It's hard here.

It's been really hard here to meet people and find real friends.  I am still looking for a church and even though I'm getting closer to finding the right one, I just want to be there already.  I've been struggling the past couple of weeks and haven't wanted to write anything.  Plus, it's like what's the point?  No one reads it anyway, so it's just for myself.  Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision in moving here, but I also have to remember that it takes me longer than average to adjust to new things and places and make friends.  I need to try to be more patient and give it more time.  I definitely haven't found the right people here to connect with, so at times I get really discouraged.

For my new job, I work in a sweat shop, quite literally.  There is no air conditioning and it's absolutely miserable.  You're right if you think no place in Texas should go with out AC in the summer.  I sweat all day long and it zaps all of my energy.  I work 9-5, but I don't want to do anything b/c by the time I leave there, I'm totally drained.  I must wear a bandanna around my head b/c otherwise I'll sweat all over the fabric or paper I'm cutting.  I cannot wait for cooler weather.  It will probably have to be pretty cold outside for it to be cool enough inside the shop to be comfortable working conditions.  At first it was just an inconvenience and now it's getting pretty old.  I cut material from cardboard patterns for high school basketball and football uniforms and practice gear, for about 60% of my time.  About 15% of my time, I design the uniforms and practice gear on Illustrator and print it out on a large format printer.  For the remaining 25% of my time, I work on getting products up on the website, removing inaccurate information off the site and trying to make it look better and easier to navigate in general.  It's been more of an adjustment than I expected, working a 9-5 schedule.  I know that I'm not really using my time wisely, but I'm so used to working all the time that I'm still figuring out how to use the extra time.  It's difficult to want to do anything besides try to cool down and relax, doing absolutely nothing.

I know.

I know I really need to write something.  It seems there is a lot I could share, so I get overwhelmed and write nothing!

1. That eShakti dress is going back.  I did not like it.  At all.  The material is stiff and not comfortable and the skirt is just all wrong...too much material there.  It actually fit my upper body pretty well, maybe just a little too big.  Either I picked the wrong dress, don't know how to measure myself or just shouldn't buy dresses that I can't try on.  I guess it just means I need more practice shopping and trying on dresses! 

2.  I've decided, now that we are consistently at over 100 degrees here in Austin I'm going to mainly wear tank tops and skirts, capris and shorts.  It's just so HOT.  This meant I had to raid the clearance racks at Old Navy to get some fun brightly colored tanks that I feel comfortable enough wearing (not too tight).  Luckily for someone who is jobless, they had a sale where everything on clearance was an additional 50% off!

3.  Had a great road trip to Ohio for about a week and a half and put in just over 3300 miles!  It was so great to visit with some really great friends.  Some I talk to on a regular basis and some I haven't talked to or seen in a really really long time.  My friend's wedding was absolutely amazing and we had a good family gathering too.  You can check out the photos on my Facebook page. 

4.  Having been jobless for about a month now, I finally have some part time work coming my way!  Tomorrow, I'll be starting at a small sportswear company just minutes from my house and learning all about cutting fabrics, matching patterns and filling orders.  I'm also going to slowly start learning the creative side and use Adobe Illustrator to create mock ups for coaches and then printing the actual graphics on a large format printer so it can be sublimated onto the fabric.  Then all the pieces are matched together and sent to a sewer somewhere in California.  The whole process seems pretty complicated to me so far, but hopefully I can learn quickly and be a big help to the volume of production.  If I am, maybe it will turn into something more than part time!

5.  I'm still working out, though I have to be more choosy about the workouts I'm doing.  About three weeks ago I got a huge gash on the side of my heel and it hurts to wear shoes.  Then, I went walking with my dad when I was home...we walking about four miles at Wildwood Metro Park and I came home with some nasty bloody blisters on the backs of both ankles.  Yikes.  So, needless to say, I'm letting my feet heal and trying to just do some pilates, yoga and swimming until I can wear shoes again.  I got some new Asics (major discount at Kohl's), so hopefully I can wear them soon!

That's all for now folks!

Trying it out for custom size!

I did it!  I ordered a dress from eShakti.  I had a hard time deciding which one, but it's cute, isn't it?  Can't wait to see what it looks like!  The site says it ships in about three days.  Pretty fast for custom sizing. 

Shopping and fashion, ooh la la!

I've kind of really been getting into fashion more and more lately and reading some fashion blogs.  They are blogs where people post their outfits on a semi-daily basis and tell where they got each piece they are wearing.  It's so fun to see the style of others.  There is one that I like to follow here in Austin and you can see her linked on my sidebar.  I've always loved to shop, what girl doesn't, right?  The fashion from SATC is one of the best characters and Carrie/SJP can just about pull of anything and make it cute.  When I live in a house that has cable, I regularly tune into What Not to Wear and get some great styling tips from Stacy and Clinton. 

Sometimes I feel like I have a good sense of style, but there are things I just don't think I can wear or b/c I don't live in NYC or somewhere super glamorous, it doesn't seem right.  Everything is so casual these days, I don't like to stand out too much, but I've been thinking more about what is my personal style.  I tend to always gravitate toward a lot of prints and some bright colors, but then I have stuff that doesn't seems to match or go together.  I'm not sure exactly what I'm trying to say here, except that I think fashion is super fun and I'm realizing just how much I like to shop. 

I just found a few more fashion blogs to read and maybe some day I will take pictures of my own outfits...I need a little more confidence for that though!  Some of these fashion bloggers even use it as their full time job and get free products for giving their opinion, etc.   I may add some more to my blog roll, but it may be too many!  For me shopping is an experience, so I like to actually go to the store and see, feel and try things on rather than shopping on the internet.  But there is this great site, Eshakti, where you give them your measurements and they custom fit the clothes to your body!  Awesome for someone like me w/ big boobs who can't fit into shirts and dresses sometimes.  I'm thinking about getting a dress from them, there are so many to choose from and so many pretty colors!  Anyway, I guess I just wanted to share my thoughts on shopping and fashion.  Does any body else like it as much as me?

Oh and happy birthday to my dad today!!!

Crappy yet exciting week.

This has been an interesting week to say the least. I'm not even sure how much I will share on this blog since it's so public (with my audience of 3). In some ways this week was really really bad and in some ways it has been exciting and fun, yet both extremes were shocking. What I've learned this week has been the most important part. You know when people say that when God closes a door He opens another one or opens a window? Or everything happens for a reason? Or this is a blessing in disguise? Well, I actually can say that I believe all those ideas this week. Moving on might suck at the time, but good things will come of it. I feel I've handled things pretty well and have been myself, laid back and reserved instead of totally panicked (which can also be myself sometimes). It's so comforting to know that I've met some really great people here in Austin that have supported me. At this point, the only thing I can do is pray for God's will in my life. I can't do it on my own and I have to learn to give Him some more control. If you'd like to know more, feel free to text, call or email me and we'll chat on a personal level. =)

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