It's Okay Tuesday...

It's okay that....

... I forgot I had training at work this week and was 20 minutes late on Monday morning. Luckily my supervisor is in charge of the training and they didn't start until after I got there, so I had some time to put my things done. 

... my hair is a lot curlier than I had planned. Originally I just wanted some waves/volume in my hair but after 2 bad tries they had to put smaller curlers in my hair which means my hair is curly. I'm loving my hair, though! 

... my mom spent 2 nights at my house. Both our husbands are out of town and she didn't want to be home alone. I loved having her!

... it's taking me longer than I would have wanted to get my house into shape. Even though we've been married nearly 2 months (2 weeks of which we were out of town) the house still has a bit of a way to go. Mostly it's the office - which desperately needs a filing cabinet and for cables to be set into place.

... I really want to buy myself an iMac. I have money left over from some bonds my mom sold and gave to me to buy things for the house - which is enough to buy the iMac as well as the few missing furniture pieces. However, it seems like overkill. I have a MacBook Pro and Thomas will be setting up a Windows computer so that I can play video games with him. We shall see what happens with this one. 

... I miss my husband terribly and cannot wait for him to get home on Friday. 

Sunshine Award!

The amazing, incredible, awesome Amanda Nicole from Peaches in Missouri (a very clever name I think!) and also designer of this here blog nominated me for the Sunshine Award! 

I was so excited to get an e-mail from her and then seeing her post. I feel so lucky to have met her and that we have been able to become bloggy friends! 

The rules for the Sunshine Award are that I list 11 random facts about myself, answer 11 questions from the person who nominated me, and then nominate 11 other bloggers and give them 11 questions to answer. What I want to know is why the number 11 was chosen?!

Let’s get started!

11 Random Facts About Myself:

• I am fully bilingual. When I speak English no one can tell I speak Castellano and when I speak castellano no one can tell I speak English. I love this.
• I am sort of a neat freak and I think it’s driving my Husband crazy. 
• I am jealous of girls (bloggers) whom I see with perfect make up and clothes. I do not know how to put make up on and my clothes never look as good. 
• I have a good and a bad side. My nose looks more crooked from one side than the other. 
• I’m a yeller/thrower/slammer. When I don’t feel that people are listening to me (mostly my husband) I tend to throw things or slam doors. I most always yell. 
• I keep a hand written journal in addition to my blog. I share A LOT on my blog, but for the most private of things I keep a leather bound journal. 
• I can’t deal with heat, especially when I shouldn’t have to. It gets hot in my office (the AC breaks all the time) and sweating while working at computer is not what I call fun. My co-workers hate it, too.
• Shopping is my game. I LOVE to shop, even when I don’t buy anything, I love going out and browsing and imagining the things I could get. 
• I can wiggle my ears and flare my nose. I can even do them both at once!
• I’m afraid of the dark and toilets. When I was in kindergarten or first grade the toilet in the room flooded and it left me scarred. For most of my life my mom had to flush the toilet for me. 
• I am a people pleaser and like to make others happy while making myself look good. Maybe also narcissistic. 

Random Questions:

• Why did you start blogging?

I started blogging when it was pretty much a new concept (or at least I think it was) in 2002. I had just graduated high school and I was going away to college and I thought it would be neat. I always liked to write (I majored in Journalism) and Live Journal was big at the time so I threw myself into it. I’ve been blogging ever since. I’ve never made money from my blog and I’m not sure I want to put the effort into it to do so, but it would be nice. 

• What's your most favorite post you've ever written?

Wow, this is a hard question. I don't know if I have a favorite. I think they are all special in a different way and I can't just pull one out and say it's my favorite.

• Name three places you think everyone should visit if they get the chance.

Argentina – specifically Iguazu Falls. I went there on my honeymoon in late May 2014 and it is an amazing place to visit. Iguazu is on the border between Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. You get amazing views from both Brazil and Argentina. Iguazu is considered one of the 7 Wonders of the World.

Los Angeles – I am biased because I live here, but it is a great place. You can go to Disneyland, Sea World, Universal Studios, Malibu, Beverly Hills, Hollywood and so much more. All these things being within a couple of hours drive is amazing! 

Ushuaia – I have never been here, but it is the most southern tip of Argentina and the furthest south you can go on land before reaching Antarctica. My sister went there and I think it’s amazing! 

• If you are married (If you aren't married would you) did you write your own vows or stick with traditional ones? 

I didn’t write my own vows for a couple of reasons. The first being that I knew my husband wouldn’t be up to the task, and the second being that I am pretty traditional when it comes to some things and I knew the pastor would do a good job.

• What is your go-to recipe/meal for dinner?

I haven’t had to cook on a regular basis until now that I am married, but there are a couple of recipes that pop into my mind when thinking of this question.  The first would be Empanadas. The dough is imported from Argentina and amazing, and the fillings are easy to make. It’s quick, easy, and delicious! 

The second would be Cranberry Chicken. I don’t know where I found this recipe, but it is basically chicken breasts, whole cranberry sauce, onion soup mix, and French/catalina dressing. Amazing.

• What is the most random piece or art, decorative item, or piece of furniture you have in your home?

Hmm. My house is not completely decorated since my husband and I just bought it and just moved in. But I think I’ll say a piece of art that we got from one his aunt’s for our wedding. 

• How many children do you have/want? Why?

No children yet, but I think we’ll probably have 2. I want 3 just to beat my sister and brother who both have 2 (3 girls and a boy between them), but I’m thinking we might stop at 2. That’ll be decided with how fertile I am, though (I’ve always feared that I won’t be able to get pregnant). 

• What movie could you watch every day without getting tired of it?

Evita. I adore that movie and I know every word. There are some songs I skip through cause I’m not a fan of them, but I can listen to that track or watch the movie on a loop and not get bored.

• Look around the room you are in now, how many picture frames and/or art pieces are in it? (I have 21 in my living room alone!)

Since we just moved in we don’t have too much as far as decorations go. I do have 2 pictures frames up in my living room as well as a few decorative boxes (I love decorative boxes) and a couple of wood decorations from Argentina on the entertainment center. This past weekend I was able to put up a nice clock over the fireplace. There will be plenty of picture frames going up, though!

• What is your favorite workout routine?

The one in which not a drop of sweat comes out of my body. I still haven’t found it. I do like to go for walks, so that is probably my favorite workout routine. When I can I go for walks with my mom in the evenings. Amanda Nicole turned me onto an App that will track my workout and I look forward to using it (I’m so lame I still haven’t been able to!). My mom and I also do a lot of mall and store shopping, and some people don’t consider this exercise, but it’s a lot of walking and some days my feet and legs are sore. Definitely a workout!

• How do you stay motivated to work out and eat healthy?

I haven’t been able to this year. In 2012 I got myself motivated and lost 25 pounds. While I haven’t gained it all back, it’s creeping that way. Between the wedding and the honeymoon I gained a good amount of weight. I want to lose it and fit into my slacks again, but I’ve found it hard to get back into gear. As I’m writing this it’s Friday the 13^th and I have a couple of days of bad eating ahead of me with Father’s day. I am hoping that I can get back into gear after that. I know everyone says start RIGHT NOW not tomorrow, but that method just doesn’t work for me. Follow my blog to stay updated on my eating/work out (ha!) goals! 

Awesome Blogger Nominees:

The following bloggers are so completely amazing that you just HAVE to go on over to their blogs to check them out!

1. Erica Jacquline
2. Airing My Dirty Laundry
3. Life According to Steph
4. Two Thirds Hazel
5. A Hundred Tiny Wishes
6. Helene In Between
7. Allison Leighann
8. Just Me, Angie!
9. Kerri Waller
10. Six One Six
11. Vodka and Soda

My Random Questions:

• Without anyone getting mad, which blog would you most like to emulate? Why?
• Is your job what you went to school for? If not, why are you working in a different field?
• Which social media is your favorite? Why? 
• Which social media is your least favorite? Why?
• If you could have any animal as a pet, which would you chose? Why?
• What is your favorite current TV Show?
• What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done to your hair? Pictures, please!
• Which team/country is going to win the World Cup? Who will they beat to do it?
• Are you a Mac or PC? Or both? Which devices do you use? 
• What do you think is the proper way to express sympathy when someone passes away: a hand written card, an e-card, an e-mail, a phone call, or an in person “I’m sorry for your loss” (simply because you run into the person)?
• How do you keep track of your blog posts? Do you schedule them ahead of time?

Home Accomplishment!

I feel accomplished. After doing grocery shopping this morning, taking my niece to a birthday party, and watching the somewhat disappointing US/Portugal match instead of sitting on my butt and watching TV I actually got up and did some organizing/cleaning. 

I had been putting all paperwork/manuals into a drawer in the kitchen. It dawned on me that I have a bunch of built in drawers in the office where those could go. I went through them, took out the trash and emptied the drawer out. Not wanting to stop there I organized all the drawers in the kitchen (up to a point anyway). 

I followed that up by doing some balcony work. A couple of weeks ago I bough a rosemary bush at Trader Joe's. Unfortunately the sun burned it to death within a couple of days. I decided that instead of just trashing it I would put the leaves in the Ziploc bag and save it for future use. It's a dirty job! 

I still have a lot to do around the house, but it's looking better and better. On Friday night I was able to put more things into boxes and away into the closet, leaving fewer things to organize. I'm waiting for Thomas to come home from his work trip so that we can finish getting the 2nd bedroom/office put together. My mom sewed my curtains for that room which was so sweet of her and helped so much! 

I also got my Vitamix on Friday and I'm looking forward to using it to make some smoothies and probably soup or other items in the future. I was at Costco on Saturday afternoon and they had the person advertising the blender. The drink he made was sooo good that I went ahead and got the ingredients to make one for myself tonight. 

I'm going to end this with saying that I'm currently watching True Blood with my husband via Skype. He's been gone for just about a week and I miss him terribly! 

Blog Design - Props to Amanda Nicole!

Happy Sunday Everyone! 

I hope your weekend is going as nicely as mine! I spent Saturday morning watching Argentina barely beat Iran (Messi is making it happen this time around it seems!), Costco shopping, and going to my nephew's 6th birthday party. 

Then I enjoyed the afternoon on the couch watching movies, reading blogs, and napping. Tomorrow involves taking my niece to a birthday party and hopefully catch the US game.

But I wanted to take a moment to tell everyone how AMAZING Amanda Nicole is! I began reading her blog, Peaches in Missouri, several months ago and we've become friends! It's too bad that we don't live in the same city, or state for that matter. 

One day I posted on Twitter that I was looking to get my blog re-designed and she informed me that she did some designs. And wow, she is amazing! If you are reading this somewhere that you can't see the design, please click on over and check it out. 

I'm in love with the design, my signature, the pictures and.... EVERYTHING I barely had to do anything for her to know what I liked - I sent her color ideas and she ran with it. 

Thanks Amanda Nicole!!!

My 9 to 5 Day!

I don’t know why it’s call 9 to 5. That would indicate a no lunch day or that people only work 7 hour days. That term always confused me. 

I work from 8:30 to 5:30pm and my view is always the same.

I do my best work seated there (here). You’ll notice there is a window behind the computers, but the worker on the other side of me can’t deal with the sun in the mornings, so she likes to have the blinds closed. Sigh 

I work for the County and specifically for the Social Services department. It might sound fancy, but it’s not really. I work in the customer service center which means I take calls from participants all day. I tend to take anywhere from 35 to 50 calls a day, depending how long my calls are and if I have to be off the phones to do something else. 

Unlike some of the other posts about work days, my days are pretty uniform. 

8:30-11am: I answer phone calls. My calls are 99.9% all in Spanish. I get paid an extra $100 a month to use my Spanish skills. Sometimes we have fundraisers that include selling food, raffle tickets, or other things which means I get to either sit in the lunch room to sell food or walk around the office.

11-11:25am: The regular break time is 15 minutes, however we can sign up for an extra 10 minutes in order to be able to do some sort of exercise. I typically just sit at my desk, but I do walk when the weather is good – or walk around the office.

11:25-12:30pm: I continue taking phone calls. Sometimes our fundraisers are lunch events which would have me off the phone during this time. 

12:30-1:30pm: My lunch time. I usually eat my lunch at my desk while I read blogs, write blogs, catch up on twitter, and do other non-work items. I also tend to take care of couponing and personal phone calls during this time. I also eat, usually a TV dinner, sometimes leftovers. Other times I’ll go out to lunch with my husband who works a couple of blocks away. 

1:30pm-4pm: Same as before. Wow, this is a boring post. If there are raffles to be had we’ll do it during this time as well and in the summer sometimes we’ll sell ice cream after lunch. 

4-4:25pm: This is my afternoon break. On Wednesdays’, in the summer, I’ll use this time to go to the Farmer’s Market at the mall a couple of blocks away and buy myself some popcorn. I’m writing this on a Wednesday and this might be what I do today. Otherwise I’ll usually go to my friends’ cubicle and chat with her. 

4:25-5:30pm: Back to the phones. This is usually the most boring and longest stretch of the day. Although I get off at 5:30pm I get to get off the phone about 10 minutes earlier because they want to make sure I don’t get any overtime – which would happen if a call takes me past 5:30pm. 

That might have sounded like my job is boring or that I don’t like it. I do. I actually really enjoy my job and do not dread coming to work in the morning. I’ve definitely had jobs in the past in which I moaned and groaned that I had to go to work every day – including when I was a substitute teacher.  

I have a supervisor who is great and who is dedicated to doing what’s best for our participants and I have co-workers that are awesome. I am very fortunate to work where I work and with the people I work with. 

My compute is about 5 minutes which is the icing on the cake for me!

Throwback Thursday: Picky Eater

I really had to ask my mom about this. I don’t remember being a picky eater. My memory of myself is of what an easy, adoring, loving child I was. My parents and siblings, of course, may remember this a bit differently. 

My mom says I was like any other kid and loved Macaroni & Cheese. She remembers that I didn’t eat everything but she didn’t have any trouble in feeding me. 

My mom reminded me that when my dad made the “asado” on Saturday nights I would put on my yellow shirt to match my dad’s grilling shirt, and I would sit outside or by the door and my dad would feed me directly from the grill. I think it was just the juice that would be on the plate that he would feed me via a piece of bread. 

You can see me looking out of the corner of my eye!

This is in 1988 (I was about 4) with my sister, Gabriela.

I’m a picky eater now, though. At least that’s what people around me tell me. Mostly it’s because I don’t like Mexican food and to them this makes me weird. 

However, I do think I have an issue with textures. For example I generally don’t like beans of any kind, cooked in any way. I don’t like things that are too greasy, either.

I think this is because I was raised with foods that were generally Argentinean in nature. This included: milanesa’s (although fried, very dry not dripping oil), empanadas, grilled beef (no sauce – generally just salt), and pasta. As I grew older my interests in food increased as well, but I’ve stuck to some of the basic ideas that I grew up with and am used to (as far as greasiness goes anyway)

Greeting Cards

My Confession this week...

I want to start this post by saying that it was inspired by sisters’ passing. The love we were given by the people around us made me think about people’s response to tragedy as well as happy events.

I think that sending a birthday/thank you/sympathy/congratulations card can mean a world of difference to the person receiving it and if I can make a person smile by just remembering them and sending a card, I will try to do it every time. 

My sisters’ passing last month got me thinking about all this. What is socially correct? When should cards be sent? When shouldn’t they? 

My family received several sympathy cards from friends in the days after my sisters’ death. My parents got cards from my mother-in-law and from my brother’s mother-in-law. My dad received cards from ex-co-workers who heard the news. I received a card from the workers in my unit. 

I think there are some people that are in positions that should have the extra touch of giving sympathy/birthday/etc cards when these events happen. When someday in the future I have employees under me I will try and make sure that I am aware of any big events in their lives and make sure that they know I am thinking of them. I will also do my best to treat them all equally. 

I received A LOT of condolences on-line via Facebook. This was very nice and I appreciated reading them. It really made me happy in the hours and days following my sisters’ death to see the messages pop up. However, a card in the regular mail would have meant a lot more. The idea that a person took the time to pick out a card means something to me. 

Maybe I’m being unfair. People are busy, they have other things going on and they don’t have time to stop at the market to pick up a card. Maybe I’m just grieving and feel like everything is unfair. 

I did not write this to offend anyone but instead to get it out of my head. It has been circling round and it has been bothering me.