Saturday, November 04, 2006
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Smart or Stupid???
So I had this idea...but I need the validation of whether or not it is a GOOD idea. So, read the scenario and let me know if it would be something worth doing, or something I should avoid like the plague...and be honest.
The great thing about the part-time Master's program that I am in is that according to Financial Aid, I am a full-time student, and therefore receive full-time student loans. The financial aid package that I was offered comes to $18,500. For this entire school year my tuition fees are only going to be about $7,500. Should I...
A.) Take the reimbursement checks and send them straight back to the lenders.
B.) Take the reimbursement checks and piss them away on useless things that I don't really need?
C.) Take the reimbursement checks and use them to pay off my credit cards and what's left of my car payment so that I am only paying back one establishment rather than many at a MUCH lower interest rate?
My vote would be C...but the jury is still only about 90% sure. That's an added 10% wiggle room for anybody who wants to start swaying my opinion another direction.
The great thing about the part-time Master's program that I am in is that according to Financial Aid, I am a full-time student, and therefore receive full-time student loans. The financial aid package that I was offered comes to $18,500. For this entire school year my tuition fees are only going to be about $7,500. Should I...
A.) Take the reimbursement checks and send them straight back to the lenders.
B.) Take the reimbursement checks and piss them away on useless things that I don't really need?
C.) Take the reimbursement checks and use them to pay off my credit cards and what's left of my car payment so that I am only paying back one establishment rather than many at a MUCH lower interest rate?
My vote would be C...but the jury is still only about 90% sure. That's an added 10% wiggle room for anybody who wants to start swaying my opinion another direction.
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Three Thoughts That Actually Connect
I started a new job as a coffee slave at the PDX airport Starbucks several weeks ago (come say hi if you're passing through). Since starting said job, I have had a complete lack of social life combined with high sleep deprivation. My days typically start around 2:00 AM when I wake to shower and get my hiney out the door by 3:00 so that I can get to the airport employee parking lot and ride a shuttle into the main terminal in order to get there by 4:00 AM. I get back to the apartment usually by 1:30 only to do whatever heinous homework assignment that I had procrastinated on. On the nights that I have class I am up until 9:00 PM just to do the same schedule the next day. On the nights that I do not have class, I'm in bed by 6:00, just in time to miss all of my normally scheduled friends getting off work and starting their evening escapades. I'm stuck in the middle of actually liking my job (shocking, I know) and wanting some normalcy back to my day. It's a tough call.
Second on in the list comes a very embarrassing topic. I have had some major pain on my left lower side lately. My mom FINALLY convinced me to go to the doc on Friday to have him check it out. The doc couldn't give me a definitive answer. All he said is that he's pretty sure it's a kidney infection, but that there's also a very high chance that it could be that my body is passing a kidney stone. WHAT!?! I had never heard of a GIRL passing one of those before, and oh by the way, OUCH!!! So he decided to treat said pain with some antibiotics (which he pieced together with samples he had laying around the office since I don't have any insurance right now to buy any drugs). I asked the doc if there was anything I could do to help the healing process along. All he said was, "Stay away from the beer." Thanks a lot of help.
Lastly, do you remember back on My First Day of School I mentioned making a new friend that thought I was funny? Yeah, well... what I failed to mention is that this boy is B-E-A-utiful. I mean, really...it's just not fair to be so good looking. Okay, I feel shallow. He's got a great personality. There, I feel better. So I get off work today and I get a text message from said colleague asking me if I was hungry. Several texts later we had decided to meet up because he really wanted some Mexican food and a margarita. So I hurry home, change out of my java slingin' clothes and into something a little more not on the mourning side (I have to dress in COMPLETE black), and head off to meet him a few blocks from my apartment. I hop in his brand new car (I tell ya' it's just not fair) and we head off. The first place we try is closed. So this newbie to Portland starts to drive off and I realize that he knows Portland 100x better than I do and I've lived here my entire life. He goes straight to his second choice restaurant on a side of town that I had never even been. We go in, look at each other, realize that neither one of us is really all that hungry, but he is bound and determined to get a pitcher of margaritas to share because it's been "one of those days." I think to myself..."It took this long for us to finally hang out outside of the classroom and I can't even enjoy it due to said kidney." He poured me a glass of margarita but then went to the restroom. While he was gone I poured about half my glass back into the pitcher so it had looked like I had drank some by the time he got back. When he got back he declared that no margarita was complete without some chips and salsa, so he got up to get some while I poured the rest of my glass back into the pitcher, creating the illusion that I had finished my drink. When he got back he offered to pour me another one, and I smiled and said, "No, that's okay...one is good enough for me." A little witty banter, some big laughs, and an hour and a half later he dropped me back off at my car and I said I would see him Tuesday in class.
Good day.
How many times can a person say "said" referring to something else in one post?
Second on in the list comes a very embarrassing topic. I have had some major pain on my left lower side lately. My mom FINALLY convinced me to go to the doc on Friday to have him check it out. The doc couldn't give me a definitive answer. All he said is that he's pretty sure it's a kidney infection, but that there's also a very high chance that it could be that my body is passing a kidney stone. WHAT!?! I had never heard of a GIRL passing one of those before, and oh by the way, OUCH!!! So he decided to treat said pain with some antibiotics (which he pieced together with samples he had laying around the office since I don't have any insurance right now to buy any drugs). I asked the doc if there was anything I could do to help the healing process along. All he said was, "Stay away from the beer." Thanks a lot of help.
Lastly, do you remember back on My First Day of School I mentioned making a new friend that thought I was funny? Yeah, well... what I failed to mention is that this boy is B-E-A-utiful. I mean, really...it's just not fair to be so good looking. Okay, I feel shallow. He's got a great personality. There, I feel better. So I get off work today and I get a text message from said colleague asking me if I was hungry. Several texts later we had decided to meet up because he really wanted some Mexican food and a margarita. So I hurry home, change out of my java slingin' clothes and into something a little more not on the mourning side (I have to dress in COMPLETE black), and head off to meet him a few blocks from my apartment. I hop in his brand new car (I tell ya' it's just not fair) and we head off. The first place we try is closed. So this newbie to Portland starts to drive off and I realize that he knows Portland 100x better than I do and I've lived here my entire life. He goes straight to his second choice restaurant on a side of town that I had never even been. We go in, look at each other, realize that neither one of us is really all that hungry, but he is bound and determined to get a pitcher of margaritas to share because it's been "one of those days." I think to myself..."It took this long for us to finally hang out outside of the classroom and I can't even enjoy it due to said kidney." He poured me a glass of margarita but then went to the restroom. While he was gone I poured about half my glass back into the pitcher so it had looked like I had drank some by the time he got back. When he got back he declared that no margarita was complete without some chips and salsa, so he got up to get some while I poured the rest of my glass back into the pitcher, creating the illusion that I had finished my drink. When he got back he offered to pour me another one, and I smiled and said, "No, that's okay...one is good enough for me." A little witty banter, some big laughs, and an hour and a half later he dropped me back off at my car and I said I would see him Tuesday in class.
Good day.
How many times can a person say "said" referring to something else in one post?
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Froo.ih.shun
It all happened about mid-January. I had this crazy idea. It started out as kind of a crazy dream that I would like to see happen, but didn't necessarily see myself as the one who did it. So I told a friend. "Hey, guess what I thought," I said. "We should do this." It sounded good to her as well. So we did what anybody would do when they were trying to plan a big event. We procrastinated. In June we revisited the idea and made the final decision that this was something we were definitely going to do and plans were on their way.
October 6-8 marked the first annual Teen Girl's Retreat...and it was a BLAST! It was a small gathering, but I don't think Wendy and I could have asked for more! We had 18 girls and 4 of us adults that spent the weekend exploring the theme, "Lights! Camera! Action!" The whole weekend revolved around Hollywood including Mann's Chinese Theatre, a Walk of Stars, and lots of speakers and activities for the girls. All in all the weekend was amazing. The girls had a GREAT time, made some new friends, and told us that they're all planning on coming back next year!
Here are a few pictures from the weekend...
Brooke the Movie Star 
Rachel explaing the "Grab your neighbor's butt and run" game.
More butt grabbing fun.
Jenna's Game Face!!! 
Wendy with our Mann's Chinese Theatre behind her...the hands and feet glowed under a black light. 
Pumpkin carving fun...they had to carve a Hollywood themed pumpkin.
Be on the look out for the Teen Girl's Retreat of 2007.
October 6-8 marked the first annual Teen Girl's Retreat...and it was a BLAST! It was a small gathering, but I don't think Wendy and I could have asked for more! We had 18 girls and 4 of us adults that spent the weekend exploring the theme, "Lights! Camera! Action!" The whole weekend revolved around Hollywood including Mann's Chinese Theatre, a Walk of Stars, and lots of speakers and activities for the girls. All in all the weekend was amazing. The girls had a GREAT time, made some new friends, and told us that they're all planning on coming back next year!
Here are a few pictures from the weekend...
Brooke the Movie Star Rachel explaing the "Grab your neighbor's butt and run" game. More butt grabbing fun. Jenna's Game Face!!! Wendy with our Mann's Chinese Theatre behind her...the hands and feet glowed under a black light. Pumpkin carving fun...they had to carve a Hollywood themed pumpkin. Be on the look out for the Teen Girl's Retreat of 2007.
Sunday, October 01, 2006
I don't need the Simpson's version or any other odd variety, just give me the original Monopoly game. I had forgotten how much fun this game can be. As a kid I refused to play (largely because I didn't understand the rules and my sister was a cheater). As I've grown up (at least a little bit), I LOVE TO PLAY...any board game, really...but Monopoly. I'll be the first to admit it, though, that I lose every single time. My wild competitive side comes out in large, flaring amounts...but I still lose...by a lot.
Friday night the room mates and I went over to a friend's house for a little Monopoly time. It was by the far the luckiest game I had ever played. With almost all properties having hotels on them, and I only owning a couple of them, the dice were very kind by always placing me on my own land or even on a Chance or Community Chest (and I landed on Free Parking TWICE). Plus, for the first time ever, I actually got to put hotels on my properties...big step for me. Who knew that Connecticut with a hotel was worth $600??? Even though it was a lucky streak, I still lost...by a lot. But I came in second...out of the four of us, and I did not go bankrupt.
Maybe I have a promising future in real estate.
Even though my fortune cookie at Chang's last night told me I had a promising future in medicine. Maybe they were just confused.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Wake Me Up When September Ends
Thank goodness September is almost over. It's been a rough month, folks. Between moving back to Portland, starting school, being unemployed trying to get employed, Gilmore Girls Season 6 coming out, and a looming birthday, September has been a month of exasperated sighs. But it's all good in the hood (literally...I live in the ghetto). The apartment is coming along nicely, my first class of grad school is almost finished, I have found a job, I got my grubby little hands on the 6th season of Gilmore, and after today I won't have to worry about another birthday for an entire year.
Now most of you are probably wondering, "What's so wrong with a birthday?" I will tell you what's wrong with having a birthday. What do you do? Some people are really decisive and know exactly what they want out of their special day. I am not one of those people. I never know what to do or how to celebrate. It's frustrating. But thankfully, plans have been secured for this year.
So...if you would like to celebrate with the birthday girl tonight, make an appearance at Salvador Molly's at 7:00 and we'll get our pirate on. (I just realized that I really can't pull off lines like that, I'm just not cool enough).
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
First Day of School
So when I was a kid the first day of school was both very exciting and very sad. Sad because the summer had officially ended, but exciting because I had brand new school supplies. Yep, I love school supplies. Mom and I would always go shopping about two weeks before the first day to get the necessary gear. Every day after that my parents could find me on the living room floor organizing and re-organizing my supplies in my backpack. I would be by far the most organized kid in the class...until the second day of school when my desk looked like a hurricane had hit it.
Tonight was the "first day" of Grad school. Who would have ever thought I would make it this far? I sure didn't. I'm not afraid to say that most of the things that we covered tonight were over my head, but I'm excited about pushing through and figuring everything out. I even made a new friend tonight. He's alright (for a Canadian), and he thinks I'm funny...so we'll keep him around. Mostly I'm excited for the new intellectual stimulation. It's been a while since I've really had that. I'm also looking forward to studying my tushy off in the local coffee shops. There's a Peet's Coffee within walking distance from my new apartment. I have a feeling that they will know me by name and drink order very soon.
Tonight was the "first day" of Grad school. Who would have ever thought I would make it this far? I sure didn't. I'm not afraid to say that most of the things that we covered tonight were over my head, but I'm excited about pushing through and figuring everything out. I even made a new friend tonight. He's alright (for a Canadian), and he thinks I'm funny...so we'll keep him around. Mostly I'm excited for the new intellectual stimulation. It's been a while since I've really had that. I'm also looking forward to studying my tushy off in the local coffee shops. There's a Peet's Coffee within walking distance from my new apartment. I have a feeling that they will know me by name and drink order very soon.
About me
- I'm Christi
- From Portland, OR
- I am addicted to coffee, movies, and board games. Everything else in my life is in healthy dosages.