who wears short shorts (and wears them well)?

Life's too short to be modest. Today, Tim and I went on the Short Shorts ride for the first time. He also picked me up earlier and gave me my first smart car ride to my first time at the Bakery Bar. I will do all of these things again. :)

beer buds

I met two co-workers, their brewing significant others and Andrew today for happy hour at Beer Mongers. We then went to the Commons Brewery for a beer tasting (it was my first time). Sampling is nice because I have a hard time making up my mind usually but everybody else appreciated the difference in the beers. Eh, give me a rum and coke with a splash of grenadine and I'll be just fine.

pedalpalooza 2012 - the kick off ride

Last year, this was the only ride I went on (but actually missed) due to getting shingles right afterwards. This year, the pedalpalooza kick-off ride only the beginning and no contagious disease is gonna stop me!

The pic above is from Bike Portland's website (he's such a good photographer). I gave Jonathan my first bike interview yesterday before the ride started. Here's a link to his article and pictures. There was maybe 250-300 people riding last night. I love this so much! We had a great time taking over lanes, biking over the Steel Bridge as the bikes with speakers provided a nice soundtrack. Afterwards, we ended up at VeloCult (my first time there) for the after-party.

The next three weeks are gonna kick ass!

highbrown eyebrow

I got my haircut today at Bishops and, for the first time ever, the person cutting my hair asked me if I would like her to trim my eyebrows. Have I gotten to that age? My eyebrows are generally pretty faint but I think I may have had one or two wild hairs in there. Odd but memorable so I tipped more. I like it when new things happen to me and I don't have to always seek them out.

four pac men enter, one pac man leaves

Today's new thing was just pure fun. I had to head downtown to deposit the check for my car so I decided to head to Ground Kontrol on the way back. While I was there, I saw they had Pac Man Battle Royale. Sophia had told me about playing this game in Vegas so I immediately let her know that G.K. had it. She said that her and her boyfriend would meet me there. In the meantime, I played three other Pinball games and read some DMZ at Powells while I waited. Out of three pinball games (Simpsons, Lord of the Rings and Star Trek), I liked Star Trek the best. However, it didn't compare to Pac Man Battle Royale!

Also, I used the Ground Kontrol bathrooms for the first time since the renovation. They are now my favorite bathrooms in town.

What else?
On the bike ride down, I took the Eastside Esplanade. A fire boat was spraying water in several direction in the river, including on the waterfront. I had to get to the bank before it closed though so I decided I could ride through the water. I was instantly soaked. It was like the rain not that long ago except it was gross river water. I biked a little extra to dry off.

Before hitting the arcade, we went to Kenny & Zukes for my first visit. I can't say that it was wonderful but it was interesting enough to bring me back some day. I also went to Super Supplements and was pleased to find that they have Dean's glucosamine treats there cheaper than the store.

AND BAM, I'm caught up with my blog!!!!!! I didn't think it would happen again. Fortunately, Monday was REALLY slow at work. :)

moby's last voyage

I sold my car today!

I let the insurance go on it two weeks ago because I don't need it insured in the summertime. I have been toying with the idea of getting rid of it but I didn't want to do any upkeep on it to get it in selling condition and then have to work to get someone to buy it. However, my friend Michael had heard through another friend that I was thinking of selling my Lincoln and he asked me about it. I gave him a good deal on it and he took it. Today, I drove it for it's last trip to his house. I brought Dean with me because I think Dean loved the car more than I did.

Really, this was a very reliable car. It never gave me any problems whatsoever when it came to starting. I just don't need a car, especially not a car this large. I may look at getting another vehicle sometime down the road but for now, I'm just going to enjoy being carfee which is almost carefree.

What else?
Justin, Jennifer and I met for drinks at Whiskey Soda Lounge. They make the best whiskey sours I've ever had but they don't have a lot of vegetarian options for food. 

bugsy the musical

Today, I went to Raven's school's play. They put on a musical number called "Bugsy Malone Jr" as part of a program developed through the NBC show, Smash.Otherwise, I guess they don't even have a music or theater program. It's so sad that the arts aren't given more attention, especially considering how much these kids seemed to enjoy doing this. It was a good play and the perfect length for a kid's play, clocking maybe an hour.

What else?
While waiting to go to the play, Andrew and I biked around the Mississippi area, heading to Marine Drive/Blue Lake bike path for a bit of exercise before returning to Mississippi Studios for some food.

baddest on the block

There's a house just down the street from our house. It's a rental and it's always been kind of unkempt. I used to take Dean by there when he wanted to eat weeds (for his digestion) until a few weeks ago when the hipsters that rent there cut all of the weeds down. They also tilled up the yard, put some stones around it and made it into a cute garden. My initial reaction was, shit, now we're the most unruly yard in the immediate area.

Our yards have taken over. The grass/weeds are really really long and there are new types of plants popping up all of the time. I swore that I'd work on it after I finished with my paper (and saw the Avengers). Today, I started to work on it (for the first time) but it kind of just looks like I gave the yard a bad hair cut. It's too long to mow over at this point so it needs a weed eater. I borrowed one from Ashes and took care of a small section of the yard but then it started to rain.

We're in for a stretch of rainy weather so I imagine that the plants will just continue to grow. Dean loves running through the tall weeds but I'd love to just cut it all back except for the rose bushes and the irises. Maybe I'll have the ambition to do so when the weather gets better.

my reward system

 

I made a deal with myself a while ago. I promised myself that I would not see The Avengers until I finished my final paper. The paper's not due until next week but the last showing for The Avengers at any local independent theater was tonight so I was pressed to get it done before today. I pretty much finished it on Tuesday and did the final touches yesterday quick before going to class. I turned it in and now I was free to enjoy my movie!

Before the film, I went to Sock Dreams as an additional reward and then to Stickers, pictured above, for some food and drink. The movie was pretty much everything I was expecting and more. Not only was it the ultimate superhero movie but it was written and directed by Joss Whedon who can do no wrong in my book!

stumbling blocks

I don't have a picture for my new thing today but the above pic is symbolic of how I feel right now. Actually, I'm a lot more pissed than that but it's at least an adequate representation of my job situation. Near the end of last year, one of my clients, Jane (that's not her name but for privacy's sake, I don't want to use her real name or initials) stated she wanted to learn how to cashier. Jane has attendance issues though so I told her that cashiers have to be reliable and I would like her to work on her attendance before proceeded with cashiering. We've never had a client cashier before so it's kind of a big deal.

Jane's attendance improved slightly but she never really hit the perfect attendance mark. In March, she told me that she was going through a different vocational rehab program to get a community job. She's quite capable of working in the community so I figured it was a sure thing. I did the cashier test with her and she passed it with some assistance. In helping her take the test and come up with the answers, I really felt that I was helping make a difference for her. I then set it up for her to come to the official cashier training that all cashiers have to attend. The HR department came and talked to me, concerned about her ability to operate a register successfully. I told them that she would always be supervised while on a register and they finally agreed.

Jane passed the cashier training with no problem and we did a trial run on a register in April but she couldn't remember her cashier password. I contacted our cashier trainer to get her password reset but he never got back to me. I persisted and finally just cornered him in his cubicle. He stated that HR didn't have her classified in the system as a cashier. She was in the system as a client and clients haven't been cashiers. I then went to HR and asked them if I could get clearance to be a cashier and she could cashier with me under my classification. They stated that it was a fault in the system but she could be put in daily if I contacted the trainer and had her put in each day I trained with her. The system would then reset itself and her profile in the system would be deleted after that day. Then came the contract.

A guy from our business office brought my direct supervisor a contract that I was to sign every time I cashiered with her. It stated that I would be responsible for her register and that if she was off on her till or if she attempted to use the register to defraud the company (?), I would face the disciplinary action up to and including termination. I wasn't happy the idea but I really wanted Jane to be able to cashier so I signed the contract. She did an awesome job on the register as I went out each week and worked with her on there for 30-60 minutes at a time. It quickly became the thing she looked forward to most and also it was the most rewarding part of my job. Plus I found out that the other vocational rehab program didn't think that Jane was ready so I was determined to prove them wrong and help get her ready for community employment.

Before our accreditation last week, my big boss emailed me and my direct supervisor, wanting to know if Jane was cashiering and then wanting to make sure I brought it up to the surveyors which I did. However, the idea of the contract didn't sit well with me. I didn't understand why I needed to put my job on the line in order to provide training for my client. Wasn't that my job after all? Isn't that our mission? So I talked to the HR director about it today. He said the contract was silly and even questioned why Jane wasn't paid a cashier's wage. He brought in another HR person to answer that question for us. The other HR person said he also saw the contract and stated that he wouldn't have signed it if he was me. The director said he would revise the contract to say that I would just familiarize myself with the cash control procedure and I would make sure Jane was familiar with it and I would supervise her on the register. Then he said I could continue to cashier with her even though he hadn't finalized the contract.

Twenty minutes later, my big boss calls me. She's been out sick for the past two months but she's been staying in touch via e-mail. However, today's the first day she's called me in two months so I assumed it was about Jane. Sure enough, she said that she was just following up with some business and she seemed to remember that I had a client that cashiered. I guess she forgot the e-mail she sent to me right before the accreditation. I filled her in then on the whole story although I had been filling the whole department in each week at the staff meetings. She then asked about the contract, saying, "I hear that you have to sign something that says you'll give away your first born." I knew that the HR director had to have called her but I told her that I just talked to him and he said he would revise the contract. She said that all sounded good and let it go at that. Ten minutes later, she sent out an e-mail to everyone in my department and all of the stores' district managers, stating that, if they have a client that cashiers, they should refrain from having them cashier until she does some "analysis" on the job.

So I'm pissed. I've gone through a hell of a lot to make sure that this could happen. I've jumped through multiple hoops, talked to each department but marketing, bragged about it to our surveyors, and had to put my job on the line to get it done and now, it's suspended. Just. Like. That. The hardest part was the it was something Jane was very proud of herself for doing and something I really loved doing as well. I had other clients that were interested in it as well but now nobody can do it. I feel like if I hadn't complained about having to put my job on the line each time by signing some stupid contract, Jane would still be able to cashier.

Moreover, I feel like my job just got dumbed-down. We passed our accreditation and now we can stop trying to excel and go back to providing the bare bones of mediocrity in order to ensure our non-profit status so we can continue to make a profit. Sorry for the long post but I wanted to properly express my frustrations because I believe that it's important to keep this fire lit under me. Otherwise, what's the point?

What else?
Yesterday, I spent 9+ hours writing my final paper for my counseling class. I didn't finish yesterday although I got eight pages done before I figuratively hit the wall and had to stop to watch some Beavis and Butthead and drink some wine to kill my exhausted brain cells. However, I pretty much finished it today!!!

ferris wheel on my day off

Andrew and I rode the ferris wheel and the gigantic swing thing that whips you over the Morrison Bridge. Silly fun!

kiss the rain

It was one of those moments that I will treasure. We were biking back from the St John's Bridge as another thunderstorm rolled upon us. Thunder, lightning, wind, and then rain. Lots and lot of rain. I've never felt like I have biked through solid water before today. We were in northwest Portland and we tried to keep going but had to stop and I found an awning in front of a closed store. We were cold and wet and overwhelmed by the weather but we had each other. It was one of those things I would dream about as I watched an afternoon full of soap operas when I was a kid. Sigh.

What else?
On a side note, we stopped at Proper Eats for most kick-ass Tempeh Reuben ever.

fireworks: man vs nature

The Rose Fest fireworks show happened tonight. Andrew and I went down there with Victory and Ashes. It was Andrew's first time going to see them. We went really close to the water's edge and watched them without many other people around. I think a lot of people were scared off because there was a thunderstorm just a few hours earlier. Those are so rare here that I bet a lot of people just stayed indoors. It was my first thunderstorm in Muffin HQ. I hope we get more of them this year!

What else?
On Wednesday 5/23, we finished our accreditation process. I remember last time we were accredited, I was thrilled with the results. This year, I couldn't have really cared less. I don't think that it's a true survey or that we had to answer for much.

On Thursday, 5/24, Andrew and I went to the Caldera Pub House where I had the Tabor Salad for the first time! Sooooo good.

3D for free

Dominic asked me today if I was still in love jail. For those of you that don't know, love jail is when your relationship isolates you from your friends. If anything, I've been in a love jail with Dean for the past 10 years. I don't think that Andrew and I are at this point, nor will we get there. He's pretty social and likes my friends. However, I have been less than social with some of my friends lately due to time constraints so I decided to set aside some Dom time today and go to Men in Black 3D with him today since he had free screener passes. All it cost me was time and that I got to spend with Dom and it was even a 3D movie. That's like $13 or so. Sweet!

I couldn't get a picture of it all though. They told us to put our cameras and cell-phones in the car. They checked bags and even waved metal detectors at us. So, since I don't have a picture of the movie, here's a random shot to Sir Elton John, performing Pinball Wizard.

What else?
We're having our CARF accreditation at work. This is the second time I've been through this in this position and the fourth time I've been through it with the company so I'm not really all that nervous or concerned. On Monday 5/21, I went with the surveyor and a district manager to my stores and stopped at a sushi place (which was new to me) on the way. Today, we went to two other stores and stopped at Sweet Betty's in Gresham. It was a surprisingly awesome place. I'd love to go back there...but it's in Gresham.