Weekendings

This weekend was pretty good. On Friday I went over to a girlfriend's house and we ate Chipolte (which I don't completely hate anymore as long as I have a huge drink with the meal because it is so spicy!) and then studied until 2am. I got quite a bit done and Saturday was spent working on some classwork and applying for jobs.
One of the case studies I had to read for my Strategic Management class was about Costco. I like Costco a lot, and from what I read they seem to treat they're employees really well, so I went on their website and applied for a job! Wish me luck!
Last night both Hairspray and Enchanted were on HBO so I watched those. I always liked Hairspray but the first time I watched Enchanted I thought it was a little too overdone, but the second time around it was better.
And this week I will be painting our dining room. We had a very outdated looking wallpaper up, so my dad took that down and I am going to paint it a beige color I think. I will try and post pictures of the progress.

A better header

I just spent the last hour and a half working on my new header! My original intention was to find a cool picture of a camera on a couch via Google Images or Flickr, but as luck would have it, I found nothing. So I dug up my dad's old Minolta camera (circa before I was born) and sat it on our even older chartreuse couch.
A little editing and a background change... and voila! I wish I would have taken graphic design classes in college. I worked with PhotoShop a little in my digital photography class but we pretty much just learned how to airbrush a zit off of someone's face. I don't recall working with layers or creating images right on the screen.
Alright, time for bed before my massive study session tomorrow.

I simply remember my favorite things

Here are a few of my favorite things I'd like to share with you all. I think I'm going to make this a semi regular thing here on my blog. Enjoy!

OPI Nail polish!
I honestly can't remember the last time my nails didn't have polish on them. It was sometime in 2008.
(L to R: Chick Flick Cherry, Shorts Story, Purple with a Purpose, It's a Doozi Says Suzi, and Clubbing til Sunrise)

My rings!
I have a large collection, many from the jewelry store I used to work at.

My scrapbooks!
I scrapbooked all throughout high school and recently started again when I created a scrapbook dedicated to my trip to Cancun last year.

Pearl!
She is my two year old Birman cat. She is definitely the friendliest cat I've ever met and acts like a dog most of the time.

Going strong on two hours of sleep

A completely non-photography related post... I knew this blog would turn in to something more!
Today, one of my girlfriends from Robbins Bros. and I made our way down to the Unemployment Office for the fourth time since June. Last time, we waited until classes began before telling them we were students. This time we went in before we had to report it (we have to call and verify weeks of unemployment every two weeks). Hopefully our information will be processed this week and that there will be no delay in receiving payments. Last time we were held up over a month in getting paid, which was horrible!
I had an interview at a technology firm in Naperville today. It was for an administrative position. It seemed like an easy job, nothing I couldn't handle. Similar to the work I did with Door Systems. I think I was talking to the manager for five minutes before she asked me about salary. Now, I've had a bunch of interviews this summer (and over the course of my life) and never once has salary been brought up that quickly. My only guess is that they've had trouble finding someone who will work for the salary they were offering.
I don't mean to be ungrateful, but there is no way I would survive on that salary. I HAVE to move, so it just won't cut it. And besides, depending on where Antonio gets a job too; one of us might have to drive pretty far to work, which can get expensive pretty quickly.
So for now, it is back to the drawing board. I recently rediscovered the Stephens Career Connection website so I am going through that and seeing if any alums might be able to help me out.
On a desperate note, I purchased Clairol Root Touch-Up today. I can't afford to go to the salon right now and my hair looks a hot mess. I've got about an inch and a half of dark brown roots growing out of the top of my mostly blond head. I am very skeptical of this product, but according to the information on the box it is guaranteed to match any hair color, including salon brand dyes. Before I use it I am going to Google it to see what other users of the product have said. Wish me luck!
Oh, and one more thing. My second semester of graduate school started today. As I feared, the class I took over the summer was a walk in the park compared to what these two new classes seem to be! I hope I can survive them! Second session I have the same teacher I had over the summer, so I am really looking forward to that again. Only eight more weeks to go!

Warrenville at it's finest

In continuing my West Suburban Forest Preserve Photo Extravaganza I ventured to Warrenville and took photos at both Blackwell and Warrenville Grove. It was a really beautiful sunny day, which made photographing a little harder than on an overcast day. When it is so sunny out, it is hard not to get your shadow in the shots! And it was so bright it was hard to see the screen on my camera when I was trying to focus an object.
Another thing I found frustrating was that all the plant life was pretty much the same as at Herrick, with a few exceptions. I guess that is to be expected, seeing as all three preserves are contained within a three mile radius. I think the next location I want to shoot is the Morton Arboretum in Lisle. As you can probably guess by the name of the place, there are lot of trees there. But if I can remember correctly from my third grade field trip, they had lots of different types of foliage. There's also this place called the Graue Mill in Oak Brook. Although I think I want to wait until the leave turn colors before I photograph there.
On a completely unreleated note, I start my second semester of grad school tomorrow. I am taking four classes this semester, each eight weeks long. In that regard, I am glad I don't have a job right now so I can focus on my school work. After looking at the syllabi (I had to look that one up!) I'm going to see if I can't get a head start on some of my projects and papers to get them out of the way before I do get a job.

Take 2!

Since it started raining at Herrick Lake the other day, I wasn't able to get pictures of everything I wanted. So the next day I went back and took a few more shots. I was lucky in that the sky was overcast that day as well, so the photos all look like they're from the same shoot. Take a look!

A..B...C...

I think from time to time on this blog I will post some of my favorite photography done by others. To start off, I want to introduce you all to Alphabet Photography. The company creates word art using different photos that take the form of letters. The company has even been featured in O Magazine! And for what its worth, custom prints are relatively inexpensive. I urge you all to check them out. Here is a sample print I created on their website.

How refreshing!

Well, today I started my photography adventure! It was an overcast day, allowing for the most perfect outdoor light. So, I went to the forest preserve near my house and took some photos. I think I am going to try and photograph all of the forest preserves in the area to begin with. Last fall I went to Matthiessen State Park and did some very mediocre photography there, I would love to go back and really give it a try. Please take a look at my new pictures and tell me what you think!

P.S. You can click on the pictures to see a larger view.

It started raining, and then... it started pouring!