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Greetings from Northridge, CA!
Aug. 30th, 2003 03:18 pmHey hey, I'm sitting on Grandpa's super-fast DSL-powered DELL here... it's ragin' hot outside, and the four of us (me, Baba, Grandpa, and Dad) just came back from shopping! Whee! :) Turns out that Shaina and Erin DID pick out my dress already, but it's really cute (Baba says I look "sexy" in it. ^^;) and easy to coordinate with. So we went to Robinson's-May (Nordstroms in SoCal) and JCPenney and the like... got myself a nice pair of shoes that I can wear (and not just with the dress, either!) along with some shirts for this winter-- nice, tailored ones with pinstripes! They were having so many Labor Day sales and discounts, I can't wait until I go back later tonight, and maybe even tomorrow, too! We also went to Afterthoughts (Claire's) for jewelry, since it's cheaper... got myself some nice cosmetics (Buy 1, 2nd item is 50% off!) and a necklace and matching earrings. :) I'm quite satisfied.
Went to Hot Topic, too, but the red plaid skirt I was looking at was slightly too small (I would have bought it ANYWAY, if it hadn't been so damn expensive-- $30!) ... oh well. I also want to get my hands on some more pants (augh, I'm a size *4* now!) and jackets. I love shopping with Baba, it's fun! Better than with my cousins, since Baba understands why I'm so "sensible" and "spendthrift."
Oh yeah, the trip down-- made it in 6 hours! Getting to Alameda was a pain though... but wait, wait, I need to rewind. First and foremost...
I GOT THE JOB!
Hee hee, I thought I was just going in for an interview, but the guy welcomed me "aboard" and gave me all this paperwork to fill out. Plus I saw Ana, who used to go to Wash with me, so I guess it won't be all that bad. I don't know when I start exactly, just that Orientation is this Wednesday evening. >_>; I have to tell them I need to take off (assuming I start work that week) on Saturday and Sunday though, for Brooke's wedding... I had no idea I'd get the job that fast, and even though the pay isn't great (and some of the rules are a bit harsh-- they can fire me whenever they want, with or without reason!?) a job is a job. Ugh, Mom's going to make me start paying rent, I just know it.
So after the interview and such, I headed to Civic Center BART (which took long enough as it was, since I thought it was closer to the Metro Van Ness stop than it really was) and got on a Fremont-bound train, intending to get off at Fruitvale. Well, this snooty business woman decided to sit where I'd placed all my heavy bags, totally without regard! She was just getting off at the next stop, too, why did she even bother?! There were other empty seats around... Yeesh. Of course, the AC Transit driver was even worse. I'd never taken ACT before, so I wanted to confirm that the bus went to Alameda High (according to the transit planner, I'd have to get off at "Encinal and Willow." I asked the driver if she got off there, but she said "Hello." and then "Hello." again, with this obvious attitude in her voice. I got so freaked out and embarassed and said "Hi," and she sneered at me, saying "I appreciate being addressed." Then when she finally answered my question, she practically SPAT it out at me. Worse, she didn't announce stops or anything, so I started getting worried that I'd get lost. So I got off when I thought I was near the high school, and started wandering around. Being hot and burdened with a lot of stuff, this was not, by any means, easy. I tried calling AHS twice, but couldn't reach a live person (particularly, my dad in the woodshop) so I wandered until I found the school. I was weirded out by all the kids there-- some of them looked at me oddly. I finally ran into my dad shortly after I found the woodshop, got myself an Iced Tea-- and then work began.
The classroom was a total mess, as the last teacher, Mr. Carpenter (haha) used to be a packrat or somesuch. Drawers needed sorting, floors needed sweeping, rooms needed organizing... the place was huge! Bigger than any of Dad's other woodshops! None of the vacuums worked either, as Shop Power wasn't on, just the lights. So I worked from 2 to 7:30, doing various odd jobs to clean the place up. In the end, we got a lot done, but there was still boxes all over the tables to be cleaned up. School starts Tuesday, and I guess Dad's pretty anxious, but I think he'll do great. ^_^ He also tried some of my apple crisp, and said he really liked it, so I'm proud.
We finally left, and stopped off at an In-N-Out 60-some-odd miles into the trip. Best idea ever, Dad said-- he even asked the drive-through walker if there really was a "secret menu," like I'd told him about. :) He was surprised that there was! Dad got a double-double, vanilla shake, coffee, and shared my #2 with fries with me. I got a coke, since I thought Dad really *was* going to make me drive! We stopped at a rest area later (the same one we'd stopped off at for Choir-- the one with the many bathrooms and vending machines?) and then left, driving for many more hours until we got to this place in King Valley or something-- we went to Denny's. Dad was making this funny contraption with the "power ring" toys while he had coffee; I was working on logic puzzles over a hot cocoa. I'd also gotten further inspired not just for another HYD fic (a songfic, this time) but mysteries! ^_^ Hehee.
Blah, blah, much driving and the like until 1:30, when we finally got to San Fernando Valley and came here to the house, and promptly crashed. ^_^ I'm on the couch in the den, but even at night, it's still hot!
So yeah, we did shopping today... Baba and I walked, while Dad and Grandpa joined us later on in the car. On the way to the mall, we ran into a neighbor with a friendly white-and-brown spotted dog named Lily-- she really liked me! ^_^ She was cute, too. *sniff* I miss Rapunzel though-- the big chow-chow/retriever mutt we used to have here, late Uncle Gene's dog. *sigh*
Uhm... yeah. Looking for journalism scholarships and the like, since that's pretty much ALL everyone's been nagging me about lately. I feel pretty stupid for missing out on some of the best ones from SFSU itself, but... >_> Hmph. When dad wakes up at 4, maybe I'll ask him to finish payment for my CSUN application, even if the school here has 33,000 students (more than SFSU!) and is, according to Baba, "falling apart at the seams." ^^;
I'm thirsty...
Went to Hot Topic, too, but the red plaid skirt I was looking at was slightly too small (I would have bought it ANYWAY, if it hadn't been so damn expensive-- $30!) ... oh well. I also want to get my hands on some more pants (augh, I'm a size *4* now!) and jackets. I love shopping with Baba, it's fun! Better than with my cousins, since Baba understands why I'm so "sensible" and "spendthrift."
Oh yeah, the trip down-- made it in 6 hours! Getting to Alameda was a pain though... but wait, wait, I need to rewind. First and foremost...
I GOT THE JOB!
Hee hee, I thought I was just going in for an interview, but the guy welcomed me "aboard" and gave me all this paperwork to fill out. Plus I saw Ana, who used to go to Wash with me, so I guess it won't be all that bad. I don't know when I start exactly, just that Orientation is this Wednesday evening. >_>; I have to tell them I need to take off (assuming I start work that week) on Saturday and Sunday though, for Brooke's wedding... I had no idea I'd get the job that fast, and even though the pay isn't great (and some of the rules are a bit harsh-- they can fire me whenever they want, with or without reason!?) a job is a job. Ugh, Mom's going to make me start paying rent, I just know it.
So after the interview and such, I headed to Civic Center BART (which took long enough as it was, since I thought it was closer to the Metro Van Ness stop than it really was) and got on a Fremont-bound train, intending to get off at Fruitvale. Well, this snooty business woman decided to sit where I'd placed all my heavy bags, totally without regard! She was just getting off at the next stop, too, why did she even bother?! There were other empty seats around... Yeesh. Of course, the AC Transit driver was even worse. I'd never taken ACT before, so I wanted to confirm that the bus went to Alameda High (according to the transit planner, I'd have to get off at "Encinal and Willow." I asked the driver if she got off there, but she said "Hello." and then "Hello." again, with this obvious attitude in her voice. I got so freaked out and embarassed and said "Hi," and she sneered at me, saying "I appreciate being addressed." Then when she finally answered my question, she practically SPAT it out at me. Worse, she didn't announce stops or anything, so I started getting worried that I'd get lost. So I got off when I thought I was near the high school, and started wandering around. Being hot and burdened with a lot of stuff, this was not, by any means, easy. I tried calling AHS twice, but couldn't reach a live person (particularly, my dad in the woodshop) so I wandered until I found the school. I was weirded out by all the kids there-- some of them looked at me oddly. I finally ran into my dad shortly after I found the woodshop, got myself an Iced Tea-- and then work began.
The classroom was a total mess, as the last teacher, Mr. Carpenter (haha) used to be a packrat or somesuch. Drawers needed sorting, floors needed sweeping, rooms needed organizing... the place was huge! Bigger than any of Dad's other woodshops! None of the vacuums worked either, as Shop Power wasn't on, just the lights. So I worked from 2 to 7:30, doing various odd jobs to clean the place up. In the end, we got a lot done, but there was still boxes all over the tables to be cleaned up. School starts Tuesday, and I guess Dad's pretty anxious, but I think he'll do great. ^_^ He also tried some of my apple crisp, and said he really liked it, so I'm proud.
We finally left, and stopped off at an In-N-Out 60-some-odd miles into the trip. Best idea ever, Dad said-- he even asked the drive-through walker if there really was a "secret menu," like I'd told him about. :) He was surprised that there was! Dad got a double-double, vanilla shake, coffee, and shared my #2 with fries with me. I got a coke, since I thought Dad really *was* going to make me drive! We stopped at a rest area later (the same one we'd stopped off at for Choir-- the one with the many bathrooms and vending machines?) and then left, driving for many more hours until we got to this place in King Valley or something-- we went to Denny's. Dad was making this funny contraption with the "power ring" toys while he had coffee; I was working on logic puzzles over a hot cocoa. I'd also gotten further inspired not just for another HYD fic (a songfic, this time) but mysteries! ^_^ Hehee.
Blah, blah, much driving and the like until 1:30, when we finally got to San Fernando Valley and came here to the house, and promptly crashed. ^_^ I'm on the couch in the den, but even at night, it's still hot!
So yeah, we did shopping today... Baba and I walked, while Dad and Grandpa joined us later on in the car. On the way to the mall, we ran into a neighbor with a friendly white-and-brown spotted dog named Lily-- she really liked me! ^_^ She was cute, too. *sniff* I miss Rapunzel though-- the big chow-chow/retriever mutt we used to have here, late Uncle Gene's dog. *sigh*
Uhm... yeah. Looking for journalism scholarships and the like, since that's pretty much ALL everyone's been nagging me about lately. I feel pretty stupid for missing out on some of the best ones from SFSU itself, but... >_> Hmph. When dad wakes up at 4, maybe I'll ask him to finish payment for my CSUN application, even if the school here has 33,000 students (more than SFSU!) and is, according to Baba, "falling apart at the seams." ^^;
I'm thirsty...
