Pride and Prejudice

Recently, I have taken it upon myself to read all of the books that are classified as the "Classics." I had never read any of these, besides a few Shakespeare plays and the Odyssey. Pride and Prejudice was my first choice to ease myself into these books and I must say, it was a great choice. The book, which is broken into 3 parts, was very difficult to understand for the first third of the book. After starting to understand the language and tempo of the writing, the book was extremely intriguing. The story of two sisters who aren't necessarily looking for love, but love always find those who aren't actively seeking it. It is interesting to see how the aristocracy effects everything from how you can introduce yourself to whom you can marry.

Too busy to write much lately

Wow! It's been forever since I've been on here... It's crazy how much time flies when you are busy! The past few weeks, I've been taking bikram yoga classes with Laura and am very said to see my membership up, as I can't afford the regular rates. The classes are amazing, combining strength, stretching, and mental determination in all of the movements. I recommend trying it out sometime. At work, they've also moved me to a branch in Central Phoenix. It's one of the busiest Chase branches in the state, so I'm keeping busy there and learning a lot about operations in a typical Chase environment.

And as the summer approaches, I have to think long and hard about what I want to do. Do I really want to go back to school to get my masters in Consumer Psychology? And what am I going to do with the degree after I spend $30k on it? Or do I want to do as Mike has suggested and get my certificate in Pastry from the Scottsdale Culinary Institute and open up my own bakery? There is so much to consider before June that I'm going crazy. I would love to work for myself, but I really don't want to end up like my brothers, working 70 hours a week making great money, but not being able to really enjoy it? Any opinions would be greatly appreciated on this subject.

You know how that saying goes....

They say that when it rains, it pours...and right now that seems to be the theme of my life. As everyone knows, I graduated in May with my bachelor's degree and there's some trace of hope when you finally walk on stage and get your degree, shaking the Dean of the College's hand. You think that things are only going to get better from here. You're going to get an amazing job, pay off all of your debt, and you're moving up. Well, It's February and I graduated almost 9 months ago and it seems that absolutely nothing has changed.... I'm in the same job, making the same amount of money. The only difference is that I have student loans and new debts that I have to pay for medical expenses, now that I graduated and can no longer be on my parents insurance. I was feeling pretty good about finally working out my budget so that I can get by week to week without pulling money from my savings account. And then, last night happened. I walk to to mailbox and have a letter from my dental insurance, which is typical after I have had something done at the dentist and open up the statement of what they are paying. After reading the letter....my heart literally stopped. I couldn't believe how little they would pay for dental work.... and my portion is astronomical for someone who is barely making it by, week to week. How can I possibly owe $1,100 out of an $1,800 bill?

So I must say that insurance companies suck. You pay semi-monthly premiums so you won't have unexpected medical expenses come up and drain your savings account. Then, when those unexpected medical expenses come up, they tell you they're not covering it because you have a deductible you must pay..... and until you meet that deductible, you are S.O.L. and your savings account is drained, or you have to borrow the money. It doesn't help when you charged up your credit card debt during college because you didn't balance your budget and overspent..... So now I really don't know what to do and feel like I'm never going to get out of this whole I have dug myself in. And my hopes of obtaining the dream job that is going to change my world are diminished to almost nothing...

January

This month is a little over halfway through and it feels like yesterday I was celebrating New Years with my amazing friends, minus the boyfriend. We spent the weekend in Sedona so Mike could golf with my dad, only to have a few interruptions. My parents have been remodeling their house for over 3 years and it is finally coming to a...well a pause. There is still a lot of work they want done, but they now have a liveable house. Their bedroom was finished this past weekend and it looks amazing. On top of it, the rain didn't seem to want to stop yesterday, and the fog was beautiful across the red rocks. I wish I had my camera to photograph it and blow it up for my wall.

Holiday Cheer and Photos

I cannot believe that Christmas is this Friday!!! Seriously..... it seems like this month has been a blur. Last night were both Mike's Branch and my branches holiday parties. So we went to his and ate yummy food, then went to mine and had a good time playing foozball and Chinese Christmas and getting pictures taken and such. My ABM, and long time friend, Kelly, has a photography business on the side. He's taken my senior pictures and some other artistic photos here and there of me, so I asked him to do some of Mike and I. :) I posted some of my favorite below. If you're interested, let me know and I can get you in touch with Kelly.

The serious one.

Cuddling on the couch.

Something I can never get enough of.

A Week Off

It's funny how much faster your week seems to go when you have a week to do whatever you want. At the same time, when you are still adjusting to not having to cram for Finals and get in the last minute service hours while working a 40 hour a week schedule, it can seem like there is nothing in the world to do, which makes people like me go crazy. So what did I do for the past 4 days that I have been off?

Well, Monday I cleaned.....and not your typical lets clean the house clean... I cleaned the entire house, top to bottom, fans, vents, and all. Then I got a couple of presents ready and wrapped, spent $80 at the grocery store, and stared mindlessly at the TV set for the rest of the evening.

Tuesday, I baked and hung out with the amazing boyfriend I have. I started off making fudge, because I've never made it and didn't think it would turn out right. I was wrong, it was yummy! So I tried my hand at rice krispie treats, another no brainer that were good. So I made a double batch of chocolate chip cookies, which I know I rock at. Picked up my HUGE posters that I will be framing (pictured above) at Costco, cooked my boyfriend dinner, and attempted to make brownies from scratch. (I hope those turned out OK because I never actually got to try them before giving them all away). Did I mention I cleaned the kitchen after every baking experience?

Wednesday, I got up bright and early to make confetti sugar cookies. I doubled that recipe as well and frosted them all with a deep pink frosting. Made snickerdoodles.....which I also rock at (according to my best friend Hillary who is always asking me to make them). After that I decided to stare at the TV in boredom again because there is nothing better to do with my day rather than shop...and being lazy is a lot less expensive when you want to buy lots of shiny new clothes. When I finally drug my lazy ass off the couch, I made peanut butter blossoms or whatever their called. Doubled the recipe yet again and realized all too late the bowl was going to be almost too small so I had to hand-mix a lot of it. So I make those, and unwrap a lot of Hershey's Kisses, and realize I've got to get moving for my best friends Glee party that she wanted me at. After an hour of traffic and 4 hours of pigging out on junk food, which I still feel guilty about, I drove to Walmart. It seems that no one carries cellophane anymore...the lady looked at me like I was speaking a foreign language and referred me to the post office. Why the hell would I go to the USPS to get cellophane?

After a long day on Wednesday, I woke up late this morning. I didn't get my walk in, which made me feel like a stuck pig all day and then I started pigging out again....but I got 11 plates of goodies out of my house and delivered. I also drove around for 45 minutes trying to find a couple of offices where I needed to drop them off at, but that's besides the point. Mike took me to lunch at a sandwich place by his work and I got to meet his co-workers. I was amazed that they didn't believe he actually had a girlfriend. His manager actually admitted to me that she thought he downloaded a picture of a "hot-chick off of the internet to show off to everyone." HAHAHAHAHA...he showed them. :-P They all seemed really nice though. Now, I got all of my shopping done for the family I adopted, with the help of a few really nice friends, and it's ready to drop off in the AM. My only obstacle now is to figure out how to wrap a basketball....any ideas?

Thanksgiving

It's the time of year where families get together and enjoy eating lots of food and each others company. This year, I am going to Sedona to spend time with my immediate family, and for the the first time ever, my dad's parents and sister and her kids. So it's time to reflect on what I am thankful for in my life. I am thankful for my family, my house, my job, and my friends. I am thankful I have my degree and for my roommate. I am thankful for my amazing boyfriend and his family. In this tough economy, it is difficult for some families to celebrate the way the rest of us do, so I am thankful that I can help one of these families out by donating food and gifts to these struggling people.