This week I've been thinking a lot about my life, it's routines, where I am RIGHT NOW. So I decided I needed to, without prompt from the scrapbooking community, but because I feel like it's a pivitol point in my life, document a day. I didn't chose today because it held any significance, or because I had grand plans for it. I just chose it because I was motivated to do so. I had forgotten about work cupcake breaks and lunch plans and doggie doctor visits and all the other things this day would hold, but it turned out to be a perfect representation of what happens to my days and how little down time I really have.
Marli and I have started a new routine of walking twice a day. As part of her recovery from TPLO surgery, we have had to slowly increase her activity and will continue to do so until it's fully healed. So that means we are up at 6:15AM to get 20-30 minutes of walking in. I'm not really sure if it's harder for me or for her to get up that early.....but once she knows she's going on a walk she gets SO excited. And I've noticed it starts me off in a better mood every day....and right now, I'll take anything to make that happen.
After a week of travelling and another week of being sick, it's been the perfect week to start getting into the routine of taking BART to work. $18.00 a day for parking downtown, or $5.00 to take BART. I mean, it's really a no brainer. What I like about BART is not having to do too much. I get to stand or sit listening to music and catching up on social media feeds. I get to read articles that I normally wouldn't have time for and I get to listen to new stuff that Pandora brings my way. It's a moment of calm between the hectic routine of getting ready for work and a hectic day of work ahead.
I work in Uptown, Oakland. I moved to Oakland about four or five years ago and immediately fell in love with The Town. The culture, the people, the whole Oakland vibe. The company I work for recently moved to Uptown from Downtown and I love it. We have amazing views of the SF skyline and Oakland rooftops. I love that you can see the Port of Oakland and the At At's. There are also far too many good places to eat around here, or grab a cocktail, which I did often when I was working with my bestie. Good grief do I miss her face.
A perk of the job is the yummy snacks we have on site, and they are even healthy. Since I've been trying to think a little more about my health this week, the options have been pretty ideal. My coworker suggested the pickles and pretty much, I'm in love.
I got to have lunch for the first time with one of my coworkers. She's super adorable and has lived in many places in her lifetime (four countries!) What I've learned in the last couple of years is to be slow in getting to know people. Take your time, there's no need to rush. Her and I have several things in common and I look forward to more outings with her!
We went to Parlour for lunch where I unexpectedly ran into one of my photographers from Through the Lens. Turns out he bartends there. Randomness. But it added to the conversation of the lunch hour and got me inspired once again for a project I'm slowly putting together. (Shhhhh......we will talk more about that later!) My coworker ordered the margarita pizza with arugula and I got a BLAT, minus the T but add the cheese, please. Lunch was delicious and I took half of my sandwich to go. We finished our drinks, her taking the extra water in her water bottle so as not to waste it, and headed back to the office.
On the way back to the office we passed a homeless man. I'm not much for giving money to "beggars" but I am okay with sharing my food, especially if I know I have a house full of food for dinner. So I offered it up. Before he would take it, though, he questioned me. "What is it?" I said, "It's half a BLT". He said, "Is it Spicy?". I said, "Nope" with a bit of a chuckle. He shrugged and said ok. I mean, just because you can't chose where your next meal is from doesn't mean you have to suffer through what you wouldn't be able to eat, right?
Sometimes when I'm trying to get in the zone at work, I play scrapbooking process videos. There's something about hearing the mundane voice of a scrapbooker that keeps me calm and helps me focus on the tasks at hand. I believe that's Kelly Purkey's process video of one of her project life spreads. What's also visible is the post it I hold on to from my bestie. She left that on my screen maybe around March of this year (she gave me the post it pad for my birthday) and I spent months trying to figure out who wrote the lovely little "Drive by Hugging" note. She finally confessed.
Today was our monthly "cupcake break", which we switched to Ice Cream instead. While we were walking, I noticed that a paperclip had hijacked a ride via Danielle's sweater. Before I could take it off I made her stop so I could take a photo of it.
We went to Little Giant Ice Cream on Telegraph where the girls got "Dirty South" which had whisky cooked in the caramel...and was delicious but I couldn't pass up the Mexican Rocky Road which had cocoa flavoring in it. It was really good and I'm glad we made it. It was also nice spending more time with coworkers. Who you work with and how you get along with those coworkers makes such a difference in your work experience. These ladies are strong, motivated and funny....just all around great company.
At 3:40PM I had to head home to pick up Marli for her first day of Physical Therapy. We had tried to go the week before, but due to an injury unrelated to her surgery, we rushed off to the vet and the next day had a claw removed. (Don't worry, it'll grow back!) So a hop back on BART, pick up the car, pick up the dog and off to the vet.
Marli has been spending quite a bit of time in and out of the vet offices and puppy care and has started to get nervous any time we go to an office. I knew, though, that she would love this visit. As you can see from this photo, she couldn't even sit still. Once she was off the leash she was a mad woman running bully circles around the place. This was after her walk in the water treadmill. That was an interesting experience for the both of us, but she handled it like a champ.
As you can see, she was pretty stoked to give me lots of face kisses post visit. Sometimes it just happens and I have to let it.
I didn't have much time when I got home. I made a pit stop to drop Marli off before heading to the city. As you can see below, Kodi doesn't let me have much alone time. This is a common, very routine scene in the house. Also, I don't really mind.
After taking care of the kids - food, box cleanings, medications - I headed to San Francisco. I was exhausted but I really wanted to make this commitment, mostly because I said I would be there and I really value experiencing photographers in all realms of the community.
I couldn't help but snap a cliche photo of the Bay Bridge. It was amazing how the weather changed so dramatically leaving Oakland and heading to the city.
I was late for the critique group, but they were chatting it up and hadn't even started, so I didn't miss anything. It was amazing seeing the work of art of this group. Much more seasoned photographers than I've been around with a true focus on the "art" of photography. I'm so so glad I didn't miss out on this meet up.
Finally at 9:34PM I was able to head home and finally end my day. I was exhausted by all the activities today.
Oh wait, just kidding. I still had one more stop before I got to go home. I used to have a pet sitting business with my mom, WAY back in the day, and still occasionally take up a client or two. I got to hang out with this kid for the last two weeks, and this was my final visit with the little cutie pie. I gave him some brushing, cleaned his box, watered the plants, swept the floor, fed him and took out the garbage. THEN I got to go home and start unwinding for the day.
When I got home, chores still needed to get done. So I rolled up my sleeves, sucked it up, and did the dishes. So. Many. Dishes.
And at 11:14PM I finally opened my mail. I had decided a couple of weeks ago that I was going to put together a travel album for 2016 and it was going to go in a 9x12 album. Which of course only Studio Calico makes.....I'm not a big Studio Calico fan, but I wanted the albums so that's how that goes.....
At 11:39PM I finally was able to put on my PJs and crawl into bed. In case you've read this far and already forgotten, I was up at 6:15AM this morning.....Yea.
Between the crazy busy I've been at work, Marli's surgery and Kodi's illness, things have been very stressful. Emotionally, physically and financially. Reflecting on this day, it shows me how much of a mix of things I go through on a daily basis. Overall my life is really stable, free of unnecessary drama, and calm. I love knowing what I've achieved and the awesome people I have in my life, having moved to a stronger place and being more selective with those I give my time to. On the other hand, life happens. There will always be people/fuzzies that you care about that will go through things that will hit your heart strings. But there are so many good times that those are what I need to remember.
So I've been trying to focus on those goods. Through the Lens, home ownership, the material things I can continue to have because of the job I work so hard on. The dreams I've achieved because of my dedication and motivation to pull through the rough times, knowing that working through them gets me to where I want to be in a most healthy way.
I'm in love, and I'm loved. Romantically, platonically, by family, friends, and four legged kids. Life is good. Hard, yet fulfilling. Full of signs that keep me going to the next day, the next venture, and the next dream.
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