Clean Closets & Taking Tumbles

Two weeks ago, I thought how nice it would be to finally have some time off! Today, I am SO READY to start the new job. Being at home with nothing to do has allowed me time to catch up on my favorite TV shows like Downton Abbey, watch all of the Sharks games thus far, and play with my new Hamilton Beach Blender, but I've simply run out of things to do. Thank goodness that the lockout ended though, because THE SHARKS ARE ON FIRE THIS SEASON!!!!

Anyway, one thing I'm proud of is that I finally got the chance to try on all of my clothes and clean out my closet. I didn't take a "before" picture but here is the "after":

Imagine that none of the clothes up top were folded before, and they were piled into the ceiling in the corners. I also got to go through my storage boxes and I definitely have enough warm weather clothing that I don't really need to shop for the Miami trip. Finding old faves is so fun, and a relief on the budget (especially after not working for a few weeks).

After I loaded up my giant box of clothing, I was grumbling about how I didn't want to carry it downstairs to my car. I knew I had no choice, so I lugged it to the elevator, and then to the parking lot stairs. And of course, my clumsy self misjudged the first step and tumbled down the flight. And I got serious booboos.

My hip (above), my right knee, and my left ankle got the worst of it. Luckily I had my North Face down jacket on and my arms were heavily padded. I'm also lucky that I didn't hit my head. Still, I was SO MAD that I fell! And I had to stuff the clothing back into the box, the same items that I had so carefully folded for the donation people. Ugh!

Then today I was walking up those same steps, for the first time since the tumble and I saw Hi-Chews on the floor. The same Hi-Chews that I keep in my purse! This reminded me of Sonic the Hedgehog games where Sonic would lose rings whenever he bumped into something bad. Except I don't lose rings, I lose candy!

Nike+ Kinect Training Week 1

Yesterday I finished my first week of the Get Lean program in Nike+ Kinect Training. And I love it! I get a light soreness in specific parts of my body after each workout, and I'm feeling less jiggly so I know it's working. The best part about this game is that it customizes the program to how well I do, and it corrects my form all of the time. Miami body, here I come!

I understand that p90x and the Insanity workouts will probably get more results and faster, but I know that I have issues with form and this is the only way for me to work out correctly at home. The Kinect sensors also only count properly done reps, so I don't get to cheat like I do with p90x =)

Hockey is Back! NHL 2013

Finally, THE NHL LOCKOUT IS OVER! Spent my whole Saturday planted firmly on the couch, watching the first day of the 2013 season for a solid 8 hours. Decided to spring for NHL Gamecenter Live when I realized that I would only be getting 2 Sharks games if I didn't!

And today I'm making good use out of that subscription. Although, I wish the stream was in 720p or 1080p. I guess it's better than nothing, love having hockey back. GO SHARKS!

New Year, New JOB!

So far, 2013 has been fantastic.

Firstly, I finally got some SNOW! But more importantly, I got a new job. =) I know, I know... I just started working at Expedia a few months ago. I did enjoy travel writing and I had some pretty interesting coworkers. I received a contract extension last week... but I also received a LinkedIn message from a recruiter shortly after accepting said extension. The message mentioned a Technical Writer opportunity that I would be qualified for. And it surely sounded interesting! So I called back, and before I knew it I was interviewing with the manager.

The interview could not have gone better. I mean like literally, there is nothing else I could have brought to the table in retrospect. We talked phones, work environments, and the industry for a solid hour. Longest and best interview ever! I'm so excited to be writing about phones again, I couldn't think of a job that I want more at this point in my career. The best part of all was getting an offer for the job even before I got home from the interview. Got 'em!

I have one week off before starting my new gig, and I've been wanting to start a new blog. So I did! Enjoy.

Livestrong App: Day 1

I just started using the Livestrong app for Android today, and so far it's been pretty awesome. This is what the MyPlate screen looks like on my Samsung Galaxy S2:

Easy to search, fast manual entry, and overall very easy to use. Having to choose an Activity level was kind of sad for me though.. the most appropriate option was "sedentary" -- there's a difference between knowing in the back of your mind that you're unhealthy, and actually having to select it from a drop down menu.

Time to shape up!

New Years 2013

Well another year has come and gone, and it feels like time is flying faster than ever before! I spent the end of 2012 and the beginning of 2013 watching The Pianist with Victor. I think this indicates that my year will be full of cozy, entertaining, and sober moments. And actually, that sounds pretty awesome to me. I should probably start by recapping the past few months - there are way too many moments to catch up on here, but I can definitely point out the highlights:

My first JACK-O-LANTERN! Even though my first time carving a pumpkin was in my mid-twenties, I still had JUST as much fun (if not more) than a 10 year old would. And, I was pretty impressed by how well I did! Victor carved a much more complicated freehand Dada pumpkin with bananas and champagne... one day I too will graduate to intricate pumpkin design!

Thanksgiving with my favorite Korean family! Charles invited me to join a potluck dinner with his family, and I made cornbread for the first time. One was a traditional buttermilk cornbread, and the other was a jalapeno/whole kernel cornbread. There was so much good food and laughter, it truly was a Thanksgiving I feel thankful to have been a part of.

The Windows company party at the Sheraton, a.k.a. Wayne Manor! Probably the coolest theme for a company party, ever. So many desserts and really impressive décor. My favorite part of the night was when Victor got recruited from the crowd to play suspect in a murder mystery skit. We were sitting in the room unsuspectingly prior to the show, and guys dressed up like old-time gangsters were making small talk with us .. we actually thought they could have been Microsoft employees getting into the theme but they were scouting for crowd members to drag into the show! And of course Victor was found guilty by the crowd at the end - an excellent show with talented entertainers indeed.

The Expedia company party at the EMP Museum. This venue is probably one of the coolest places to host a company party in Seattle. I mean, the exhibits were open! I got to use the scream booth, the Star Trek green screen, and I thoroughly enjoyed the Rockaroke and the virtual dance videos. The food was only decent, there wasn't much selection at all. The desserts were good though, and there was plenty to go around! I got to know my coworkers better, and I was much more relaxed (I'm super serious and not the friendliest when I'm actually at work).

The Friend Chicken party! We had an epic group of 30+ people over to celebrate pajamas and fried chicken. Most of the chicken was store bought in the beginning, but later in the evening we fired up the fryer and started throwing in the prepped chicken. BJ's chicken was the best, hands down. Kim's mini cupcakes were absolutely amazing. Lots of liquor flowing made for a really loud game of White Elephant. I ended up with 3 cheesy DVDs and movie candies, but I was pretty satisfied with my gift. The party really made me realize how lucky I am to have such a loving, fun, and exciting group of friends in Seattle. Because of them, 2012 was amazing, and I'm sure 2013 will only grow the awesomeness exponentially.

And finally, my resolutions! I used one of my Christmas gifts to seal the list and make it all LEGIT and stuff!!! This year's list includes getting in shape for UMF, dropping down to 115 lbs at some point, getting a reasonably paid job with benefits, blogging at least twice per month, and finally getting around to creating a writing portfolio.

May 2013 be EVER in our favor.