Sunday, May 30, 2010

Long Weekend and Playing Hooky

This Friday was the start of our summer hours at work. That means that we can go home at 1:00 on Fridays. But this week, that wasn't good enough for me. Other than standard holidays, I haven't had a day off since my Christmas vacation. I haven't taken any personal time off and unlike my co-workers I'm never sick. So, I decided it was time for me to be "sick" and to take an extra day off. Everyone plays hooky, and I decided that it was my turn. So I called in sick and went on a hike all morning.

It was my first real hike of the year, and naturally I was a little out of shape for hiking. It doesn't matter how much you walk on flat grounds or how much you lift weights, when you walk uphill at this elevation, you're going to feel it in your lungs. But I had fun and took a lot of pictures and I was able to take my mind off of work for the whole day. Monday is a holiday and we have the day off, so if the weather is nice I'm thinking about heading out on the trails again.

Other than that, this long weekend has been pretty relaxing. I've been lazy and I'm loving it.

Current mood: relaxing
Current music: iTunes on shuffle—Melissa Etheridge "In This Moment"

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Workouts Continue

A few weeks ago—maybe it was several weeks ago or even months, I'm losing track of time—I wrote a post about my workouts. Yes, surprisingly, I've kept up with them, and it has possibly been the longest time I've stuck to a workout routine without getting lazy and falling off the wagon. But so far, so good.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm tiny and I'll always be tiny, but I'm stronger than most people would think and I do have some muscle that most people would underestimate. (And, yes, the ego I have now comes from getting teased, picked on, and beat up when I was younger. How much would I love to cross paths now with the guys who picked on me then!) Because I've kept up with my workouts, I've been feeling better and healthier and I've been sleeping better. My clothes are starting to get too tight in the shoulders—thanks to my huge muscles!—but I've always had a hard time getting the right fit in the shoulders with most women's clothes. I might be tiny, but apparently my shoulders are broad compared to most small or petite women. That's why I always loved it when my mom made my clothes, because the clothes actually fit me properly. Oh well.

...this was an incredibly random post...

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Wonderful Weekend

It has once again been a long time since I've written my last post. And, sadly I once again use the excuse that I've been busy at work and therefore tired when I get home. I sense a trend here, and it's a problematic trend and a trend that I want to break. Another reason why I haven't written is because I haven't felt very inspired to write anything. But this weekend, I was suddenly reminded of what usually inspires me the most, wonderful people.

One of my dear friends and her boyfriend invited me over for a barbecue this weekend. The whole week prior, the weather was a mix of rain and occasionally snow. But on the weekend of the barbecue, the skies cleared and the temperature warmed. The weather was perfect. I know my friend from working with her in publishing, but her other life is in the theatre, so many of the other people at the barbecue were her theatre friends and naturally I didn't know them. But it was wonderful just to meet a lot of new people. It struck me after the party how a person can stuck in a rut and a routine. Sometimes you do the same things and deal with the same people day after day, and, let's face it, it can sometimes get boring or tiring or frustrating. Sometimes you need a break from the routine. Sometimes you just need something new, a new or different energy. So meeting a lot of new people from what is a completely different world to me was great. And what was especially nice was that they were all wonderful and outgoing and easy to talk to. They all seemed really happy and seemed to enjoy life. It was nice to spend the day with people who seemed to enjoy what they do and who appreciate what they have.

And needless to say it was wonderful to spend time with my friend. It was nice to be with someone who is calm and sane and level-headed and grounded, someone who is giving and caring, someone who can keep my spirits up, and someone who has a positive influence on my life. And it doesn't hurt that she is absolutely beautiful, too!

Going back to work after such a wonderful day was difficult, but at least the wonderful time has carried me through the week so far and the wonderful day has given me one more thing to appreciate.

Sunday, May 09, 2010

This and That

Once again, it has been quite a long time since I've last written. I have been busy, as usual. Lately I've started to do more freelance work. Yes, in spite of being exhausted on most days because of my day job, I'm still taking on more work at home. But I've been looking for ways to make extra money, and freelancing is the best and easiest way to do that. The thought once crossed my mind to work at a bookstore or restaurant, but, in all honestly, I generally don't like dealing with people, so I never pursued that. So doing freelance editing is the best route for me because I can do it at home. And working freelance is also a good way to keep or build contacts with other publishers and it's good to keep your name out there. Once you establish your reputation, freelance jobs often keep coming your way. And there is always the chance that it could lead to bigger job opportunities. So it's good to keep yourself in the pool.

April marked my three-year anniversary at my current job, but I didn't have my review until this past week. Fortunately this review came with a promotion to Associate Director of Editorial Services and a decent raise. In a different economy, I could have asked for more money given my experience and what I was promoted to, but with the current economy and the state of publishing in general, I'm absolutely grateful just to get a promotion and a raise at all. There are so many people in the publishing industry who have had either huge pay cuts or who have been laid off, so it's a miracle just to keep a job these days. And it's comforting to know that my boss and the company are doing what they can to keep me around.

I haven't written about the weather recently. It has been typical Colorado weather, and by that I mean it has been strange and unpredictable. In reality, I suppose, it is predictable that Colorado weather is unpredictable. If that makes any sense. We can have days of warm, sunny weather, and a day or two later the temperature will drop and we could get snow. On Friday we actually had a dusting of snow. Naturally it didn't stick around for long, and the weather warmed up again this weekend. I'm just looking forward to the day when I can officially turn off my heater and stop wasting so much money on energy bills.