sharing with April) so maybe I'll be a bit better at it. Some quick updates I guess. Sister April is pregnant! SUPER excited. She has a stepson, but we didn't know him until he was like 6, so this will be the first time I get to be an aunt since the baby was born. I can't wait. I love kids and I think this will be fun!
Mike and Lindsay just had THEIR baby. Maybe I'm biased, but she's super cute too. I got to hold her at the hospital (as well as 40 or so of the Newcomers' closest friends and family!) I get to be an aunt to her too!
Went to see Augustana/Counting Crows/Maroon 5 at the Ampitheater on Saturday night. I even, at the last minute, had the chance to meet Maroon 5 beforehand as well. I had tried to win tickets EVERYWHERE, even at radio stations I don't really listen to. Z100 (really, when was the last time I listened to them?) called me a few hours before the show and said they had some openings and asked if I could go since I had entered online. I totally took advantage of that opportunity! Yeah, Adam Levine is gorgeous. During the show, Maroon 5 covered Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game". THAT was excellent!
Yesterday, I took the day off from work to go to Seattle. Tara, Melissa and I went to Archie McPhee, hung out a bit in Ballard and then went over to UW's campus to see Matt Costa and Augustana! Yay! It was free and Roy had told me about it a few weeks ago. Roy is The Awesome! It was a great show and we said Hi to Matt afterwards. I have met him many times and have a few pics with him so wasn't going to this time. BUT the three of us had Roy take our picture and it turned out really well. Then we left campus to head home, but we stopped at Audrey's in Puyallup. I haven't seen her since her first baby shower, and I'd never seen Jack. He is so cute too! Yay for babies! It was good to see Audrey and Ian as well as meet Jack. I hope to visit again soon. Anyway, wanted to take a quick break from work. Check out some pics!
Aren't we cute?
( Click for more pictures of cute boys, cute babies, and shenanigans at Archie McPhee )
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August 13th, 2008
10:47 pm - I am the law!
That's right, bitches. I have been selected for Jury Duty. Thank you Clark County Superior Court! It's random. I was literally thinking about this like 2 mornings ago. I've never been called for Jury Duty but thought it could be fun. Lo and behold, get home today and there's a summons for me. Hope you don't have to go to trial in September. I could play a part in your fate. Muahahaha!
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July 28th, 2008
10:00 pm - For a Monday...
today was quite excellent. Not *quite* as many claims as usual, tho I was still at the office until 745. Went to lunch with the new kids, so that plays a part. Not often do I get to go to lunch for an hour and a half... and have it purchased for me! But the best part of the day was hitting up Olive Garden with Amanda and Jess. Used a gift card for most of mine. But delicious food, excellent server and some friends who I love dearly. We laughed so hard several times that I'm glad the restaurant was kind of empty on our side. Otherwise we would have got some RUDE looks! I'm lucky to have some friends who I feel really get me. I'm also lucky that I like the people I work with. It makes work that much better. Not only do I like the people I work with, but I like them enough to want to hang out after work too. Can't ask for much more than that, can you?
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July 27th, 2008
09:30 pm - Updates and such
I realized that it's been a few weeks since I've last posted. Haven't really had anything all that exciting going on I guess. It's all good tho.
Friends/Family: Jordan in town. He'll be here for four more weeks. I love it. He's a fun kid. 8 of us went to Wild Waves last Wednesday. Much better had it been nice out, but it was still LOTS of fun. I love that place. Even if I AM blind for the water rides!
Went to this crazy good Lebanese restaurant for David's birthday. I know that I'm picky, so didn't know if I'd like a lot of it. I tried several different dishes tho and they were all pretty tasty!
Boys: Went out with Chad a few times, but overall; we just didn't "click". Nice enough guy, but I think a little too conservative/straight laced for my taste. He also seemed a little more femme at times than I'd like. Oh well. Still a cool guy. I think we both felt that it wasn't quite there for either of us. Better to know that up front I spose.
Work: Been doing some Penguin Windows stuff for the past few weeks. That's always fun talking to a whole bunch of different people. Extra money is good too. Progressive is good as well. I was supposed to have my semi-annual performance evaluation thing on Friday the 18th. I was in my weekly review with my team leader when the branch manager comes by at about 1230. Greg says, "Hey Star, about your PE..." And I ask, "Are you ready now?" (My PE Was at 100pm, so I figured he was coming over for that) He said, nope he actually wanted to postpone it. Apparently there was some stuff he wanted to talk to me about, but hadn't got permission yet. It seemed like he really wanted to tell me anyway. But my team leader Kyle said, "Greg, I know what you want to talk to her about and you can't do it yet." Greg said he'd already kind of gotten in trouble for saying things he shouldn't so he told me that we'd do it the next week sometime. So all of last week goes by and I ask Greg on Friday when my PE will be. He said sometime after this Tuesday. But that it was a good thing for why we had to wait. AUGH. At least it's something good. Tho I didn't think it would be for anything BAD. Cause how mean would that be to tell someone their performance evaluation was put on hold and then they stress out and then it's bad? It would be best if it was bad to make something up. Like, "We ran out of time today, we'll have to do yours next week". Whatever. I don't really know what it could be about. Hmmm...
What else? I guess that's kind of the main stuff. I'll post more later I think.
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July 18th, 2008
02:33 pm - Change of Plans!
Going to go to Wild Waves on Wednesday instead. And I got the day off! Anyone else want to go with/carpool?
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July 15th, 2008
10:01 pm - Is it really summer?
For the past several years, Summer has meant a few things to me:
1. Dave Matthews at the Gorge
2. Oregon Country Fair in Eugene
3. Wild Waves
I get to do at least one a year and most of the time each one. This year however? I will be/was not a part of any of them.
Dave Matthews won't be happening because Julie's wedding is also that same weekend (Labor Day) That's ok tho. I'm super excited to wear an ao dai for the first time and I think it's going to be fun to be a part of the wedding party.
I had plans to go to Oregon Country Fair for a couple of months with Brittney and Jason was going to go as well. Then about 2 months ago, Jess and Amanda said that they would go too. I was excited cause I love that place! Jess and Amanda forgot that the Saturday we were going to go was also the one they had to work. Then Brittney decided she wanted to go running instead. The Newcomers have thought about going for years, but something always comes up. This year Lindsay is pretty pregnant, so I don't know if she would have enjoyed going anyway. So I didn't even ask them. Turns out they had some family event for the same time, so they wouldn't have been able to go in the first place. Sad, I always have so much fun.
Wild Waves could still be a possibility, but I won't be able to go with April/James and Jordan like I wanted to. They're going to go on Monday, and I asked for that day off. However, someone in our office already HAS that day off and Mondays are our busiest. No go for me. Jordan has games/practices on Tue, Wed, Thu and April's busy days at her work are on Fridays, so Monday is the only day that they could go. I hope I can go another time, but I don't know when. And weekdays are way better than weekends.
*sigh* Is this what being an adult means? Giving up summer fun for *shudder* RESPONSIBILITY?
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July 12th, 2008
07:47 pm - The Dating Game
Dating is fun. I like it. Just the opportunity of meeting new guys. Some you click with and some you definitely don't. I never had really been one who dated much. Always stuck in the friend zone with guys. That's ok tho, I didn't often feel that I was missing something, not being in a relationship for such a long time. But over the past year, I've been trying to be more assertive. That philosophy has served me well.
I've gone out with this guy named Chad twice now and he seems pretty cool so far. Yay! The first date, we went to the Spaghetti Factory on the water in Portland. We met up at about 630 and ate some dinner. I didn't feel like it was someone new that I was trying to get to know. It felt like I'd known him for awhile for some reason. We walked around a bit down by the water and sat and talked for awhile. I think I left at about 1030 to head home. He was pretty smooth at dinner. The server put the check down between the two of us. He reached over and slid it to his side of the table. Nice. I paid the tip tho. I had come prepared to pay for my own dinner; especially since it was our first date.
For the 2nd date, we met up at Saturday Market and walked around a bit. Then we went up to the Japanese Gardens. He lives in Beaverton and hadn't been to Saturday Market for about three years. And he had NEVER been to the Japanese Gardens before. He says he doesn't come to hang out in Portland all that often. Which is strange to me in a way, because I am there ALL the time. Whatever, it's all good. Finally we went to Sunset Lanes and bowled a game. I had never been to that bowling alley before, but it was pretty cool. I liked the setup with all of the booths. I used to bowl every weekend last summer and before that also. My best score was 155 or so, and I would routinely hit between 115 and 130. However, the last time that April, James and I had gone; April and I both SUCKED. We each had like 70-80 in our two games! So I told Chad that I might not do so well at bowling. I start out with a strike, a spare and then another strike! Haha. I actually ended up with 140 and he had 136, so it was close.
I think this is one of the first times I'd gone out with someone who was extra gentlemanly and kind of traditional. Not only did he pay for dinner the other night; he also paid for bowling today and opened my car door to let me in first a couple of times. Amanda would definitely approve ;) It's not that I ever missed stuff like that before. For better or for worse, I'm pretty independent. I do things like that for myself. Holding doors, paying for meals, etc. I like to pay for myself sometimes or even pay for my date as well. But it's been nice to be treated like that for sure.
Good times, good times.
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July 2nd, 2008
10:22 pm - Hmmm...
On Sunday afternoon I spent some time at Barnes and Noble. Just reading and perusing magazines and just enjoying the relaxation. I love to do this for some reason. I turn off my cell phone and don't pay attention to too much around me. Sometimes I bring my iPod, sometimes I don't. Just depends I guess. Anyway, I love it and I think it's a great way to spend a Sunday, especially if it's raining.
On a related but random note; I've never been sure if I'll ever get married or not. I don't know why, but I've never seen that as a part of my definite future. But for some reason I've always thought that I'd meet my future husband at a bookstore of some kind. Is that weird or what?
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June 26th, 2008
11:30 pm - I think I might die
An hour and a half of sitting on the lawn for Death Cab plus another half an hour of sitting on some grass while waiting for the parking lot to clear out equals full blown allergies for Star. Sad. So sad.
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mellamoestrella's journal
