Where Is Amy

Coffee Experiment

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:55:00 +0000

I'm not really into cooking (other than mac n cheese of course) but I had a crazy cooking-related idea the other day and this morning I decided to try it out. I bought some cayenne pepper and........ I put it in my coffee!!!

I just put a small sprinkle in the coffee grounds before I brewed the coffee, and it was delicious! It wasn't really hot-hot, but just had a subtle aftertaste of spiciness. I think tomorrow I'll add even more pepper!

If you like coffee, you should really try this and let me know if you like it.

Lending Club Update #10

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:46:00 +0000

I am at it again with Lending Club.... if you've been reading my updates, you know that I don't have a large enough income and/or net worth to be allowed to make new loans through Lending Club.

BUT... I can buy other people's used loans, so this is what I am doing! My original portfolio of 41 loans isn't doing so hot (6 defaulted/charged off and 6 more that are over 30 days late) but my new portfolio is much more conservative - check it out, the new portfolio is the one on the bottom.

A's are the highest credit scores, and G's are lowest. All of my previous defaults were C or lower, mostly E-Gs.

So... the holy grail of making 10% returns on my money has beckoned again. We'll see how it goes this time!

Spin Class

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:39:00 +0000

Today I went to my second spin class at the gym - yes, I joined a gym. It was such a hard decision for me to spend the money on it, but I was just not working out at all and I had to be realistic and admit that I would not be running outside in Seattle during the winter.

Spin class is indeed fun, as many people have told me, but it's also a tiny bit strange. I have learned a couple interesting things so far:

1. It's kind of like walking in on a Dungeons & Dragons game where you have no idea what's going on. (Disclaimer: I haven't played D&D but I'd assume that it involves lots of strange terminology and pretending.) Last week the guy teaching the class was saying stuff like, "Ok now you're in Eastern Washington, pedaling through the wheat fields..." Really? I didn't know how much imagination is involved in spinning. Today I encountered steep hills, head winds, and passed at least 10 people. Yeah that's right, I passed them! In your FACE imaginary sucky bikers!!

2. People can't sit still on the bikes. I get to class a few minutes early and I have yet to see anyone just sitting calmly on the bike, resting. I want to rest, because I am about to be forced to ride a bike for a straight hour!! But not these people. They must be spinning the wheels at all times while on the bike. So I turn the resistance way down and try to spin the wheels as slow as possible without falling off (JK it's a stationary bike) so that no one notices that I am secretly lazy.

Anyway, despite being sore for most of the week, I am really liking the gym and feeling like I have more energy, so that is awesome!

Rapping about Economics

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:27:00 +0000

This is AWESOME. If you like rap at all this is totally worth the 3 minutes. It's so funny to hear a rapper talking about "the man" and "regulating" but in a totally different context.

(h/t Greg Mankiw)

Costa Rica Driving

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:47:00 +0000

Oh, poor Costa Rica. In case you didn't have enough traffic accidents already...

Don't worry if you don't read Spanish the picture in this article says it all

I'm Sleepy!

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:07:00 +0000

I have had the hardest time getting out of bed for the past couple weeks!! I keep almost thinking that I'm coming down with something, but then once I'm up and running I am OK.

So... it occurs to me that it might be the weather here. At first I thought, well that doesn't make much sense because I've been living here for over 3 years now, so why now all of the sudden would I start having those problems?

But here's my theory. (Of course no blog post is complete without a theory, right?) I think that during the past few years, the dark mornings didn't bother me because I was in grad school and therefore could wake up more or less whenever. I think I'm fine with a reduced amount of daylight, as long as I don't have to consistently wake up in the dark. But now that I have a 'real' job and I have to get my butt out of bed at 7:30am every day, it is so rough.

Luckily I'll be heading to Hawaii for 2 weeks for my luna de miel , so I will get lots of sun, sand, and surf!! Can't wait!!!

Desperate Salespeople

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:22:00 +0000

Well, I don't know if the economy is recovering or not (mostly because I don't go to Chipotle very often anymore so I can't use the Chipotle-line-test to gauge growth/contraction) but I do know one thing. I am so glad I'm not in sales right now!

When I started my current job, I learned that there are many fascinating things about being a receptionist. For example, one aspect of the job is to protect your boss from people who want to waste his/her time. The first time two guys in suits walked in and wanted to talk to my boss, I thought "OMG they're with the FBI." I went in the back and had a conversation something like this:

Me: "There are 2 guys here who want to see you."
Boss: "Well, who are they?"
Me: "I don't know. But they're wearing suits."
Boss: "Of course I'm not going to see them. Tell them to go away."

I politely told the suits that my boss was not in, and they tried to chat with me about what phone system we used (I think I told them that my phone is black with lots of buttons... how's that for being helpful?!) and then they left their business card. Voila, my first experience shoo-ing away salespeople.

Nowadays, I just laugh (inside, only!) when someone wants to talk to my boss. Let's just say my boss's name is Bob. Yesterday a lady called and said "Bob please" when I answered. Ummm.... really? Is that how that works? Like, can I call Microsoft and say "Bill please" in a crabby tone of voice and expect to be transferred to him? Cause that'd be cool.

The most desperate of all the salespeople in my opinion are the ones selling copier services. We've had probably half a dozen people offer to buy out the rest of our lease on our Xerox equipment. These poor people! I feel bad for them.

In happier news, the Chipotle near my house will soon open, at which time I can resume my economic analysis.

Amy is Welcomed Back to Seattle by Professional Dryers

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:35:00 +0000

Yesterday at about 2pm I returned home from my long weekend trip to Tucson. I was excited to have the rest of the afternoon off to get some errands done and see a couple friends. But of course before starting the errands I had to go to the bathroom, and what do I hear? The sound of dripping water.

I called our building manager and the poor guy probably had to go into a dozen units before finding the source of the leak... a toilet overflow 3 stories above us. Supposedly their insurance will cover us. I have my fingers crossed on that because if not, I can only imagine how much this will cost:

Lending Club Update #9

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 04:41:00 +0000

Check it out! I am quoted in The Oregonian!

(That's a newspaper in Oregon - our beautiful anti-self-gas-pumping neighbor to the south.)

Oregon Trail

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 05:49:00 +0000

I should be going to bed right now but I'm totally worked up because I'm telling Sean about how no one at my work today had heard of the Oregon Trail computer game. Someone made a joke about someone having cholora (no one really has cholora... just a dark-humor joke!) and I laughed and said something like "Ha ha, Jane has cholora. It's just like the Oregon Trail." And everyone was like, "what are you talking about?"

I can't get over this. It's like saying "Who's Michael Jackson?" or "Who's the pope?" or "what's apple pie?" It just doesn't make any sense!!!!

I have a serious concern here. All of the people at work were older than me, so maybe they can be excused somehow, but does anyone born in 1980 or later not know what Oregon Trail is? Also anyone who has kids born in 1980 or later must know what it is. Only some weird pocket of childless people in their late 30s and 40s, or people from foreign countries don't know what it is.

For those of you real Americans out there, Wikipedia has a nice treatment of the Oregon Trail. Just the picture brings back such memories!! The hunting - oh, the agony when you finally kill that bison and then realize that you can only bring back 100 pounds to your wagon!! And the debate over how to cross the river! Of course you never have money for the ferry so do you risk walking across or do you caulk your wagon and try to float it? Back me up here guys! :)

Kiosk Fail

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 20:43:00 +0000

I didn't even realize that Seattle was missing kiosks (i.e. the little stands selling newspapers and such) until one recently sprouted up at 3rd and Pike. This is the corner where I wait for the bus in the morning, so I was really excited to see this new addition to our neighborhood! (And by "our" I mean me and the 55 bums who either need to ride the bus for some reason or just enjoy loitering around bus stops.)

BUT.... the stupid kiosk is never open when I get to the bus. I know, you're probably thinking that is because I get up at the crack of DAWN to go to work. But sadly, I get to the bus stop at 8:40am. 8:40!!! This is not early by any stretch of anyone's imagination! So why on earth would a kiosk that sells newspapers and COFFEE not be open by then?

One time as I was waiting for the bus I saw the guy coming to unlock the kiosk. If I see him again, I will accost him and inform him that most people like to drink coffee and read papers in the MORNING.

PS. In other exciting 3rd & Pike news, a Chipotle is opening there next month. I am already salivating. It's going to be awesome.

Best Food in the World

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 04:34:00 +0000

Yesterday I found Hatch green chiles at the grocery store. They weren't roasted, but a quick internet search told me how to use the "broil" setting on the oven to roast them. You learn something every day! And oh man they are delicious.

Surf Expedition

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 02:02:00 +0000

Last weekend, Sean and I hit up ALL the surf spots in Washington state! Friday night we drove out to Neah Bay, and stopped on our way there to check if the surf was breaking in Port Angeles. (It wasn't). This was my second time going to Neah Bay, and I still can't believe how gorgeous the Olympic Penninsula is. It's worth going out there just for the stars (between light pollution in the big city and cloud cover I have completely forgotten that stars existed, let alone the milky way).

Saturday morning we surfed at Neah Bay. The surf was a good size for me but really strong sideways currents made it pretty exhausting. It was sunny though, which was awesome. (Our 'usual' surf break, Westport, is orders of magnitude less sunny than Seattle. Which is also not that sunny.)

After the morning surf session, we drove to La Push, where the waves were huge and scary, and then to Ocean Shores where the waves were also huge and scary, and then ended up at jolly old Westport.

At Westport, the waves were breaking really shallow and I didn't want to crack my head open and die so I took a pass on surfing. But Sean has no such fears, so he surfed away, and I attempted to take photos!! I loved it, and I am now chomping on the bit to go back out there and get better pictures! I got an OK picture of Sean, but he wasn't quite standing up yet so it could be better. Also, it would have been better if he had gotten a left because then he would have been facing me. See why I need to go back now? That being said, check out my sweet pic:

Free Cake?

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:41:00 +0000

I try not to tell work stories on this blog (and let me tell you, now that I deal with the public I have way more funny stories than I ever did in engineering, so sometimes it's hard to restrain myself). That being said, this one was just too funny (and does not involve any of our clients or staff).

We have a restroom which requires a key, and this nice Indian man come in once in a while to use the bathroom. I always said hi to him, and one day I asked him if I worked in the building. No, he told me, he works for the city doing park maintenance/landscaping outside. (We're right next to a beautiful walking/biking trail). I mentioned that I love to eat the blackberries that grow wild around here, and from that day forward he would often bring me some berries when he came in to use our restroom.

Yesterday, he comes in with a cake box from QFC (grocery store). I was worried... free berries are one thing, but it's getting kind of weird if he bought me a cake, right? Well, turns out, it's a different kind of weird. He said "I found this." Wha?? I look in the box and see a half-eaten cake. This is on Monday morning, which means it's been sitting outside since at least Sunday afternoon. "Thank you..." I say, "but are you sure you don't want it?" He says he doesn't want it, and that he hopes we all enjoy it. Ummmmmmm. I don't have the heart to tell this man that I am a loooong way off from being desperate enough to eat a half-eaten, day-old cake that was found outside in a park. So today he comes in and says "How was the cake?"

"It was delicious," I said, "everyone loved it!" White lies, white lies.

The Taken

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:10:00 +0000

Last weekend, a few of us had the opportunity to go to a movie premiere! (Yeah I pretty much felt like a celebrity.) The movie is called The Taken, and it was shot at an abandoned mental institution in Sedro-Woolley, a small town in north-western WA.

Our friend Nate was an investor in this movie, which is how we got the sweet hook-up to go to the premiere! It was in an amazingly beautiful theater in Mt. Vernon. I think from now on I'm going to drive to Mt. Vernon every time I want to watch a movie.

So, if you couldn't guess from the title and/or filming location, it's a horror movie. I definitely haven't watched a horror movie in years, so maybe I just forgot how scary they can be, but this movie was freaking SCARY. I mean, I practically clawed Sean's arm off during the movie it was so scary.

I don't know anything about where this movie will be showing (festivals, I'm assuming, since it's an independent film?) but if you ever feel like getting scared silly I can highly recommend the film.

Health Care

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:08:00 +0000

Between people throwing punches at town hall meetings, or boycotting Whole Foods, it seems like people are pretty worked up about health care.

For me, I think it all boils down to one big question. Why on earth does anyone care, because we're already paying for it anyway.

Sneak Attack Revealed

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:21:00 +0000

Remember when you were a little kid, sometimes you'd just walk over to a friend's house to see if they were home? Well, that's the concept behind the sneak attack. It didn't end up having a very good success rate... but hey, what's more fun than driving around all day in the sweet Toyota Van LE and stopping for some delicious food at Taco Bell?

Here's how it went down:

House #1 - Mt. Baker - not home
House #2 - Ravenna - not home
House #3 - Wallingford - got lost, gave up on finding it
* stop at gas station for Amy to buy a Fanta *
House #4 - Wallingford - success! We snared one friend and threw him in the van with us.
House #5 - Walilngford - not home
House #6 - Woodinville - took a long time to find, and they ended up being not home, but we left a note saying "you have been sneak attacked!!"
* stop at Taco Bell for some refueling *
House #7 - Bothell - same story as #6.

Oh well, regardless of the low hit rate we had a fun time, and we will probably try again in the winter when all Seattle-ites in their right minds are indoors!

Sneak Attack!

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:46:00 +0000

Tomorrow, Sean and I are planning a "sneak attack". What is this? You will find out... probably Sun/Mon.

Stuff Engineers Like #8 - Conspiracy Theories

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 22:48:00 +0000

Ok, if you want to get picky, conspiracy theories could be considered a special case of #5 - Having Complicated Hobbies, but I think it deserves its own category.

Besides, 'hobby' seems like the wrong word for figuring out the most cost-effective way to stock your nuclear fallout shelter with food/water/weapons/etc. (It might involve spreadsheets though!)

For everyone out there who has ever believed in y2k, the government orchestrating 9-11, the non-landing on the moon, etc., here's the most hilarious only game I have seen about the imminent End-of-America:

Choose Your Own Apocalypse

Starbucks Gossip

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:13:00 +0000

I have written about the Starbucks gossip blog before, but today it has once again amazed me with its level of funny-ness.

This thread is all about whether or not customers want their cups rinsed (if they bring their own cup from home). Did you know that some people try to give the barista a cup with Bailey's already in it? ROFL! I think when you're spiking your morning coffee, something needs to change!

Homemade Tortilas

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 19:52:00 +0000

I meant to write about this earlier... last weekend, Sean and I went to South Park, which is a small neighborhood that I didn't even know existed until I started volunteering for Sierra Club.

Why did we go there? Because I heard there was good Mexican food there! We had lunch at Juan Colorado, a sit-down Mexican place with a bar that was almost (but not quite!) empty on a Sunday afternoon, and a sweet kareoke setup. I hate to say that I wasn't super excited about their food (it was OK, but basically like eating at Macayo's), but it seems like it would be an awesome place to go drinking and kareoke-spectating.

Despite the food being a little bland, I asked if we could buy some tortillas, since they had a sign saying that they make tortillas on Saturdays and Sundays. They asked how many pounds I wanted. I was like "umm one?" Maybe they just loved us, or maybe that was a really small order of tortillas, because they didn't even charge us for them! We waited as they made some for us, and they were still warm by the time we got home.

They were corn tortillas, and they were so delicious!!!!! So, I know they can make good food there, perhaps the burritos just aren't the thing to order.

I want to do another investigatory trip to South Park, perhaps to this place next time.

Iowa 911

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 16:48:00 +0000

Just heard about this news from my Spanish teacher (who is from Iowa).

Iowa 911 Call Center Becomes First to Receive Texts

Now, this is great news of course. But there's something funny about the idea of 911 receiving texts such as:

"Help of! Good is on fire. thx g2g"

Lending Club Update #8

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 20:10:00 +0000

I got an email the other day saying that Lending Club is raising their rates by 0.5%. I think this is a good idea since their default rate is now 4.45%.

Here's my latest stats:

Number of loans: 41
Paid off early: 6
Charged off: 3
Defaulted: 1
Over 30 days late: 2

Last time I posted, my annualized rate of return was 7.81%. Now I guess the effect of the defaulted/charged-off loans is kicking in because that is down to 4.51%. Still positive though, which is pretty good these days. Once I get married (and then my income is above the min. threshold) I might start adding some more loans to my portfolio... I think LC is still a really cool idea, despite having had some loans go bad. We'll see I guess.

Heat Wave!!

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 16:50:00 +0000

Yesterday, Sean and I "beat the heat" by going swimming at Madison Park. The cool lake water was amazingly refreshing.

In honor of this enormous heat wave, my Spanish vocab word of the day is:

bochornoso - sticky; muggy

Also, Seattlest has a good blurb about the most sought-after item in all of Seattle right now:

How Hot is it in Seattle?

Coffee Debate

amydashiell@gmail.com (Amy) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:10:00 +0000

Sean and I got into a little debate this morning, and rather than try to find out the answer myself online, I thought I'd 'ask the audience'. So.... here's the question:

Do they serve coffee in jail?

Sean says no. He says jail is supposed to be unpleasant, and furthermore coffee is hot and could therefore be used as a weapon.

I say yes. Coffee is like air. I think most people in modern society don't even think of coffee as something that's optional. I hate to say it, but I would assume that even Joseph Fritzl gets a cup of coffee every day.

What do you guys think?