so it's been a little while since i updated this thing, mainly because i haven't had a picture to post with this new entry!! but figured i'd just broadcast what's been going on the past few months and then stick a picture in here whenever i get around to taking/finding one...
so for those of you i've horribly neglected over the fall (i'm so sorry!!), i actually took the plunge and moved to austin back in november, a few weeks before thanksgiving. i figured it was as good a place to be as any other, and since i seem to have a need for instability in my life, why not get used to a brand new place?! of course, i've been here quite a few times over the past two years, but it's still taking a little time to adjust to living in TEXAS, particularly given that i never thought i'd leave the east coast. how some things change....
since i've been here, i've been working on the job search and trying to focus on what direction i'd like my career (haha) to take... so far a sampling of jobs that interest me range from marketing and pr to event planning to research and advocacy...all of which means, in a nutshell, that i still don't know what i want to do. but it's okay, because at least i know WHERE i want to be for the moment, and austin is a fun place to figure out all these important life-changing issues. at least i won't lack for live music or a cool bar scene during my search!
in all seriousness though, if it hadn't been for the holidays and lots of people giving me pep talks every once in a while, i probably would've slid into mild depression, considering the number of resumes i've sent out compared to the responses i've received (like 100:1). job searching can be so frustrating and definitely takes a toll on the self-esteem. i'm hoping now that people are back at work from christmas and new year, hr responses will pick up and i'll be flooded with calls and emails for interviews!
in the meantime, i've been trying to keep myself busy in between looking for jobs: working part-time with mark and his dad at pioneer cycling tours and pioneer golf, volunteering at ten thousand villages (an awesome non-profit fair trade store with the mission to assist artisans in third world countries), and reading a lot (takes me back to my high school days!).
thanksgiving was a lot of fun, and mark's mom is a super cook who does amazing things with sweet potatoes, squash, stuffing, and turkey... i was fortunate enough to sample her dishes three times over the past two months!! christmas was very relaxing and peaceful, with mark's brother stephen making a trip back to austin from vietnam, and i got to meet him for the very first time on christmas eve! a few days later, my sister flew into town to hang out for a few days, which was really good for me, not being able to spend the holidays with my own family this year. she and i had a great time driving all over town (helped me figure out my way around better!), shopping, eating, and watching movies (although she usually fell asleep about 10 minutes into them). it was nice to be able to share my new life with her, and i'm so glad we got to spend some precious time together.... gets harder and harder the older we get, so i'm learning to appreciate these few moments we have!
as soon as gloria left, mark's cousins from england and scotland landed here, so we spent the week between christmas and new year's with them, touring around austin: texas state museum, zilker park, 6th street, ut campus, etc. and of course, they were here for the big national championship rose bowl game...which texas won!!!! was a very exciting week, beginning with new year's eve on 6th street and wrapping up with a historic national title for the longhorns! lots of bbq, beautiful warm weather, lounging about on lake austin, playing with the dogs, and just general relaxing before returning to the real world...what more could we ask for?!
so that's the news for now... i'll post some pics of my new place hopefully soon, so stay tuned... which reminds me, must get my camera fixed! here's wishing you all a happy and healthy 2006!
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