KirstenL4W

Morning Radio

Kirsten — Mon, 14 May 2012 10:00:48 +0000

Now that I have a job, I also have a commute. I have to admit that I was spoiled in Las Vegas, with my 8-mile drive that took me about 15-20 minutes. Now I’m in the car for just about an hour each way.

All my CD’s are still packed since we have nowhere to put them right now, and my car doesn’t have an audio input jack for my iPod, so I’m stuck listening to the radio. I’m still trying to figure out what radio stations I like, since some of my favorites have changed formats since I’ve been gone and others don’t come in too well near my house, but come in great closer to Boston (WFNX, I’m looking at you). Plus, my musical tastes have changed a bit as well.

Have you ever tried listening to the radio during the commute hours? Let me tell you something – it sucks.

After a few days of playing radio roulette and trying to find something worth listening to, I decided to leave the radio on the same station for my whole drive. I wanted to see exactly what goes on during morning radio shows that I’m trying to avoid so much. I found out.

Besides numerous commercials, not very good news updates, and not frequent enough traffic updates (only once every half hour), I listened to inane chatter about lingerie. The deejays were talking about it and taking calls from people who obviously have nothing better to do with their time. Not one single second of the conversation was interesting.

As for music, well, I counted how many songs they played. In the 55 minutes I was in the car on Friday morning, I heard exactly 3 songs. That’s right – THREE. At an average of 3 minutes each, I listened to nine minutes of music, leaving 46 minutes of talk and commercials. Just 16% of my time behind the wheel was spent enjoying what was on the radio.

This, not traffic, is going to be the bane of my commuting existence.

Playing radio roulette doesn’t seem to make a difference, since it would appear that all radio stations are only able to play songs at the same time. So flipping through the stations brings more commercials, chatter, and the like.

In my research, I was able to find a station that claims to play the most music in the morning. The format is adult contemporary, which means there are many middle-aged women out there playing this at their desks. It’s also known as “light rock” or “music that I can play in my office that won’t offend anyone.” Looking at this station’s playlist, I see quite a few songs that are actually on my own iPod playlist. Which means that I must be getting old.

Old or not, as long as they play a decent amount of music that won’t be a shock to my under-caffeinated system, I’ll be listening to the light rock station.

Other Posts Like Me:

Workin’

Kirsten — Thu, 10 May 2012 11:07:58 +0000

I’ve been a bit busy, but I thought I’d pop in and tell you all that I found a job! I started this week and have had no time to stay caught up with anything. I hope to have time to catch up a bit this weekend. But for now, I’m off to another day at work.Other Posts Like Me:

Doggie Dentist

Kirsten — Thu, 03 May 2012 16:00:48 +0000

Since it’s recommended that dogs get annual dental cleanings, I had planned to bring Greta in to our vet in Las Vegas before moving so that she could get that done. Greta had other plans, and to avoid further traumatizing her that day, we decided to postpone the cleaning.

When we got to New Hampshire, we ended up having to find a vet that does boarding fairly quickly, because we had to go to California to visit the in-laws. The nature of the visit didn’t really allow for us to bring Greta with us, so I ended up at the animal hospital just down the street from where we live.

I knew I’d need to get some bloodwork done for her, since heartworm, fleas, ticks, and Lyme Disease aren’t really issues for pets in Las Vegas, so Greta needed to be tested for all of that. I was a bit shocked at the costs. Apparently veterinary care is one of the few things that is way more expensive in New England than it was in Las Vegas. I also wasn’t satisfied that I wasn’t told all of the costs up front. For example, I was told that the Lyme booster would only be $20 for the tech to do it. I wasn’t told that it was also $30 for the medicine itself. And the boarding was more expensive as well. I wasn’t told until I dropped Greta off that there was an additional $9/day for them to administer her eye drops.

But I was in a hurry due to the upcoming trip, so I paid and left. Then I decided to find a new vet.

I called another vet that my mom had used when she lived a lot closer, and the dental cleaning estimate was about the same – but over the phone they told me of any additional costs. Happy with that level of customer service, I booked Greta’s appointment, dropped her off, and went about my day.

A little while later we got a call from the vet letting us know that Greta’s loose tooth “just fell out.” I was pissed. When I checked her in I told the vet specifically not to pull it. She had a loose incisor in the center of her bottom jaw. It’s been like that since we got her and it has survived previous dental cleanings. (Plus, it was really cute because it stuck out just a bit.) So the “just fell out” story was bullshit.

Mister picked Greta up that afternoon, and spoke to a different vet than I did when I checked her in. He listened to them tell him how it fell out, and then proceeded to politely decline their version of the events. He accused the hygienist of being too heavy handed and either scraped it out or just yanked it out. Either way, she no longer has that adorable little tooth showing when she looks at us.

Later that evening, Mister and I talked about it. He wasn’t pleased with that vet’s office at all, and I specifically wasn’t pleased with the way they lied to us about what happened. I would have been ok with it if they admitted to being too aggressive. We talked about the experience of the vet down the street, and decided that we did like the care they gave Greta, and we’d just have to stay on top of them to avoid any hidden costs. I’m not too keen on finding yet another vet in the area, and I do want one that offers boarding should the need arise, so that rules out another recommendation we had. I wish I could bring her back to her vet in Las Vegas, but that’s not really going to happen.

I’m bummed that we don’t have Greta’s little tooth to look at anymore, but she’s still the cutest dog ever.

Other Posts Like Me:

Still Searching… Still

Kirsten — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 04:00:14 +0000

As you can tell, I’m still searching for a job. I did finally change my phone number and update that on my resume, because I had a feeling that at least one or two calls did not get through to me. My old area code in Nevada was 702, and it’s entirely possible that someone dialed 207, thinking it was for Maine, which would have resulted in a wrong number. But no matter. I’m officially in the 603 now.

I was talking to one of my dad’s friends the other day, and he brought up a very good point about my job search. He asked me about how I was measured, as in performance metrics. And it makes perfect sense. The few responses I have had to my resume have all asked me how many invoices I was processing every week.

Honestly, I can’t answer that. And the reason I can’t is because we didn’t do the bulk of the processing in our office. Yes, we were the Accounts Payable team. I know how to do everything that’s on my resume – including processing. But the bulk of the invoice processing – routing invoices for approval and doing the data entry – was done overseas by our team in India. It left more time for us to maintain vendor accounts, customer service, special projects, fixing India’s mistakes, and the few things that did not go to India, like same day check requests and foreign wires. It’s not that I don’t know how to process invoices or that I can’t do a lot of them. It’s just that it wasn’t done that way at my previous company.

I put in a call to my old boss and some former coworkers, but haven’t heard back yet. It’s apparent that recruiters and hiring authorities are looking for solid numbers, and I don’t want to have to guess. They should be able to give me some insight into this. And I’m going to call one of my high school besties, who is an A/P manager and might have some professional tips. (Punken, expect a call sometime this week.)

And if all that fails, I’m gonna have to take a few steps backwards in my career and go back to admin/office support. Because I just don’t know how else to tell these accounts payable folks that I can totally rock at their jobs.Other Posts Like Me:

Summer Days

Kirsten — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 13:00:11 +0000

Gram & Grandpa at Camp

Now that I’m back in New Hampshire, I’m really looking forward to the summer again. With temperatures regularly reaching 110F/45C, Las Vegas summers are not conducive to outdoor activities (unless you like bad sunburns and heat stroke). But New Hampshire has summers that are worth spending outdoors.

My Dad has a big in-ground pool at his house, and I remember spending many, many hours in it. In fact, I don’t really remember NOT knowing how to swim, since we’ve always had access to a swimming hole. Now that I’m back in NH, I’m looking forward to spending some lazy days by the pool again.

Summers always meant climbing trees. Unfortunately that’s not an activity I’m able to partake in anymore since I’m no longer the slim, limber child I once was. But I will appreciate their shade and look forward to the fall when their leaves change color.

The beach was always a fun visit. We live within 20 minutes of the ocean (60 minutes on summer weekends, 120 minutes on summer holiday weekends) and the salt water, ocean breeze, and arcades at Salisbury Center or the Hampton Strip were always a welcome diversion from our own backyards. To this day, I look forward to beach pizza and fried dough. For those wondering what beach pizza is – it’s total crap. It’s square pizza with cardboard like dough, tomato-soup like sauce, and a few random shreds of mozzarella cheese. For an extra 50 cents, you can get “extra cheese,” which is a slice of provolone melted on top. Crappy, but delicious because we always associate it with the beach.

Also for summers – ice cream. Everyone here has their favorite ice cream shack. And yes, I said shack. If you’re driving along and see a garden shed on the side of the road with at least 50 people in line, you’ve come across an ice cream shack. My favorite is Hodgie’s. If you’re not very hungry, order a one scoop. Their “small” is 4 scoops and not for light appetites. If you want a gut-buster or you just want something to share with a half dozen of your closest friends, order one of their sundaes.

I’m looking forward to taking my husband to explore the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. Every year we’d look forward to spending time “up north” either driving around looking at the sights, or going with my grandparents to their place at Lake Ossipee.

The drives were fun, and we settled into a bit of a routine with them. We’d drive up 93 to Lincoln, NH and stop at Clark’s Trading Post. Then we’d continue on to The Basin – natural rock formations that are smooth enough to slide down as if they were waterslides. We’d drive around some more, making our way to the Kancamagus Highway, perhaps stopping to swim in the Swift River, before heading back to 93 and going home. We always slept really well after a trip up north.

And Ossipee. I have a soft spot in my heart for the place known simply as “Camp.” My grandparents had a place at a campground up there, and we’d go up with them for a week. Sometimes I’d go up with my sister, other times I’d go with one of my cousins. Visiting them at their travel trailer, permanently moored at the lot they had, was a highlight of my summer. To this day, the smell of a body of fresh water, the gentle sounds of the lake’s waves lapping the shore, and the atmosphere of a campfire at the end of the day are some of my favorite things in the world. My Gram doesn’t really go up to camp any more, but my aunt and uncle do, and I’m really looking forward to bring Mister up there.

I don’t think it’s possible to beat summers in New Hampshire, and as I said, I’m really looking forward to being here this summer.

What are some of your favorite summer memories?Other Posts Like Me:

Big Dog and Little Dog

Kirsten — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 16:00:48 +0000

Greta has now met all of my extended family living nearby and their pets. Everyone was eager to meet her, and Greta, being the sweet puppygirl that she is, didn’t disappoint.

On Easter, we went to my mom’s for dinner. Greta had been there once before, so she came out of her shell a bit more even though there were more people. She likes my mom’s yard because there’s lots of different blades of grass to sniff.

That evening, we stopped in on my aunt, uncle, three cousins, and Gram. They have a medium sized dog who is just as attached to my aunt as Greta is to me. They sniffed each other’s butts and went to their respective Moms. There was one point when my aunt’s dog came over – Mister was petting her and Greta was sitting on the other side of Mister, and she started a very low, barely heard growl. Greta’s a bit possessive when it comes to her humans handling other animals, so Mister had to pet Greta too.

Last night I took Greta over to my other aunt’s house. Mister was hanging out with my cousin and his friends doing boy stuff involving engines, but I figured I’d go over for a bit too. I was a bit apprehensive about Greta meeting Thumper, my cousin’s German Shepherd/Anatolian Shepherd mix. Yeah, Thumper’s a big dog. And friendly – too friendly. She doesn’t quite realize how big she is.

Thumper came out to meet Greta, and was really excited. At first Greta was excited too, because she could tell that Thumper wanted to play. They sniffed a bit, but Greta couldn’t reach to sniff Thumper’s butt. Next thing I know, Thumper was completely on top of Greta – who could still stand up because Thumper’s so big – and I think she felt attacked by Thumper’s over enthusiastic friendliness. Greta got on her back and started moving her paws about in an attempt to get Thumper away from her. After that, it was decided that they were not going to be friends.

I went into the house and chatted with my aunt for a bit, while Thumper and the guys stayed outside. Greta met the cat, who’s bigger than she is. The cat will usually chase dogs, probably because he’s used to holding his own against Thumper, but since Greta doesn’t know that she’s supposed to chase cats, so they were cool with each other.

After awhile, Thumper came back in the house and had to get right up in Greta’s face again. Greta was in my lap, and started growling a bit when a ginormous dog face was all up in hers. Those two are definitely not going to be friends. But really, how can anyone not love a face like this?

Other Posts Like Me:

On The Internet

Kirsten — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 04:00:41 +0000

There’s a lot of awesome stuff on the internet. Here’s what I’ve been reading lately…

Pin N Tell is a new blog devoted to all things Pinterest. One of the things they blog about is “Pinvestigations” where they take a cool idea from Pinterest to see if it really works. Here’s their findings on the glowing Mountain Dew.
I’ve been making a decent effort on wearing makeup more often. Makeunder My Life tells you how to remember to throw out makeup so you don’t end up with stuff that’s a decade or more old, like I did.
If you’re well endowed like I am, then you’ll definitely relate to these Busty Girl Comics!
Jennifer’s zentangle drawing is really cool.
Amy has a tutorial on making a blog header in Pixlr. I have to admit, layers intimidate me, but this tutorial makes it look easy!
Vivs at Oh Shoot posts about what she learned from commenting on other blogs. Another reminder that I need to get out there and comment more.
Have you seen Downton Abbey yet? I just decided to watch it recently and bought both seasons on DVD. It’s riveting! I can’t wait to watch it again, this time with Mister, and of course I’m eagerly waiting for when season 3 starts airing. (affiliate link)
On a related note, Aunt Peaches has 5 Ways to Combat Downton Abbey Withdrawal. This should keep me busy for about a week!
If you’re in a new city, or just want to check out what radio stations are available worldwide, check out Radio Locator. Not only can you find out the format and frequency of radio stations, you can also find the ones that broadcast online!

Other Posts Like Me:

Still Searching

Kirsten — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:00:14 +0000

As you can probably guess, I’m still searching for a job. Despite what everyone tells me about the good job market here, I’ve only had a few replies to the applications I’ve submitted. But I keep applying, every day.

The job situation was the single biggest hesitation I had about leaving Las Vegas. I had a great job there, at a great company and I worked with wonderful people. I knew it wouldn’t be easy to find another job, regardless of the state of the economy. I know I am well qualified for the positions I’m applying for, and I would totally rock at whatever job I get, but it’s starting to be a downer on my self-esteem. The toughest part is not knowing. Why was I passed up? What did the person chosen have that I didn’t? How can I make myself more competitive? I’m not getting any feedback on this, so I’ll keep doing what I’m doing until someone tells me how to do it better.

I’m not good at sitting around doing nothing. I’m struggling with finding stuff to do that won’t break the bank, since we have no income right now. And I’m struggling with feeling needed somewhere.

Hopefully I’ll find a job soon.Other Posts Like Me:

I Feel Pretty, Oh So Pretty

Kirsten — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 04:00:33 +0000

I went for my makeover the other day. I decided to go to Sephora for a number of reasons. First, and most important, I could get a number of higher end brands in one place without having to visit a bunch of different salespeople, like at a department store. Second, I don’t know what the department store beauty counter salespeople look like where you are, but here in New Hampshire, it’s a good possibility that you’ll get one who gets all made up like Tammy Faye Bakker, and I was going for something a bit more subtle. Sure, the clerks in Sephora are made up as well, but they tend not to have such a heavy hand.

I met with Michelle, who knew right away that with my ultra pale skin, I wasn’t going to want a heavily made up look, especially after not wearing makeup for so long. She picked out a neutral palette and showed me how to layer the colors and where I should be applying them. I didn’t know that my eyelid crease basically started at the bottom of my brow bone! I thought it meant only the inside of the crease, so that’s where I would put stuff, and it never showed up. I also learned how to blend properly so I don’t have sharp lines where each color ends. And! I learned how to properly apply eyeliner. My whole eye looks more lifted and brighter – like I know what I’m doing with makeup.

I also selected a foundation, which I had previously decided on based on what I wanted in a foundation, friend recommendations, and online reviews. I’m glad that the color worked for me when I tried it in person, since being so pale it’s easy for things to be too dark, or for some reason, too yellow. And because I’m so pale, I tend to look a bit like the undead, so I also asked for a blush recommendation, and was happy that Michelle selected the same exact blush I had been considering.

For the lips, I was really picky. I HATE the feel of lipstick, and I hate just as much that most lipsticks leave that lippy mark on cups when you take a drink. That grosses me out to no end, and I did not want that at all. I do love my lip balm (lip grease, as Mister calls it) because my lips are so darn dry, but colored lip balms have the same issue that lipsticks have for me, so I was having a very hard time with that. I explained my concerns to Michelle, and she suggested a lip stain. Color that doesn’t come off until I wash it off, and I can still use my Chapstick with it. Hello dream product!

I was very surprised at the color she picked, because I would have passed it over without a second glance. It’s a coral color, which I would have dismissed as too orange. But it’s perfect! My lips don’t contribute to that undead look that is so easy for me to do.

So, are you curious to know what I went with?

For eyes, I got the Sephora Collection Moonshadow Baked Palette In The Nude, which is a nice collection of neutral eyeshadows in various shades. I also got the Sephora Collection Flashy Liner in Flashy Ultra Brown, which goes on very, very smoothly.

For lips, I went with Stila Lip & Cheek Stain in Mango Crush – way more orange that I ever would have chosen but I do love it!

For the rest of my face, I got the Benefit Cosmetics Hello Flawless SPF 15 pressed powder in I Love Me Ivory, the palest shade every (I do not think there is a foundation out there that is too fair for me). Michelle also recommended the Smashbox Photo Finish Light Foundation Primer, which I’ve seen all over the interwebs and in fashion magazines as a “must-have” product. And for blush, I went with the highly recommended (again on the interwebs and in magazines) Nars Blush in Orgasm. It really is the perfect shade.

I also picked up a pretty aqua eyelash curler, since my left eye has stick straight lashes while the right eyelashes curl just ever so slightly, and I got a few makeup brushes that feel like velvet, along with a daily brush cleaner to keep them, and my skin, in tip top shape. And because I was on an “I feel pretty” shopping spree, and I was feeling the need to change up the fragrance I’ve been wearing forever, I got a small bottle of Philosophy Amazing Grace.

I’ll be picking up some mascara from the drugstore to complete my look, since I can’t justify paying $20 or more on the one cosmetic that needs to be replaced the most often, but other than that, I think I’m really gonna like this new look on me. And so far, I don’t even have the urge to rub my eyes, which has always been a huge challenge for me.

What are your favorite beauty products? What application tips do you have for me as I venture further into the cosmetics world?Other Posts Like Me:

Happy Stuff

Kirsten — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 13:30:42 +0000

Source: houseofturquoise.com via KirstenL4W on Pinterest

Here’s a collection of things that have made me smile lately:

Seeing lots of houses painted in shades of aqua. There are a lot more out there than I thought!
Meeting with a recruiter yesterday. Hopefully this brings me one step closer to getting a job.
Confirming Easter dinner plans with my mom.
Greta waking me up in the morning by jumping on me and licking my face.
Introducing Mister to New England style hot dog buns, perfectly grilled on both sides.
Meeting my BFF’s new baby.
Installing Instagram for Android and finally seeing what it’s all about. I’m kirstenl4w there.

What’s made you happy lately?
Other Posts Like Me: