I have survived...

...a cross country trip, another rejection and a birthday since the last time I posted. The quick trip to CA and back went very well and the girlies traveled without any problems. My 4th job interview resulted in another letter of 'sorry we have selected another candidate' and I have pushed off the hilltop and am officially over the hill. (This blog does not endorse a one size fits all hill and acknowledges that everyone's hilltop has its own age.)

In regards to my 4th rejection, this one didn't surprise me too much as I was pretty sure I blew it as soon as we hung up the phones. I hadn't allowed myself enough time to get in the proper frame of interview-mind and also had a head cold going on. Where I thought I might have an advantage with the phone interview as they could not judge my appearance, I negated by giving stupid answers. I have 2 remaining resumes out there and I'm anxious to hear if I qualify for an interview or not. I can't really complain though as I do have a job currently even if conditions aren't ideal and I don't have any insurance, I do still have a paycheck.

My  40th year was suppose to be my year of "Big Adventure" and I'm not sure I made it although I have had a few small adventures. As mentioned I have been job searching and had 4 interviews in the last 7 months, I flew to CA even if it was only for the night, my siblings have been transitioning into different states and jobs which have moved my youngest nieces further away and 2 of my nephews closer, I've experienced some spiritual growth with the confidence that there is more in store and I have cleared a lot of clutter out of my house. While not a Big Adventure it has been a good year and I'm looking forward to another one. Unless I find out I'm dying on Monday.

One of the draw back of working in small town libraries is that not many of them offer health insurance unless they are a city library in which they offer the same benefits as all their city workers receive. That is not the case for me. As such it has been over 12 years since I have gone to see a doctor. Well there have been a couple of conditions that I have been living with that are now becoming to big to ignore so I'm breaking into my saving and hoping the Doc I see will work with me and not bleed me dry. (Physically or financially) So we will see what happens but I hope there will be good news along with all the bad. Blessings to all and if I don't post again, Merry Christmas.

This is the great adventure...

...flying 2 kids across the country! It's still almost a month away but I'm already having dreams about everything that could go wrong. Here's the scoop, my sister and brother-in-law got jobs in CA. Naturally this means moving the whole family; beds, books and broomsticks. So how do 2 adults and 2 children under 10 go from Michigan to California?
Moving truck can hold belongings but doesn't come equipped with seating for 4 and sending one adult on the road by himself would cause major stress and sleepless nights for the whole family. The family budget can't afford to ship all the belongings while the family flies (current vehicles wouldn't make the trip) so what is the family to do?????
Enter the footloose and favorite Aunt who opened her mouth and suggested the adults drive out in the moving truck and then someone (probably her) could fly the girlies out after they are moved into their new house. So there it is! In less than a month I'm taking a 6 and a 9 year old to Detroit and flying off to San Jose. Now granted I've flown a few times before but never with children who are easily bored and one who has a tendency to get distracted and not stay close.
But this is one way to help my fellow man and the benefit of loving my family. The good news is that it will give me 2 extra weeks with my youngest nieces before they are no longer able to 'come over' to visit.
California here I come on an airplane wing and a prayer!

God sighting...

...just when I needed it. Okay here's the back story. I'm heading to Indiana for the weekend and I'm told there's suppose to be rain all the way :(
While traveling I'm listening to the audio book "Women Food and God". Something in the book got me thinking about my tendency to either try to earn love & acceptance by 'good behavior' (aka dieting/eating healthy) or to test the love by destructive behavior (aka bingeing) to prove I'm unworthy.
So I started praying aloud that God would remind me of how much He loved me (regardless of what i look like)and that I would recognize it when He did.
So there I was less than an hour from home, a steady drizzle has kept my wipers on slow delay when I realize its stopped and the sun is shining. "Hey God you gave me sunshine to travel in you sure answered prayer fast."
As I dig out my sunglasses my disc ends and I pop it out of the player to hear the song "Your love is amazing, steady and unchanging..." WOW
No rain the rest of the trip even though I saw a lot of puddles the sun kept shining right up until the last 30 minute and then it stayed dry and God gave my another sign of His love.

Change isn't happening as fast as I hoped...

...but that doesn't mean it isn't coming. During my vacation this month I traveled to Indiana and interviewed for a Library Director's job. I liked the library, I liked the staff, I even liked the area and I think they liked me but I still didn't get the job. I knew going into the interview that according to policy and circumstances I wouldn't be able to leave my current position until the end of July beginning of August and they needed someone ASAP. I think that was the main problem (but I guess it could be they didn't like the way I part my hair). For not being part of the job searching market it was actually a nice chance to get my feet wet and brush up on my interviewing skills. I kept telling myself that it didn't matter whether I got the job or not since I am currently employed and I'm just looking for an advancement in my career but let me tell you it didn't matter.
When I got the email saying they selected someone else I still cried a little and felt depressed. I took off for a day at the beach the very next day, and there is definitely some healing quality to watching and listening to water as it rolls onto the sand. (If I hadn't been so depressed maybe I would have done a better job with my sunscreen application and not burned so badly) Having my hopes crushed Being disappointed has never been easy for me so of course this littler foray of emotional plummeting resulted in not losing weight over the last 2 weeks after an initial drop of 6 pounds. I've got to find my mo-jo again and start being excited about the opportunities of life whether they are here in Lakeview or some other little town in the great USA.

Here are some pics from my lovely day at the beach in Ludington, MI

 Sand so clean it squeaked

 The Badgar

Following the Leader Statues