Eight Hours! :)

I worked a full day of work! :D For the first time in almost a year I worked a full eight hour work day. It was fantastic! I earned money!!! I had fun, I was productive, I only screwed up a handful or two of times...lol, and I earned money! Lol, clearly I'm very thrilled about the money I earned. Granted, I earned about 50% more last summer for every hour I worked but somehow, I don't even really care right now. Sure, more money would be freaking fantastic, but last summer I needed money, this summer I need money; it's all about what you need in the moment and in the upcoming future. I am not so very desperate that I need to take on two jobs; however, I do have another offer still out on the table... I guess we'll just have to wait and see what comes of that.
So today I woke up at 5:58 am and then got out of bed at 6:20; I was mildly lazy but this is not a customary waking up time for me ok! I usually save this god forsaken hour for immense excitement (ie: vacations, dates, once-in-a-lifetime sunrises, etc.) but today I was exceptionally proud of myself. I mean, let's consider: last year I had 8am classes; I wasn't out of bed til 7:30 maybe 7:40, and not to class til 7:59 or so. Today I worked my hours from 7am til 3pm; I amaze myself sometimes ok :)
lol I am really quite cheery right now. Today was superb. I've never really had an encounter with a police officer, but today, as on Sunday, our local Corvallis Police Department came in for a little visit. I was actually really quite fond of the one dude, he speaks French and really is quite enjoyable. I guess maybe I was prejudice from where I come from, but I was not expecting the joyous and really, amicable personality of my clientel. He came in because some poop face stole something from Starbucks and so he wanted to see if we'd recognize the dude. He stays and chats and gets updates on business, and really, it's a nice reprieve from the busy hubbub.
And boy was it busy! We sold out of most of our inventory by like ten thirty I'd estimate! That's amazing! I for sure thought we'd close way early, but some people stayed and enjoyed the atmosphere and sipped coffee til only about an hour before closing time. We still got out right at the time we'd normally just be closing the doors, so all in all, for my first weekday shift, a great experience!
And, another baguette to take home for me! :) Yay! And at luncheon time, my boss let me have half of a left over quiche Lorraine. So scrumptious! It was heavenly, I ate it cold and it was still one of the best quiches of my life! I think our lil chef/ baker is "doué" to be sure!

By the by, if you are ever in Corvallis, you should TOTALLY come to the place, the pastries and such are delicieux! And then you'd get to see lil' ol' me in a cute little French pastry outfit. Super cute.

Here's the link to their webpage, just in case you're as such intrigued to go and peek..

http://www.lepatissier.net/

Floating the Willamette

So school does not start for me for about forty more days....pretty exciting right?!? Yes! I am pretty excited to have the "Indian Summer" as I've always called it back home. I kinda wish I could enjoy the summer time weather though...I think this gray-ness needs to fade away pretty gosh darn swiftly now; it's been carrying on now for quite a few days. Not cool. For the last week or so here in Corvallis, it's been a "severe weather warning" climate. However, it was for the HOT weather we were experiencing. It was fabulous, weather in the high nineties and even some 100 degree days
Saturday we took full advantage of this little surplus heat and rafted the river. Or rather, floated the river. For $2! It was great. the Bi-Mart in Corvallis was one of the only stores around that had any summer pool toys left in stock, and they were cheap and fun. I got a hot pink one :) partially because the rest were green and partially because I was the only girl and it was the only pink one and there were just enough for our group... So we park my car at the north end of the river and drive to south town where we parked the other car and started our float. I was the one who thought of this adventure, but none of us had any experience in this vendetta...So I approached a truck load of guys who had inter tubes about the size of a big rig truck...and inquired about plopping in and pulling out points along the river. Then, we just got right in, with only some slight shrieks at the brisk water and how swiftly it was flowing.
Richard and Ben plunged right in and got a little ahead of me and Aaron; we took some excessive amounts of time getting situated atop our floats. After some incredible paddling and maneuvering, we eventually caught up and floated in a tandem layout for a bit. All in all, very fun adventure which I would definitely repeat, but with less paddling to catch up and more relaxing and getting tanned :) I didn't even get burnt! I think it was the best $2 I'll spend all summer and I got to be with my friends at the same time. I think a huge group or a couple could go and have a blast. I would not however recommend it as a solo trip. Oh! But next time I do want to stop at one of the little islets along the way and sit out maybe and people/float watch. It looked like a fun little rest and would definitely elongate the adventure. The float lasted about an hour and was very easy and immensely rejuvenating on a hot day. So, another summer success story!

Rainy Day Accomplishments

Today was a rainy day for the middle of August; quite unseasonable. But then again, this is Oregon. The thunder and lightening storms the past couple of days have been spectacular. The evening sky is just completely lit up, and the thunder is horrendous.
For my first Monday being employed, I actually didn't have to work...kind of nice, kind of bland. I really needed to get out and be active today; however, sleeping in until about noon puts a rather large crimp in that goal. Instead I took a rather lazy day and talked on the phone, which does not help the minutes, :/ and then strolled around to the store and back with some friends. Pretty much the only thing I can say I accomplished today was I had a full on nutritious and fabulous meal for lunch. I was quite jealous after hearing my friend Caitlin had a splendid meal for her lunch (she's two hours ahead,) so I tried to be as creative as possible when it came time for me to actually create my food.
I made chicken tenders and cut up some mildly old bread for home made croûtons and used the toaster oven to bake those items. At the store I bought bag lettuce, a favorite of mine from Rachael Ray of course, and I really wanted to find some Honey Dijon dressing, alas, there was none to be found! So I ended up with a sweet Raspberry Vinaigrette...it was on sale and really quite delicious. Then I cut up my Cornichon pickles, cut up the chicken fingers, and added the croûtons and such into the salad. And if I may be so bold, I really had QUITE the luncheon :D I may even repeat for dinner :O


So, to kind of take three steps back, I recently got employed :D I am so overjoyed! I have been searching and searching for eons now and while I may not have my dream job or even an ideal one, I do believe it's the right choice for right now. I work at the cutest lil' bakery in Corvallis, OR. It's called Le Patissier and the owners are just super nice and the atmosphere makes me so happy. AND I get to use my French, which is the primary reason I had inquired about working there. Other than my large need for a pay check of course... It's on Circle Blvd, between Highland and 9th St. So it's too far from my house to walk, but when I get my bike that should probably suffice for transportation; and if not, then I'm not exactly using a whole lot of gas should I need to drive there on occasion.