Operation: Working Vacation

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is where I will be in only two more days. As if I hadn't been MIA in the blog-o-sphere enough, this upcoming Friday through Wednesday, I will be MIA in the city as well. And I cannot wait. This very beach, the ocean breeze, the hot white sand, the clear waters... the cold beverage... all of the cold beverage... five days of absolute and blissful nothingness. God, can I leave now? Classy and Mr. Perfect are traveling Friday night to meet my family, including Mr. Super Athlete, for a week in Seaside, Florida-- all paid for via my fabulous parents. Could it be any more perfect? Only if it lasted two weeks instead of 5 days. Unfortunately, my 'super cool' workplace won't pay me to be at the beach any more than my current existing vacation days will allow. Those pesky bills to pay at the end of the month seem to ruin all the fun. Ah, well. Some is better than none at all... that is for certain. 

Speaking of my 'super cool' workplace and my desperate need for this overdue vacation, I promised explanation for my negative attitude towards said 'super cool' environment in my last post. For the past couple of months, I have been on the verge of miserable at work. While I have my good days and still find great comfort in my close co-workers, my 'higher-ups' continue to place me on that line between anger and misery more often than not. As of late, it has gotten better, however not more than a month ago, I was more than ready to be elsewhere being paid more money for some type of work where I was actually using the degrees that I had earned in school. Basically, they don't pay me nearly enough to talk to me or treat me the way that they were at the time. Ie. I don't know how to do my job or I'm not putting forth enough effort for the sake of my children, blah blah bullshit, blah blah. Funny how all of my quarterly personal evaluations since I've been teaching there have been nearly perfect scores, yet all of a sudden, I'm worthless. It was re-accreditation season for them, therefore their asses were on the line, so their stresses were forced upon their staff... it was my first go around with said season. Lucky me. I don't think I'll be around to witness another... I hope not anyway. After crying at work twice in two weeks, one could say I was more than a little fed up. However, being that I was in the middle of May Mania, I didn't exactly have time to vent such stresses here or put forth effort in looking for a new place of employment were I would be validated. I basically spent all of May avoiding my administration as to 1.) not be forced into fake conversation acting as if I was perfectly fine after the way I was treated or 2.) not be yelled at or condemned for anything else I could possibly be doing all wrong. My job simply isn't that hard. I promise I can handle it. Chill out. Anyway, as things have settled mostly, I'm back to complacency where I am at the moment. My resume has been updated and sent off to a couple of locations actually, but I'm not expecting much out of it. Not many industries hiring nowadays. The relief, however, of simply having it updated and available for immediate send out is quite enjoyable.

But not more enjoyable than the relief that my home away from home in Seaside is waiting for me a mere 72 hours from now. Ah, bliss. 

She's Alive!

Hard to believe, right? Did you think that all of May Mania got the best of me? Well is almost did, I have been in recovery, but never the less, I have survived! All is said and done and it's already June! How did that happen? I just don't know. But I hope you have missed me, I have missed you mucho mucho! Let's see... where do I begin on filling you in on all of the savory details... ah, the wedding.

Wedding Extravaganza took place over Memorial Day weekend as you all know and surprisingly enough everything came together so nicely. It really was a beautiful wedding. The bride and groom were blissfully and disgustingly happy, and so, as the former roommate, I of course am so happy for them. But more importantly, I know you're curious as to how I managed my bridesmaid dress... well, after it was taken in a little over two inches, it still had to be pinned under my arm to make sure there were not going to be any added surprises during the ceremony. I was pretty proud. Even the bride's mother made a comment as to how jealous she was of how 'tall and skinny' I was... my response, "I can't do so much about the height, but I've worked pretty hard for the skinny, so thanks!" Needless to say, my ego was pretty high up there for the majority of the day. Bonus, only 1/2 the Bitch Squad showed up, therefore, I only had to avoid a few as I mingled my way around the reception. I also was able to find humor in the obviously fake attempts of conversation by sorority sisters who have chosen the Bitch Squad side of the story... you know... the story from over a year ago. Yeah. ha. All in all, it was an enjoyable event. I wasn't miserable and I was able to see many that I had missed, looking hot in my sized down dress of course. 

Onto the after party. The perfect after party. Guest list including Island Girl, Super Athlete and Friend, Mr. Perfect and myself. Darts, drinks, gossip, bliss. It was the perfect end to the chaos of the day. So much fun. The rest of the holiday weekend consisted of laying by the pool, shopping, sitting out on the back porch enjoying each other's company. The perfect end to May Mania and the perfect start of the summer. I was pleased... and tired upon returning to the city. 

Unfortunately, the city wasn't so nice to Classy when she returned. More on that to come. Promise. The job front is depressing right now. Still have a job, no worries. Just not very happy. Don't worry... more on that later. I'm working on my attitude towards it. Details to come. Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday weekend and you know.. the weekend following. Wow, I'm so behind. So sorry. 

Love to all! 

My Bad!

One would think that I was in the middle of exams in light of my recent slacking in the blogosphere. Alas, no such luck. When I told Rico in a recent telephone conversation that I would gladly be studying for an exam this week knowing I had a three month summer vacation, he quickly shut me up. But seriously, when you come to a time when you have no more summer vacay, you'll completely know where I'm coming from. It sucks. Just fyi. But back to my slacking, I have no excuses other than a simple lack of luster and excitement in my life currently. That, however, is getting ready to change. I've mentioned before "May Mania." The next three weeks have boat loads of excitement for this Classy girl. One might say I'm pretty eager to be in the middle of it. 

This upcoming weekend is a road trip both back to my hometown along with Roxie's current city of choice for her college graduation. Such an exciting time. I can't believe it has been a full year since I was in her stilettos. Time flies, doesn't it? You can bet there will be partying, laughing, and many many pictures taken. Should be a good time. T-4 days. 

The following weekend, a huge concert weekend in IG's current city of choice. Yet another road trip for Kenny, Miranda, and Lady Antebellum. One might say I'm just a tid bit thrilled about this one. 1) I've never been to IG's cute apartment since she's lived there.. mind you, she graduated a year before I did, therefore making this year number two.. sad, huh? 2) This particular city is further south than my current location and I can guarantee at least 80 degrees... ie. Pool Time! Also, I've asked off that Friday from work as the concert is on Thursday night, therefore.. Long Weekend! Welcome Summer! I'm hoping for a fantastic concert, quality IG time, and a great tan by the end of our run. Once again, you can bet on plenty of pictures. You know how we are about making all the haters jealous. ha! I. can't. wait. T-10 days.

But there's more! The following weekend, Memorial Day weekend, will be yet another long weekend! And I didn't even have to ask off of work as we have Memorial Day off anyway. Perfect! This is also the big Wedding Extravaganza of my college roommate. (Note: THE bridesmaid dress I've referred to previously, the one ordered in a larger size than requested... Recall? This would be the wedding. By the way, that dress was taken in over two inches last weekend! ha!) While in some aspects, it will most definitely be a stressful event, in many others, it will be oh so much fun. I will have college friends coming from all over back to my hometown (where the wedding is taking place), and guess who is in charge of the after party... oh. yes. Once again, quite eager to make it the event of the summer. One of the most memorable ones anyway. T-19 days. 

I suppose I'm making up for my lack of a summer vacation this year. May Mania will keep me occupied for a while anyway... until I remember I have to go back to work instead of laying poolside for three months working part time and going out every night. sigh. Ah well. I'll keep you posted! Here we go! 

We Can't Forget, "These are the Days"

I'm trying my best to remember this on a day to day basis. As I'm gearing up for May Mania, I've also been struggling to cope with my current inner dilemma regarding my emotions around this time of year. While I'm thrilled for the upcoming events in the month of May, the weekdays in between the weekends seem to continue to both depress me and infuriate me... depending on the day. 

I'm so unhappy with my job. Within the past three weeks, I've cried three times while at work. Details aside, I'm working my ass off and still seem to come up short on a regular basis in regard to keeping my boss(es) satisfied. I'm over it. As many of the issues I have with my current career, the foremost at the moment is that they don't pay me enough to be on my ass all of the time when I know damn well I'm good at what I do, and most certainly not enough to make me cry and dread work as much as I currently do. I'm over the middle-aged women being jealous of the young, educated, and enthusiastic. I can't help but feel as if every little thing that I do is dissected simply to find fault. What is that? Honestly. I've known since I started this job that it wasn't a permanent situation. It's not what I went to school to do, but after moving to a new city and into a new apartment, and then looking for a job for what seemed like forever, I was happy with a starting out point that seemed as if it were a relatively positive environment to settle into while still looking for other options. Well, with a tanking economy and a new routine in general for this Classy Girl, I became quite comfortable in said positive environment until recently when the positive vibe has begun to drastically decline. I have been thrust back into the reality that this is not what I want to be doing for any longer than I have to. I have also come to accept that I let fear of failure hinder future wants or endeavors. Thus why I haven't taken the GRE, thus why I haven't been on the market for higher paying jobs that require more of me but that I know fully well I am capable of handling, thus why almost a year to date after my college graduation I find that I'm close to miserable more than not on a regular work day. I've never been one to give myself enough credit. So here I am. Poor pitiful me, huh? I'm not trying to play the pity card, just venting through what is currently a very frustrating period. 

Everyone that I've spoken with has understood my frustrations. All too often I've heard that your first 'real' job is never the one you most desire. My response: no joke. But I'm trying my best to push forward, not be rash, enjoy the good parts of my job (...most of my kids), and not be unemployed in our current monetary crisis. Thus, in honor of my post title, Sugarland's These are the Days, I leave you with a few of my favorite lines in the song...

It feels like we're living from paycheck to check.

We wake up wondering what might happen next.

Sometimes it feels like we won't make it through,

but the hard times pass like the good ones do.

I Have an Urge...

... to redecorate. Big time. Call it Spring Fever, call it too much time by myself in this apartment last week, call it whatever you want, but I have the urge. Majorly. I had a similar urge last summer when I was first beginning to decorate this place, however with renewing my lease around the corner and the summer months headed my way, I'm getting excited once again to rejuvenate this place. I'm quite OCD when I get in moods like this. It could be trouble. I need everything to match, go with the same theme, hide old things in closets, spend way too much money... the whole nine yards. 

Luckily enough for me, this puts my mind on a set focus. And that makes me happy. Not that I need much more for my mind to focus on nowadays... I have quite the busy month ahead. May Mania as I'm referring to it as: Derby weekend, Roxie's Graduation, Kenny Chesney Weekend with IG, the infamous Wedding Weekend, and finally... rest. Perhaps. All of it is going to be a blast, and I can't wait,  but not much down time at all until June, it seems. However, if I get on this redecorating kick, as it seems that I have, I will always enjoy coming back home to do more around this place, thus making the boredom of June that I'm sure will ensue in the aftermath of May Mania more acceptable. I'm okay with it. One of my city friends is an assistant manager in a local unique home decor, etc. store. I bought two pieces of art from her today. Well, I got her to get them for me. The 1/2 off perk. This is my starting off point. We'll see how much of a landslide I get myself into...

So exciting. ha.