Two times the craziness

I recently switched jobs.  I am in the same company and in the same department, but I have moved up into a job that will require more of me.  The problem that I have right now is the fact that my old job has not been filled just yet so I am still working that job as well.  Yes, I have two jobs right now.  This last week was tough and when I got home on Friday night it was really hard for me to relax.  I actually sent myself two emails to work regarding things I did not want to forget by Monday.
I am hoping that I can soon get into the swing of things at my new job and finally transition so that I do not have to worry about my old job which I had for five years so it is hard to forget.
Right now it is hard for me not to wonder if this was the right choice for me career wise.  Are we ever sure?
Working and living in Southern California is in its own class.  It seems that even if you make a decent salary you cannot buy a home or keep up with the Jones'.  It is scary to think about possibly starting a family when you overhear conversations where people with 6 figure salaries say that they cannot afford to have children.  What world are we living in?  I really hope that things start to calm down.  Well, enough of this down talk.  I guess it is pretty nice to live by the beach and I have a coupon to purchase a new book at Borders so there is definitely things to be happy about.  I have also booked my tax appointment on St. Patty's Day so I am hoping that our tax lady finds a pot of gold for us!

Scrambled

This last weekend we had some friends in town and luckily the forecast which was all rain for the weekend earlier turned out to be sunny and pretty nice.  We biked down by the beach and saw Jay Leno at the Comedy and Magic Club.
This past month we have also been trying to check out all the new local restaurants.  One is the fabulous restaurant Gonpachi which is located in the Miyako Hotel in Torrance.  For lunch they offer a miso soup & salad bar and for dinner they have "chef's choice specials" which feeling adventurous is what I ordered.  It turned out to be something that I was not adverse to eating.  The dinner ended with the first photo a dish of green tea mousse with red beans (Aduki beans?).
The main dish was Salmon in what tasted like a pesto sauce over risotto.  This dish also came with sushi and a ceasar salad with whole anchovies placed over the top.  I am not much of an anchovy person, but the whole dinner was Delicious! :)   I will definitely be back there.

I can't wait for March to get here as we are planning a Hawaii vacation!  I have never been there before, so I am looking forward to it!  I also happen to be a fan of pineapples, coffee, macadamia nuts and shave ice so what could be better than actually going to the home of all of those items.   We are trying to plan a lot in the five days that we will be there so I have a feeling we will have to make several trips in the future!

I begin a new job on March 1st which is very exciting.  It is with the same company in the same department, but I am moving from Events to Grant Writing for the non-profit foundation.  Since I have been at my location for the last five years I know my job in and out right now and I am excited and nervous to go to a new job where I will need to use new skills.  The job I am leaving will still need my assistance to finish up for an event, so I will still be helping out at this current job until the end of May...yeah a long time.  It feels like I have two jobs at once right now....wish I was getting two salaries!! :)
So, in a nutshell, my mind is scrambled.  I wanted to try and update more often, but until I can get it all balanced at work I may find myself coming home and crashing into a pool of jello...not literally crashing into a pool of jello, but more like becoming one.
Hope everyone is well and enjoying the Olympics!!  I have been keeping up with them, but it is a little hard being on the west coast when they start at 8pm and go until midnight.  I just can't stay up that late.  Speaking of which, I am going to go watch some skiing right now.

The donut AGAIN!

So, we noticed that one of my tires was losing air so I took it into Americas Tire for what I thought would be an easy and free patch and then I would be on my way. 45 minutes later I am cursing the streets in LA County and asking if my tires are made of tissue paper.

This is the third tire I have had to replace on a car that only has 11,000 miles on it. THIRD tire. The first was a flat that I believe I was the main cause of. The second was an idiot road crew member who left a sharp metal blade on the roadway and it pierced my side wall. This third one seems to be a staple of some kind that left two holes close together that cannot be patched.

These are not cheap tires...in fact they are bloody expensive. Oh, and I also think my car needs a break job. Well, so much for saving money this year. ARGH.

Had to get my anger out, so thank you for listening.

My car now has a donut on it until the tire place can order a new tire for me as they do not have any of the brand I use in stock. I don't like donuts. Not one single bit. In fact I hate donuts.

A little behind

When I began this post a while back I thought I would be updating it everyday or at least a couple of times a week. I was doing pretty well as it was easy for me to update during my lunch hour or a quick break from work, but then the site was blocked and it seemed that when I got home after being on the computer all day the last thing I wanted to do was get back onto it.

This year I hope to be better about updating at least for me...cause the more you think about it, a blog is like a diary that you can look back on.

The start of this year has been slow. I thought about making resolutions, but then never did. I thought...yeah, I will try and drink green tea instead of coffee every morning, but then the first day at the office came and I just had to go to the cafeteria for some caffeine (the elixir of life as we like to call it in the office).

Right now I am making small changes like trying to

be better with my overall health and also trying new recipes and foods. One was brought on by a coworker who brought a nice little powder into work that you can sprinkle on fruit. She said that growing up in Hawaii they use it on everything. She brought back a packet from Hawaii for me and now I cannot get enough. It is called "Li Hing Powder" and is basically a plum powder. DELICIOUS and I found out that some of the stores here stock it.

It is best on Apples:

This week we have also tried to catch up on Netflix and here is a sampling of what we saw:

Valkrye - didn't care for it, depression set in after the film

500 Days of Summer - Good soundtrack, like the actors, depression set in after the film

Unmistaken Child - Great documentary, would recommend

Movies we have coming soon:

Inglorious Basterds

Whip It

We shall see if the depression after films stops with some of these new films on the way. Hope everyone is seeing dramatic improvements in whatever they would like improved for the New Year! - Ok, after sentences like that I should call it a night. :)