For when you’ve got nothing better to do
This is what lurks nearby my desk. On a long, stressful day (and usually one where I’ve had no time to eat lunch), I often find myself making a pit stop at one of the many deadly office corners.
Not sure why it’s Halloween everyday in our building…but guaranteed, if you are in need of some sugar, there’s a solution to that just a few steps and a corner away.
My last day of work at T-Mobile was this past Friday. (YAYYYYY!!!) And…the first thing Micah and I did after we got off work was…switch to iPhones! It made sense to be with T-Mobile when I was working there (given the fact that we got a fabulous employee discount). But, since we’ll be paying for regular (i.e. ridiculously expensive) plans, we wanted to get phones we actually wanted.
Micah used to have the original iPhone and I have an iPod touch – so we are already very used to the operating system and user interface. Easy to use, WAY longer battery life, and an endless number of fun cases to accessorize your phone.
As a going away present, my awesome friend Kendra got us these adorable iPhone cases. Love them!
You can pretty much find a case to fit ANY style and flavor out there. Here are a few fun ones.
Look how good that one looks! 
Genius!!
The back looks just like an old school Nintendo controller. Awesome!
I have some GREAT news to share!!! I officially accepted a job offer at Nordstrom! Yep, the same company as Micah. But no, not the same department, or building for that matter.
That means my days at T-Mobile are soon over. Bye bye awesome $10 phone plan. 
But hello discount! 
And goodbye driving everyday to the eastside! And also, goodbye to everyday someone asking me “how’s your job? What’s going on with T-Mobile?”
I’m not taking any time off between jobs…I want to just jump right in!
Met up with a number of my old WaMu Research co-workers the other night for a little reunion happy hour (or in this case hours as most of us stayed for several hours). It was so fantastic to see everyone (well everyone that could make it – there were quite a few who couldn’t come). 😦
It was part reunion, part welcome back for me, part welcome back for Julie (another colleague who just moved back to Seattle from Cali), and part farewell to Kevin (another colleague and my very first manager in the department – who happens to be moving his whole family out to…get this…South Korea!)
We had a great time seeing each other and catching up with what everyone’s been doing. I think one thing we all felt was just how lucky we were to have worked in such a great department and with such great people. Even after everyone got laid off and went their separate ways…we still are friends. It’s a pretty unique situation and not easily found in most companies/departments/groups/etc. 😦
We were at Pike Place Brewery, which not only has some delicious “refreshments,” but also some amazing nachos (which are 1/2 off during happy hour!). There were at least five plates of nachos ordered throughout the night. They are damn good (and about a million times better than the nachos we once got in Korea).
Nachos from Pike Place Brewery. Salsa, sour cream, guacamole, cheese…mmmm.
Let’s compare that to the Korean nachos.
You’ve got about 10 individually dressed chips and a big ol’ pile of cabbage and mustard. Oh, and I’m pretty sure there was mayonnaise on there too.
Hey all, let’s start with updates. I have recently crammed my once time-surplused days with…1) dog walking/training and 2) wedding planning 3) running.
Dog walker/trainer: The professional training lesson we had for Riley (over a week ago) is working well so far. It’s a lot to handle now when I take Riley for walks (leash and clicker in one hand, treats ready to go in the other hand, plus…always on the lookout for birds, dogs, squirrels, etc.) It’s actually a bit exhausting, but I’m already seeing some improvement – so it’s worth it. When I’m out with him, (I think because I have all this “gear” on me), people think I’m a professional dog trainer. Move over Caesar Milan aka The Dog Whisperer.
Wedding planner: This has actually taken up a considerable amount of time over the course of the week. We met three times…to plan, to shop, to check out the wedding venue (and cupcake testing – woo hoo!) Plus, my own individual time of scouting out garage sales and thrift stores for centerpieces that will fit the theme/decor of the wedding. And lots of online research and phone calls to check prices for this and that. Check out this awesome red vase – it’s perfect as a centerpiece to hold flowers. Oh, and I got it for $.50 at a garage sale as we were leaving the Fremont Summer Solstice on Sat!!
Seattle Rock n’ Roll 1/2 Marathon: It’s this Saturday! This week is nice. No long runs (just a few short runs), lots of water (no alcohol for me), and carb loading (easy – I do that even when I’m not racing). 🙂 I’m a little curious as to how fast I could run this if I were doing it solo, but I’m being a good friend (and pacer) and want Aaron to meet his goal time!
Moving to South Korea: Oh yeah….that thing. Here comes, the lack of update. So far…nothing, nada. Were told we would get official offers in “late” June – and I guess we aren’t in that part of the month yet. Nothing more to share there.
My house: Oh yeah…that thing. Well, it’s up and down, up and down with my house. It’s not even on the market, but I keep getting offers on the house (yay). But…all those offers fall through for one reason or another (nay). I’ve learned really to be non-reactive to all of this. I would be riddled with stress and anxiety if I got all caught up in everything. I’m confident something good will come out of this.
Micah and I had our interviews with the EPIK people (the public school program) on Thursday. The woman we interviewed with was calling from S. Korea. It was difficult to hear and understand her, but we both managed. We were to hear in 2 to 3 business days if we were going to be moving on – but we actually found out the next day that we were. Yay!
What now?
Had to sign a sample school contract and fax it to the recruiting firm. I think they want you to sign it saying you understand what is really being asked of you. The actual contract will be pretty much the same thing – but won’t be sent until we have an official offer.
Had to compile all of those documents we were collecting in the past month and half and send them to S. Korea. They are very particular and specific about how the documents should look, what order they are in, etc. Must be followed to a tea.
If all the paperwork looks good, we will be sent our official contracts. This should include the province we will be working in (and hopefully some guarantee of shared housing).
Then on to applying for our E2-Visa’s from the Korean Consulate.
We probably won’t know anything more for at least a couple of weeks. But, likely we will both be getting offer letters. It’s more a matter of making sure we get shared housing. And we don’t know a specific time frame yet either.
But there’s the latest! Obviously, a lot of things to do in the meantime to prepare….yikes!
It’s 8:20 in the morning and I’ve been up for an hour. And I’m not even working! Sadly, with Micah still needing to go to work – I tend to just get up when he does.
Here are a few updates:
House sale: All is on track. The inspection came back great – only three fairly minor things to address. Now waiting for appraisal results – and hopefully an early closing. Yay!!!
Unemployment: It’s still pretty nice. No complaints here. Encountered a minor issue when trying to make my first claim, but “easily” fixed (after 20 minutes on hold with the Unemployment office).
Teaching English in Korea: Micah and I have gone over the instructions and looked over our options of the different cities/provinces we can choose to teach in (we have to choose three). Starting today – we are going to tackle the monster list of requirements. First up, passport photos (although we already have passports) and a criminal record check (gotta go to the Seattle Police Dept).
Friend stuff: Have a jam packed weekend ahead of me. Although I’m a little anti-zoo (really…I’m very anti-circus, but still weary of zoos), I’m going to the Woodland Park Zoo this Saturday. It may be the last time I see my dear friend Deborah before she moves to California. After that, run up to Pearls & Lace in Burien to meet my friend Martha to see her wedding dress (I’m her maid of honor – and she’s getting married in June 2010. She’s quite on top of everything). After that, head over to Safeco Field to catch the Mariner’s game and celebrate the bday of my friend and basketball teammate, Savanah. And Sunday, Micah and I are helping my realtor, Sheley, move from a one bedroom apartment to a three-bedroom house. She and her fiance’ have A LOT of stuff. A LOT.
Hawaii: I leave for Hawaii on Tuesday and Micah on Thursday. We both return Sunday 4/26. Don’t be fooled…this is no vacation! We are hired labor for his mom. There is plenty of work to be done in her home (painting, moving, cleaning, organizing, etc.) All I ask is a few hours of beach time and some yummy food too.
My first full week being unemployed. Honestly, it hasn’t been bad – it’s actually been quite enjoyable. I’ve spent everyday hanging out with friends, working out, and getting caught up on odds and ends. I’m continuing going into “my” old building, attending various career center workshops too. They help to sharpen the skills and keep you connected to other people going through the same thing.
I also filed for unemployment. It seemed a little daunting at first, but after several “tutoring” lessons from various co-workers who have already gone through it, I think I have it all down. Applying is actually very easy. And then making your claims seems easy as well (my first claim won’t happen until this Sunday). You need three job contacts a week to get your weekly check. I can definitely do that…check that, I HAVE to do that.
I am learning to appreciate that taking a little time off is a good thing. After going through the ups and downs of WaMu for the past year, it really does take a toll on you, both physically and mentally. Time to move on…and just relax a bit. Happy hour anyone? 🙂
Well, technically Wednesday, April 1st (Happy April Fool’s Day) is my last day of work at WaMu, but today is pretty much it. I will turn in all of my equipment and then head to the nearby Pike Place Brewery for a final farewell happy hour with my work friends.
With the craziness of moving the past couple of weeks, I haven’t spent much time thinking about being unemployed. I’ve been attending several career workshops (e.g. resume writing, interviewing, etc) to sharpen my skills in that area, but I haven’t taken many steps towards finding work. And I find it a bit challenging to find a full-time job when I may be leaving the country in six to eight months from now. Just doesn’t seem right to me. But on the flip side, I can’t imagine being unemployed for that whole time. At least I will have unemployment to help bring in some money, but of course, I would rather not rely on that.
Plus, I get bored quite easily. If I don’t have something to do…I drive Micah crazy. :-) I do plan on running around the lake often, resuming my daily yoga, reading like crazy, catching up with friends, and just taking advantage of the Seattle summer.
Oh and we are taking a couple of trips soon. The third week of April, Micah and I are headed to Hawaii to help his mom with some house renovations (painting rooms, moving furniture, etc.) It’s going to be hardwork, but she needs the help. I’m going down a couple of days earlier than Micah (since he doesn’t have many vacation days) and will get a head start on the numerous projects she has for us.
And in middle May, we are cashing in on our free United flight vouchers and flying to Boston. We both have friends living over there that we plan to see. Plus, we haven’t been there before, and that time of the year is apparently a great time to visit the city. We would like to catch a Red Sox game, but they are playing the Mariners…in Seattle that weekend. Funny.
Ok – so I’m starting to feel “marginally” better, but the worst is my headache! My head feels like an overfilled balloon ready to burst. I feel dizzy at times, lightheaded, and I’m also not sleeping well. I went to the doctor yesterday morning (which was an adventure of its own considering I switched health insurance at the beginning of the year and no longer have a primary doctor). Anyway, the doc thinks I could possibly have a sinus infection so he gave me some antibiotics and told me to take some sudafed.
My other theory for the headaches is stress!!!! I have 4 weeks left until I am officially laid off – and I actually can’t wait. Going into work each day, when there’s 3 of us from my department left, well, that’s not the greatest feeling. So I’m on a mini-mission to do some stress-relieving activities. This includes daily yoga (even if for 10 minutes), using a heating pad to relax my tense muscles (ahh…), getting a massage (did this already – and it was totally worth it. I have the best massage therapist. Not talking spa here, but clinical massage), oh..and trying as hard as possible to get some sleep. Wish me luck!
Much Ado About Lisa 