Date Day

Lately, since my schedule and Ryan's job in general have been so stressful and exhausting, we have been hard-pressed for quality time together. By the time we have a day or even just an evening off together we are too exhausted to do anything but sit around the house.

Last week, I worked the closing shift 7 nights in a row in electronics, followed by a day shift as a cashier. The consecutive nights were those leading up to and during Father's Day. Everyone and their child wanted to buy some sort of electronic gadget for their dad. I can't tell you how many GPS thingies (yes, I'm very technical) we sold or how many cameras. Every night the store was an absolute mess and we had to stay until midnight or later every night. The night before Father's day I didn't make it home until after 2am! Needless to say, there was not much energy in me to clean up around the apartment. I was washing and drying the laundry, but instead of folding and putting it away, I was piling the clothes neatly in a corner of the bedroom. Dishes were piling up as well. Fortunately, following my 8-day stretch I was lucky enough to have 2 days off in a row (Ryan had neither of the days off). In my 2 days off, I beat back the laundry pile and Ryan found time to get the dishes cleaned up.

Before the 8 day stretch, we had a common day off and took the opportunity to go out to eat and watch a movie (The Hangover, very funny). Today, we decided to have another date day in celebration of another day off together (twice in one month! shocking.). We enjoyed dinner at Carrabba's and then watched Transformers. It was a very good movie, though I do not recommend drinking lots of water at dinner and then lots of soda during the movie. Date days have been few and far between lately which makes them all the more special.

now that's a deal

Ryan and I have been throwing around the idea of buying one of those fancy HDTV flat screens for quite some time. We've researched online and checked store ads weekly, but for some reason could never justifying buying a new tv when our current tv's were working out just fine.

One of the main reasons we've been wanting a new tv is so that we can hook up mutiple accessories at once. The last time I actually got a new tv was on Christmas back in 1998. Yes, that's right, NINETEEN NINETY-EIGHT! Eleven years ago. I'm not sure when Ryan acquired his 2 tv's, but I can tell you they probably weren't much younger than my tv. The tv from 1998 has a fairly large screen so it's been our main, living room tv in about every apartment I've ever lived in. The large screen however comes with a large body behind it, meaning it's a pain in the neck (mostly my dad's or Ryan's neck...) to get upstairs or moved around as much as we've moved. It's other major downfall is the fact that it only has one RCA hook-up. We could only have either our game console or the dvd player hooked up at one time. It would be fine if the Wii played DVD's, however that is not the case with the Wii.

Lately, Target has been sticking me back in Electronics where I have picked up a fact or two about tv's and other assorted electronics. Working in electronics also gives me first dibs on tv's that go on sale or on clearance, provided I can snatch it up on my break before a guest buys it first. We decided last night that the best deal on the 32" tv we wanted was indeed at Target, my 10% discount tipped the scale. So, I made my way back there to see if we had any in stock. And then! I found (read: Jacob a.k.a "Mr. Electronics Guy" showed me) a clearance 37" tv. I received 30% off for buying the display plus 10% off for my Team Member discount. This means that Ryan and I got a 37" tv that normally runs for $579.99+tax for the low, low price of $337 and that's with the tax included! Less than we were planning to spend on the 32"! Woohoo! It looks like it's worth it to work in retail every now and then.

After 11 years, it doesn't feel like too much of a splurge to spend $337 to upgrade a bit.

Movie night anyone?

Yea for a Masters!

I had my first official meeting with my FS-boo advisor yesterday. She and I worked out a grand plan to get me finished with the classes part of things by Summer of next year. After that with any luck I will get a teaching job that will also count toward my "Student Teaching" experience. Some of the perks of the program that I wasn't aware of inlcude the fact that I will be ESOL certified and my Reading Endorsement will be complete. Though the Reading Endorsement thing isn't widely accepted outside of FL, many other states will see it as a desirable credit, if not a credentialed specialization. Some of my classes will be taken at the Undergraduate level while still counting toward the Masters degree! This means my student loans will be significantly lower than I had originally planned.

Following my meeting with the advisor, I felt energized and excited to be really going back to school (again). For some reason it felt more like a chore at UCF. Maybe because the classes were online in Orlando. Meeting in actual lecture halls with teachers and other students seems to signify actually being in school for me.

Things are shaping up even more in PCB.

exhaustion

Work has been kicking my butt lately. It's been awhile since I've worked random hours and random days off. It isn't quite the teaching job I am hoping to one day fill, but in its own ways it can be very rewarding. I've been moving around to different areas - Electronics (an area in which I know nothing!), Presentation Team (they clean and reset all the areas of the store, one painfully dirty section at a time), and other various things.

This week I've worked a 5am shift, a 6am shift and an 8am shift so far and I am beyond sleepy. Though I think instead of taking a nap today, I might try to unwind with a walk on the beach. Ryan's at work and the mess of the apartment is too frustrating to deal with today. I just hope it doesn't rain...

Funfetti

Who can feel guilty about reading a girly book in bed while enjoying a spoonful of funfetti vanilla frosting (okay two+ spoonfuls)?

Certainly not I!

Dollars and sense

Ever since Ryan's mom (Happy Birthday!!) introduced me to the world of coupons, I've been dying to get that really good deal. I've been working on holding on to coupons and checking out sales yielding small successes here and there. CVS seems to be the place to really get some good deals, but their products are not exactly items that we frequently need. I've had my eye on the Dove Skin Vitalizer thing, but it just didn't seem right to spend $13 to try a product for fun.

CVS is having an unadvertised sale according to Southern Savers and there's now a $3.50 coupon. Here's how the pros do it (bear in mind I am no pro, just having fun saving the dolla dolla bills):

Total before sales and coupons: $13.90
Total out of pocket: $0.54
Total savings: 96%

Now that's a deal that makes sense.


In other news, I have officially been "promoted" at Target. Now don't get too excited. It's a lateral move, but still a step in the right direction. I will be in charge of the cosmetics section of the store. The new position has been referred to as Cosmetics Team Captain - me being the only person on the cosmetics team. I'll take it! The key fact to note is that this change in position basically guarantees I am no longer a seasonal employee. Thank God!

honestly.

There's no honesty like my mother's honesty. She will be the first to (ruthlessly) tell me when I have lost/gained weight, when I look pale or when I'm being cranky. It can be exhausting and sometimes prevent me from visiting home. The past 2 weeks I have been feeling anxious about this weekend because I am going home for Easter. I've been laying out by the pool every chance I get because I know I've gained some weight, but I'll be damned if she tells me I look pale. Especially considering I live so close to the beach now.

Work has been kicking my butt. I work all kinds of hours, usually staying later than my scheduled shift. I'm very much enjoying the change of pace, but am having trouble with the lack of a steady or predictable routine. When my day is crazy and meals are unplanned, we go out to eat and it isn't usually healthy. I have tried and tried to get back on weight watchers, but the same motivators are no longer sufficient to keep me on track. Ryan is also very stressed from his job and going out to dinner has always been a great stress reliever for us. If he suggests going out to eat, I'm there. If I'm not in the mood to cook, he's starting the car and we're headed for the nearest restaurant.
We can't keep up like this. The scale is becoming The Enemy and I have no one but myself to blame. Therefore, I've created a new system of motivation to eliminate stress-eating/endless weght gain and support (controlled) retail therapy. My new goal is to lose 15 lbs (9 to get back to where I was and 6 to get where I want to be). If When the goal is achieved, I am buying myself a new phone. I've always been conservative when it comes to phones, always choosing something simple and relatively inexpensive. The razor felt like a fancy phone to me, and it's just your basic flip phone. I'm leaning towards an iPhone. Or maybe a blackberry pearl.

In the meantime, the little weight losses must be celebrated each week also. There are a few things I've been wanting to purchase but have been holding back. This week, if I can drop 2 lbs, I'm buying a purse. I know it seems rather vain and perhaps irresponsible to buy myself presents to celebrate weight loss. The old motivators - my pants are getting to tight, I hate looking in the mirror, my mom, it's bathing suit season - just aren't cutting it. For the last 2 days, the new motivation is working. If I can just get past the first painful week, I think I will achieve my goal.

Wish me luck...

5:00 am

Yes that's right. 5:00am. I am going to work. I do not believe it should be legal to schedule a person to work before the coffee shops sell coffee. Just a thought.