kashi's journal

Thank you for your honest responses to yesterday's post. I really appreciate all of your input!

I thought about it long and hard, and finally decided to be honest with myself. I can't work for the money. The raise would be fabulous, but spending my time forcing other people to do their jobs just does not appeal to me. I can handle stress - in fact, I love odd situations, unforseen problems I can solve, things other people find stressful. What I don't like is being a task master. I feel that if you're contracted to do something that has a deadline, you should do it by the deadline, without having to be asked or reminded a zillion times. So, I declined the job shadow and am applying elsewhere.

I'm confident I can find something better. I don't want to go from one bad job to another, nor do I want to settle.

I should clarify that everyone walking in seemed happy...except the woman who would have been my boss. She was clearly stressed, and as I mentioned, pretty much ignored me throughout the interview. Not a good sign.

My 10-year high school reunion is this weekend. I'm staying in town and taking maternity photos of my friend instead. Hopefully they will turn out!

Had a very short job interview this morning. It would be as a project coordinator for a translation firm.

PROS
- Free parking
- Something new and different
- Diversity of projects (10-15 juggled at one time)
- About $5,000 more per year
- End-of-year bonus
- Everyone in the office seemed happy as they walked in, which is unusual
- Pretty much the same commute
- No two days are the same
- Casual, pleasant work environment - jeans!
- Some proofreading, more Quark experience
- Small office, everyone around my age

CONS
- The person who would be my boss hardly spoke to me at all - she was more interested in checking her email
- They stressed how stressful and chaotic the job is
- I'd have to track down translators and beg them to finish projects on time, and then dock their pay when they don't, and explain why (yuck, I hate confrontation)
- They want me to do a 1/2 day (4 hours!) job shadow before they even offer me the job, just to see if I like it (unpaid, and I'd have to take time off of work)

So - more money, more stress? Is it worth it? I can't decide.

My job now is not very stressful, not even remotely challenging, pretty much the same every day (boring), and I haven't been happy with it since the second month on the job.

Decisions, decisions.

Three weeks this time...wow. Just wanted to let you know that I am alive, and still reading your blogs. I have google feeds for several and take a peek at the main blog page whenever I have the chance. So although I may seem absent, I'm still keeping tabs on you!

Let's see...the baby shower I hosted was fabulous. I think most everyone had a nice time, particularly the soon-to-be parents, and they received so many nice gifts. I baked four dozen vegan cupcakes (root beer float flavor and lemon flavor) but didn't take ONE photo of them! They were a big hit, even after SO told everyone that they were vegan. (For whatever reason, that tends to freak people out.) I am incredibly excited about this baby's arrival. Since they are keeping the gender a secret, it will be fun to see what it is!

I have a job interview tomorrow. My main goal is more money and less boring work at this point. I purchased an LSAT study guide last week...still on the fence about actually taking the test and actually going to law school, but it's a start. I need a life plan, a career plan, something I can really feel involved in that will bring in some decent money. Right now, I'm just floating through life, and I hate that feeling. Fern, I've been thinking a lot about what you asked in my previous post, and my biggest gripe is the monotony of my current job. Every day is the same and far too simple. Some of my coworkers drive me nuts, but that's inevitable. I should be getting paid more in general, as well.

If I do go to law school, it will preferably be full time, so it would be nice to have a job for a year that brought in more money than my current job. Anyone with insights on law careers and law school, bring them on! I'm most interested in environmental law, international law, and public policy.

I cut out my daily Topamax pills and am waiting for my headaches to subside. At the moment, I'm pretty sure it's just medication withdrawal. I hope I'm right, or I may need to finally give in and visit a neurologist. I just don't want to be eternally medicated, and cutting out dairy and eggs has really helped with the headaches. I hadn't had a migraine since March, up until last Saturday, when I quite taking the Topamax.

My five-year anniversary with SO is tomorrow. Five years! It certainly doesn't seem that long. I guess that is a good sign, eh? We have no plans to celebrate, but we bought ourselves a Wii...romantic, I know. It's seriously fun, though.

I've been posting Project 365 photos to my

flickr page, but here are a few small ones.

If you think vegan food is boring, bland, or uninteresting, think again.

Bean enchiladas with vegan "cheese" sauce, tofutti sour cream, and salsa:


Seitan tacos (one of my favorite recipes):


Chocolate cupcakes with chocolate chiffon mousse frosting - these are to die for:



and, not food-related - beautiful daisies in my yard:

Yikes! I've been away for a couple of weeks. I visited my parents for the long Memorial Day weekend (and my dad's birthday) and have been pretty busy lately.

Since I haven't posted two weeks' worth of Project 365 photos here, I'll spare you the endless array, and just direct you to

my Project 365 site on flickr. Click on a photo's thumbnail to see it bigger. Please feel free to comment! My favorites include the little green worm that attached himself to SO's shirt, my dad's old GMC truck, and my mother's sweet 29-year-old horse.

My sister moved into her apartment last weekend, so I hosted her and my mom again. I spent waaaaay too much money as well. June is shaping up to be an expensive month already.

I purchased some of the upcoming baby shower food items at Sam's Club but I've still got more to get, including decorations. The party isn't until the 16th, but I feel like I've got a lot to do...including baking four dozen cupcakes.

Still losing about a pound a week! I received the completed payment notice regarding my student loan, too, so I'm free and clear on that one. I also dropped down my car insurance levels and removed collision entirely, so that will help immensely. The yearly premium plus deductible was more than my car is worth, and I don't even drive it that often. I kept comprehensive, since I live in the city. I'll be saving $250 a year - not bad!

One of my coworkers is quitting, and I'm pretty envious. I've been looking for something new, but nothing clicks. Same refrain - six years after college, still don't know what to do with my life. All I know is that it's not this. It would be nice to be happy in a job, and feel like it was a career. Am I dreaming? How many people actually obtain that?

photo credit


I paid off my smaller college loan! *happy dance*

My remaining college loan is finally under $11,000! I like that the figure starts with a 10 now.

To date, I've paid off $12,217 in student loans, not counting interest!

And, this isn't financially-related, but I can fit into my favorite jeans again! I've lost 11 pounds, and am consistently losing about a pound a week. It's a nice little side perk of my vegan diet. Oh cute jeans, how I've missed thee...


lattice, P365, Day 28: 5/17/07



concentration, P365, Day 29: 5/18/07



puff, P365, Day 30: 5/19/07

Getting sick of this yet?

A view while out geocaching - Day 24, 5/13/07


$3.24 a gallon and rising - Day 25, 5/14/07


lilacs, Day 26, 5/15/07


My landlord's 10-year-old dog, racing circles around me with the frisbee. He's a boxer pitbull mix, and the sweetest thing ever. Day 27, 5/16/07

I had a wonderful weekend with my mom, sister, and SO. We found several geocaches, did a little shopping (but not too much) and enjoyed the unbelievably warm weather. Yesterday it hit 92 degrees!

Still taking photos every day! I'm posting small versions here - if you'd like to see bigger ones, click

here.

Guitar Hero Obsession, Day 18, 5/7/07


Got Insulin? Day 19, 5/8/07


one of my bowls, Day 20, 5/9/07


yarn, Day 21, 5/10/07


loved, Day 22, 5/11/07


family of geese we saw while out geocaching, Day 23, 5/12/07

A few more photos of geese & ducks here.

My mother has been back from Florida for less than 72 hours, and my great-aunt already fell and fractured her hip. She's having surgery today and will have to return to the rehab center. So much for the assisted living place, I guess - clearly, she needs constant supervision. What does that mean? A nursing home next? That's going to go over real well.

This is ridiculous. If she had only been a little less stubborn about staying in Florida... But we knew that something like this happening was inevitable. We just didn't expect it to happen so soon.

This is my second post of the day, but I just found

this and had to share.

Countries I've Visited
This made me realize I really need to travel more!


Create your own visited country map! (keep in mind, though, that you can't use their code to upload it to your blog here - I had to save the picture and upload it manually)

My USA Map looks a little better - but still! Only 54% visited! Where are my car keys?


Create your own personalized map of the USA!

Mom came back from Florida this weekend, relieved to finally be back, but worried about the future. It's hard to know what to say sometimes.

We went geocaching yesterday and found three out of three! Whoo hoo! I'm glad we were able to find all of them - it made the first geocaching adventure for my mom and sister that much more fun. Thanks again to the savingadvicer who mentioned it on your blog (I'm sorry, I can't remember who you were!). What a fun hobby! We approached one geocache from the wrong direction and ended up accidentally trespassing, which we didn't realize until much later. Whoops! We had no idea, though, because there were no signs, and no one came out to tell us. We walked around the grounds of an overgrown monastery, up and down a grand staircase covered in weeds and branches, and came across an old swimming pool full of trees. It looked like a movie set. I wish I had taken more photos.

It was nice to spend time with my family and friends. I spent a bit too much money on dining out, though, and I wish I had another day to relax. Oh well - back to the grind.

As for the bake sale's final figures - I made $72.15! Not bad! I should factor in the cost of ingredients (most of which I already had in the house), but frankly, I'm just content with the cash.

On to posting my Project 365 photos!

Juicy Tomatoes, Day 14: 5/3/07


Sheriff at a stoplight, Day 15: 5/4/07


My new camera, Day 16: 5/5/07


Bench, Day 17: 5/6/07

Last day of the bake sale! Today I brought in caramel corn. I hope it flies off the table. I'm doing really well, but I'll save the final figure for tomorrow. Poor SO has been watching this stuff walk out of the house with just a nibble here and there, and I don't feel like baking anything more! Maybe I'll get inspired again this weekend...

I've been playing around with my new camera when I've got a spare moment...still haven't read the user manual so the photos aren't crystal clear and I don't understand all the features. I'll get to it, hopefully this weekend.

P365, Day 12: 5/1/07


P365, Day 13: 5/2/07


My sister did something somewhat illogical, from my point of view. She decided to rent an apartment for her final year of college and not go home this summer. Fine and dandy, except for the fact that she has no job, no car, and no furniture. She already signed the lease and now is scrambling to find a job on campus to cover rent, utilities, and food. I hope she does, because my parents cannot help her (my father is still unemployed). Summer housing is not covered by her college loans because she isn't taking any classes. I understand wanting the independence...but I also don't get it. It's just one more year of living in a dorm, and then the rest of her life to live in an apartment. My mom is really sad about her not coming home this summer, too. Oh well, I guess, live and learn; I just hope it's not to the detriment of my parents' already delicate living situation.

My employer is having a three-day employee shindig this week, and I have a sale table. I'm selling baked goods, all proceeds benefiting me! I've made about $20 in the first hour. Not bad! On the table, I've got orange almond biscotti, rosemary bread, blondie bars, mini banana bread, mini banana muffins, and giant peanut butter oatmeal cookies. If it all sells, I should make about $70 today. Wish me luck!

P365, Day 11: 4/30/07
Banana Walnut Mini Muffins

Remember my

post about the Olympus Evolt E-500 camera back in September? The camera I've been salivating over forever? Well, we stopped in at Comp USA's store closing sale yesterday, and there it was...brand new, with two lenses...deeply discounted. The cheapest I've ever seen it on amazon is $630, and Comp USA was selling their last model for $475. After some deliberation, I bought it! I've never done something like that before. Normally when I spend that kind of money, it's poured into my engine. It feels a little weird to spend it on myself. I know it was the best deal I could find, though, and the camera is perfect.

I'm really, really excited! Project 365 just got more interesting!

I'll still be able to pay off my smaller college loan in May, and everything else will carry on more or less as usual. I'll just have to live with a few less new books and pay a little more attention to what I'm putting in the Target cart.

Good news on the baby shower - I used a gift card to by fabric paints and invitations over the weekend. I found a great deal on cute invites - 4 invites with 4 thank you cards for $1 per pack! Can't beat that!

P365, Day 8: Happy Arbor Day (last Friday) - this is my giant rubber tree


P365, Day 9: Maplewood's enormous snowman


P365, Day 10: cute kitty, taken with my new camera

P365 Day 6, oil lamp:



P365 Day 7, fried tofu, peanut sauce, egg rolls:



We went out to a Thai dinner last night to celebrate my friend's birthday/upcoming departure for NYC. She finally finished her doctorate degree and is leaving us! It was a bittersweet gathering. Good Thai food, though. Hopefully I'll get a chance to visit her sometime.

I have been sick for three weeks. After a certain point, you start to feel like you'll be sick for the rest of eternity.

I'm planning a June baby shower for my best friend. It certainly adds up, doesn't it? I'm planning to buy some onesies and fabric paint as the main activity, and maybe some baby food to do a "taste test" challenge. Then there's food and beverages (hopefully other family members will help pitch in with this), decorations, cake, plastic/paper tableware, and a gift. What am I forgetting? I need to develop a budget for this, stat!

Day 4: one of the trees off of my deck, just starting to bloom. I have a thing for trees.




Day 5: vegan fettuccini alfredo with steamed broccoli, from

Vegan with a Vengeance. It had a kick! Definitely hit the spot.



The vegan thing is going quite well, much better than I expected. It has been really easy for me to eliminate dairy, eggs, and chocolate (though I've found some vegan alternatives to that). I lost five pounds in Florida and am down eight total. If I could give up all sweets, the weight would be falling off...as it stands, Hot Tamales and Golden Oreos are vegan. Tsk tsk.

I signed up to do a bake sale at work next week. Guess I'd better start baking! I recently made some delicious peanut butter oatmeal cookies from the cookbook mentioned above, so I'll make some of those, and maybe some biscotti. It will be an easy way to bring in some cash.

I've got a busy weekend coming up - a goodbye party for a friend, a birthday party, another friend is moving, and another friend wants to get together. Plus, I've got to bake. Yikes!

I may complain about bill payments.
I may bemoan my eternally broken-down car.
I may get frustrated with feeling like I'll never pay off my student loans.
I may feel like I'm earning less than everyone else I know.
I may feel like I don't have a solid career path.

But...
I live in a country where I am free to express myself.
I earn a decent wage at a job that gives me and my significant other excellent health insurance.
I have a roof over my head, clothes on my back, and way too much stuff cluttering my house.

I've always got a fully stocked fridge. I am grateful for that.

I'd like to be a well-fed, much-loved house cat in my next life...

Here's my first photo of Project 365!

A view of the St. Anthony Falls from the Stone Arch Bridge in Minneapolis, Minnesota.



It was the only waterfall on the Upper Mississippi River until it partially collapsed. You can read more about the falls

here.

The University of Minnesota also has a laboratory near the falls.

I've been back from Florida for a few days, but I'm still processing everything that happened. My great-aunt was an interesting character. I would have liked to get to know her under different circumstances. As it was, our time together was stressful and filled with more confrontation than I would have liked. I'm not one for confrontation, but make my mother cry? And look out.



When I left, I thought we had come to an amicable solution; we found a lovely assisted living facility that my great-aunt loved, and she put down a deposit on a room. My mother is staying for another three weeks to smooth the transition. Yesterday, however, the rehab center my great-aunt is currently staying in decided to inform the assisted living facility that she needs an excessive amount of care - more than she really needs, in my opinion. I'm not sure what their motivation is. Thus, the assisted living facility may not accept her, and she's only got a week left of Medicare coverage. My mother has to deal with this headache on her own. In the face of this, my great-aunt is again threatening to move back into her house with no care whatsoever (not possible or safe).



Sometimes my great-aunt is "there", sometimes she's not. She's very witty and very funny when she's present. When she's not, she's calling my mother by my grandmother's name, throwing out crazy accusations, and telling us about the music (voices?) she's going going on in her head. She refuses to move to where my mother lives simply because of the state, even though she's never been there. She's got no family and no friends in Florida, or within 1100 miles, and doesn't mind one bit. It's an interesting existence.



Mom and I made it to the beach one day to watch the sun rise. It was simply gorgeous. After the sun rose, we spent some time splashing through the warm water looking for seashells. What a great memory.



More photos, including photos of the

Morikami Japanese Gardens, are on my flickr site.

I'm leaving for Florida this weekend. Somewhere along the way this week, I managed to catch a cold. I've been trying to fight it with all sorts of stuff. I really don't want to bring it to my great-aunt.

My employer's IT department was a bit freaked out over a recent internet virus scare, so we had no internet for two days. Let me tell ya, two days without internet at my job is pretty rough. I'm not sure what people did during work lulls before the internet...created giant rubberband balls? Chatted endlessly around the water cooler? I made up an Excel spreadsheet outlining exactly when I would pay off my big student loan based on different monthly payments and the interest rate - yeah, I was that bored. I'll share it with you, though, because you're really the only people who might possibly be interested.



$135 is the minimum payment. I'm going to shoot for $300/mo payments in 2008 - it might be a bit of a stretch, but that might be good for me. I can't believe it's still going to take me so long to pay it off. I just want to be rid of it already.

Good news, though - my smaller loan will be paid off in May!

I also figured out my net worth for March - I'm up to ($1,113). Perhaps that will be a positive figure by August.

On a related note - I'm thinking about going back to school. What's it this time, kashi? Law. I wouldn't want to be courtroom, criminal lawyer - I'd rather do something more like public interest law, environmental law, or international law. Something that felt like I was making a difference. I love research, writing and editing, thought-provoking materials... So I've been mulling it over. Law has always been in my personal top-ten careers list, and my aunt reeeaallly thinks I'd make a good lawyer. We'll see. It definitely would not help me reduce the student loans, though...

I'm going to start adding a photo a day, as

Fern suggested, but that may not happen until after I get back from Florida. Internet access will be hard to come by.

Sweet 80-degree weather, here I come! What a shock it will be, considering it's been snowing here, and 16 degrees this morning!

I'm heading to Florida!

photo link

Mom is coming back this weekend for a brief two-week hiatus to get some stuff done at home. Then she's got to go back to Florida for another month. My great-aunt's affairs are still up in the air...she doesn't want to be in an assisted living facility, but she can't take care of herself, she doesn't want anyone living with her, she won't move anywhere else where a family member could help her out... It's a bit of a mess.

I'm going to Florida with Mom to help her out for a week (and, to a suck up a little 80 degree weather). This throws my savings and student loan goals off, of course, but I think it's worth it. I haven't seen my mom much lately, and she's completely stressed out with all that's been going on this year. I've never met my great-aunt, and I've been dying for a vacation. It may not end up being the most relaxing vacation in the world, but hopefully my presence will be appreciated.

Time to dig out the summer clothes!

Last night's

play performance was amazing. I had never seen it before, and we hadn't been to the new theater yet. It was very sleek and contemporary, with amazing views of the city from the rooftop terrace. While we waited in the lobby, it started to snow over the Mississippi River. I've never seen anything like it - it came down with such force that we could not see neon signs across the river. Thankfully, it quit as abruptly as it began and the drive home was uneventful.

The woman next to me in the theater and her daughter put on some hand cream at the beginning of the performance. At first, it didn't affect me...but then I started sneezing, my sinuses filled up, and the headache started. I've rarely had such a powerful reaction to scent like that. Plus they were going on and on to each other about its subtle, refreshing scent. Just goes to show you how differing opinions can be, and why scented stuff should be applied at home. Not sure what one can do in a situation like that..."Hey lady, could you go wash your hands?" may not go over so well.
Luckily, I had plenty of Excedrin and tissues, and the experience was still fabulous.

I know a couple getting married this fall, one-half of which just graduated from college. They both just bought brand-spanking new vehicles, and not cheap ones, either. I just don't know how people do it. Yesterday I made a chart - at best, with my current salary, I will have my college loans paid off in late 2011. I could not throw a car payment and increased insurance costs on top of that without eliminating my monthly savings. Another friend of mine is having a baby this year and just paid off her 2005 car. I'm just so envious. It's hard not get down on myself when I hear this stuff. I can't help but wonder what I am doing so wrong! I can't imagine feeling secure enough to go out and buy a brand new car (or a house, or anything for that matter)...but maybe that's my problem. Maybe none of these people do either, but they do it anyway.

Well, we dug out, and guess what? Almost all the snow has melted already. It's nearly 50 degrees today! The mountains of snow are gone, replaced by gobs of mud and enormous puddles of water. Spring? Is that you?

I've been a bit MIA lately because I haven't been concentrating much on finances, and since this is supposed to be a financial blog, well... However, I have a plan to have $1000 in savings by the end of April, and pay off my smaller college loan in June. My investments haven't tanked too badly lately, thankfully. I am glad I have lots of time to let things percolate before retirement.

I've been on Topamax for about three weeks. It's been working fairly well for my headaches. Yesterday my hands, fingers, and forearms starting tingling and felt somewhat numb, like I had held them above my head for far too long and all the blood had rushed out of them. Shake, shake, shake - nothing. The feeling persisted all day, and my toes starting tingling, too. I went to the doctor, and he suggested more potassium. I'm going to maintain this dosage and see what happens. If this tingling thing doesn't go away, I'll lower the dosage, and perhaps eliminate it completely. It's a shame that side effects have to pop up...my daily headaches are finally starting to subside, after five years of putting up with them.

One day, I tried one Zomig to treat a migraine and was stoned for five hours straight. The doctor suggested I try Maxalt instead, so that's what I've got now. I guess trial and error is the only way to go!

And, my latest obsession, food. Vegan food, to be exact. I cashed in some American Express points and bought

Becoming Vegan. It's chock-full of great advice about nutrition and how to become vegan the right way. I have been moving away from dairy and eggs and feeling better overall. Whether or not I ever become fully vegan, I think eating less animal products and more fresh, whole foods is a good thing. My in-laws bought us a juicer for our birthdays, too, which is a great addition to our kitchen! I'd post photos of the great food we've been making, but again - this is a financial blog! I may have to create a food blog...

Mom is still in Florida - yeah, I'm not even kidding. They are having so much trouble getting help from anyone. Hopefully she will be able to come home next week.

SO and I are going on a date later this week to a play and dinner - the play tickets were half price, thanks to a discount through my employer, and the dinner will be paid for by a gift certificate, thanks to my former employer! Cheap date! My favorite.

Oh, and by the way - I'm going to The Police!

We got hit with another big snow storm on Thursday...big enough for my employer to send us home early. That's big.

Here's how much snow we've received in one week, as seen on my deck table:







I'm happy to say the snow has stopped falling, and the sun is finally shining again. We can leave the house, but walking to the bus stop tomorrow morning might be a bit tricky...



Is it spring yet?

It's not March yet, but I know what my budget will be slightly bending for:



THE POLICE Live in Concert are coming my part of the world!

I grew up listening to their music, I've got the boxed set and listen to it all the time...and, as silly as it may sound, I adore Sting. I do. So, I wouldn't miss this concert!

Tickets run $50-$225 (whatever that means!). Even if I had $225 to blow, I don't think I'd spend it on this. A bit too rich for my blood. One of the cheapie seats will suit me just fine. I'm so excited!!

Also, SO would like to attend a theatre performance in March. As luck would have it, I can get us 50% off tickets through work! We've still got a $50 restaurant gift certificate to use, so that will be a lovely, inexpensive date night.

Free pizza at work today - but who's ever heard of a two piece limit? Not to mention, two of the smallest pieces ever. Nice, but I need to find myself a snack...

I listed a scarf and hat set on etsy.com

here.

Here's a photo of the listing, and my mannequin!



What shall I name her?

Thanks for the wig offer, Nana, but I think I'm looking for something a bit more natural, so as not to contrast with my other scarves. I've got some crazy pink/purple/green/blue ones to put up soon.

My pre/post storm photos aren't too exceptional because wind gusts kept my deck table from retaining much of the snow that fell. The knee-high drift in front of my car, though, that was nice. Photos of the deck are posted on my flickr site here. I also brought snow inside for the cats to play with...they enjoyed that.

****
Winter Storm Warning in effect through Sunday evening. Storm totals of 10-14" possible in the metro.

Roads may become impassable tonight with "thunder-snow" falling at the rate of 2"/hour at times. Consider a Plan B.
***

Our annual March blizzard is a bit early this year. Knowing this was coming, I stocked up at the grocery store on Friday night, and we aren't leaving the house until we have to. The snow is pretty, just so long as I don't have to go out into it. The last 24 hours has brought mainly freezing rain and high winds. I'm taking progressive photos of our deck this time; I'll post the aftermath.

Today I baked a whole-wheat coffee cake and vegan vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting, and a tasty lentil loaf is ready to pop in the oven for dinner. SO is going to make garlic mashed potatoes and asparagus. Yum.

I've been eating a lot better over the past few days. I stayed home to fight a cold on Thursday and read

The Vegan Diet as Chronic Disease Control: Evidence Supporting the New Four Food Groups by Kerrie Saunders. It illustrates how the standard American diet is ruining our health - killing us, essentially. Turns out I'm a junk food vegetarian - sure, I haven't eaten meat in years, but I'm not eating like I should be. It's time for that to change, and this book has been the catalyst. Now if only I could find some kale! I'm dying to cook some up.

Today is my sweetie's birthday. We both had President's Day off work yesterday, and are taking this afternoon off to celebrate too. He's not much of a birthday person, but I'm going to keep smooching him anyway. We might see a movie this afternoon...not sure which one yet!

I've taken a few photos of my new mannequin head modeling a handmade scarf and hat set. I'll post them soon. She really needs a wig, though. We stopped at a party store yesterday to look for one, but no luck. Too bad it's not closer to Halloween!

It appears to be spring here - yesterday it was 41 degrees!! Today should be a repeat. I'm so happy. The birds are singing, my skin is thawing, life is good. I hope this nice weather sticks around.

Mom was supposed to return from Florida this week, but they have too much left to do. I'm not sure when she's coming back; she's got to change her return flight date now. My great-aunt is going through waves of feeling well and not-so-well. It's hard to leave someone who has no family nearby, but I can tell my dad is feeling lonely. He and I talked on the phone for two hours the other night, which is some sort of record.

I took this coming Friday off work because Mom was supposed to be here, but now she won't be. I'm tempted to stick with it anyway. I had a marvelous dream last night that involved me walking into the office on a Friday and quitting. I was going to start grad school on Monday. Weird dream, but boy did I feel good when I woke up.

Yesterday we used up the last of our grocery store gift certificates at Trader Joes. Now we've got lots of tasty organic frozen vegetables in our freezer, just waiting for dinner.

Something odd and job-related - last month I applied for a position I'm completely qualified for, and the recruiter wrote me an email asking me for my desired salary range. I asked her to provide the job's salary range, and I'd let her know if it was within my personal range. She sent it to me - $14,000-$23,000 more than I make now - so of course I wrote back and said I was interested. No response. I wrote back again a week later and indicated I was still interested and would love to come in for an interview. Still no response. What's the deal? Who does that? Did I anger the money gods somehow? Needless to say, I was bummed...that much of a raise would be truly fantastic.

I've been crocheting, a LOT. I'm making a baby blanket for a friend, and working on lots of scarves and hats. This prompted me to register for an etsy.com shop, and...buy a mannequin head.

A mannequin head??

Yes, a mannequin head.

Not only has she got a head, she's got a neck, too. This way, I can display hats and scarves, beaded necklaces, and perhaps earrings if she's got post holes. I thought it might make my crafts more visually appealing to the buyer. Nothing makes you not want to buy a hat more than seeing it on someone's grubby head first.

It's actually a rubber makeup practice head, so I guess if I decide to go down the makeup artist path one day, I'll have something to practice on!

I am soooo excited. I bought it on eBay, and it should be here on Friday. I'll post photos ASAP.

Otherwise, trying to keep it together. Still looking for jobs for my dad and finding nothing in their area. Mom is still in Florida, and today I've been searching online for an assisted living home for my great-aunt. It seems she hasn't been taking care of herself like she should. She's open to the idea, so it's just a matter of finding a nice one that won't break the bank.

Two of my fish died last weekend, despite medicating them. Two are left, and I hope they make it. My tank has been acting funky for months now.

My cookbooks arrived, and I have been drooling over them ever since. My current fav is

Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World. Margarita cupcakes, people! I'm going to have to start making cupcakes and posting photos so you, too, can drool over them.

Had a doctor's appointment this morning - Topamax and Zomig, here I come. I really like my doctor; he actually takes the time to listen to me, considers what I've said, does a little research on his laptop, and gives me a few options to choose from. He's very thoughtful and considerate. I appreciate that. I find it sad that his type of medical care is unusual.

Luckily, he gave me ample samples of both new drugs, so I don't have to fill pricey prescriptions until I know they work.

I am so incredibly tired of having a perpetual headache.

Last night SO and I used a soon-to-expire restaurant gift certificate. It was a nice place. We did something we've never done before - sent back a bottle of wine. It didn't seem spoiled, just...gross. The restaurant was empty, so we didn't inconvenience our server; we just felt bad about doing it. The second bottle was much better. On the way home, we had to create a pep talk for ourselves - it's ok to politely refuse something unpleasant and ask for a replacement if you're paying for it. That's harder for me that it should be.

We had to take a "strengths finder" quiz at work. Turns out I am intellectual, adaptable, empathetic, have a craving to know more, and am inspired by the future. Didn't really come as a surprise to me, but I'm not sure how to apply that to my career.

I received a very nice birthday gift of cash from my aunt. I'm spending half of it on books and a

writing computer program (a.k.a., my kick in the pants). The other half will go into savings.

I wish we were going to Mexico this weekend!