8/30/07

Hopefully getting somewhere!

Well, after about a month delay, it looks like my grandmother's house is finally selling. She passed away a year ago this September, and after many months of debating, and cleaning, garage sales & craigslist, the house finally went up for sale this summer. It's been in escrow since July. And finally it looks like the buyer has had all the loan approvals come through and I might be on my way of getting out of debt! Small step towards my goal. I've been working on getting out of debt for a few years, but kept creeping back into it. But not this time. Time to grow up, stop saying "oh, I'm young! I deserve some fun!" And time to start thinking about OTHER goals. Just glad to get a little help to jump-start me. :o)

8/28/07

Back to the grind

This is the second week of classes. I was pleasantly surprised last week when we went around the room, offered brief info on ourselves - where we worked, if we were new to the program, and if we worked for the private or public sector. There was an incredible mix of folks. There was a lieutenant from the Santa Monica PD, a realtor, an HR manager, people who worked for the city of LA and surrounding communities, and even someone who just literally moved from Ecuador.

The class is 4 hours long, which is quite daunting. Luckily the teacher is great, and we get a few breaks and some group discussion time to break up the block. In order to do well, I have to seriously maintain the homework. When I went after my bachelor degree a few years ago, I wasn't the best when it came to keeping up with the reading. Luckily I was an excellent note-taker, and that helped me do quite well on the tests. For this class, there are not tests. There's a term paper due at the end of the class, along with an oral presentation regarding your topic for the paper, and smaller class discussions that occur each week. I have a lot going on outside of school right now, but if I keep at it, I know I'll be fine.

Obviously taking time out to blog doens't exactly fit with the school work focus of tonight, but I needed a break. Reading a chapter on politics and charts and everything is a bit overwhelming. My bachelor's degree didn't quite fall in this related spectrum. Actually, it was pretty far from it. I'm learning a whole different world, but I'm excited to open myself up to the new opportunities that will be available once I'm done with this program. And, I can't lie, the (hopefully) huge salary increase. A girl can hope, right?

8/15/07

Just a week left!

Well, only one week till I start classes again. I've got everything ready to go, including all the reading I have to do before I get to class next week. I don't think I've had to do work to prep for the first day. But oh well, can't complain with just one class to attend a week :o)

I also purchased a new laptop this week. Macbook. Quite interesting. I'm still getting used to the different features and what not. I love the photobooth application. It's a lot of fun. Tomorrow J and I head to Colorado for the weekend to visit our friends. I'm excited! We have a lot of tentative plans, and hopefully most (if not all) of them occur.

In following up with the family situation that has recently arouse with my dad & stepmom, I've talked to my sister about her thoughts. I'm a bit frustrated with her at the current moment. After she returned from Europe, he took her out to lunch to talk to her about the recent turn of events. He says the meeting went well. She called me hysterical on the phone. Apparently it brought up all the past thoughts and emotions she's been holding on to since her childhood.

I don't have the same memories and thoughts as she does from our childhood. Things were a bit different for the two of us. Part of the differences are the cause for the recent things she's been going through. But what makes me the most frustrated is the fact that she has all this going on, and won't tell him. She won't say anything. Why? Not sure. But I know it's not healthy. I know this will come up in the future, especially if/when the baby comes home to their house for good. I haven't been able to figure out a good way for her to understand why she needs to talk to him, but I'm still working on it...

8/7/07

What happened?

With the recent turn of events, and separate conversations with J, Shortie, and MJ, I wonder, how's everything changing so fast? How can I better prepare myself for all that's going on, when I don't have control over everything? If I indulge my thoughts and ponder on them long enough, and explore the emotions that correspond, what will the outcome be? Will it help? Will it make things worse? Can I do anything about it?

For most, no. Now that serious talks have emerged about the increasingly possible adoption with my dad and step-mom, it's a big deal. I'm 25, my dad's 51, and my stepmom is 48. Now throw a one year old in the mix. (Ok, side note, obviously I won't be involved in the day to day, but I'm speaking overall.) Imagine for a moment you're living your life, have a serious relationship, going to obtain your master's, and one (or both) your parents tell you they've decided they'd like to start all over.

Not exactly the type of news you'd like to hear. I met the little girl. She's adorable, perfect angel. But how will things be in 5 years? 10 years? 20 years?? I don't want to get too caught up with the question "how will this change my life" because it's selfish. I'm old enough to be on my own. But there are some situations that will definately arise where there will be some internal dialouge occuring. Like the first time she says "dada." That's going to be hard.

I've never thought about all those type of situations. I guess I never thought it'd come up. I know they've wanted to adopt. I just thought by now, they'd have discarded it. In a few years, I'll have my own family, but try explaining how their aunt is only a few years older than them. We wouldn't be shy about the adoption. My dad has made that clear. But I know that they can provide a fabulous life for this little girl. Sure, it'll be different, and in some ways better, than what I grew up with. But I like what I had to go through. It's made me independent, determined, and self-sufficient. A lot more than I can say for others my age. Some are still struggling to "find themselves" and think that a baby, or marriage, or re-living their "college" years will get them to a better place. But it won't. If you haven't figured out the direction of your life by time you're 25, there's not that many years left to wake up and decide. Because maybe by time you find it, you're 35, or 40, and then what? Then you'll be in the same spot as my dad and step mom. Learning that one thing you possibly wanted in life isn't a possibility anymore.

But for now, I just have to wait and see what will happen with my life, and my family's life. This will impact all of us, but most importantly, hers.

8/2/07

Man vs. Wild - fake???

This is upsetting:

Discovery's Wild Storm from the Hollywood Reporter

Diaper duty.....23 years later

My dad and step-mom signed up to be foster parents many years ago. More seriously the process came about 3 years ago. They've gone through all the interviews and classes and have "baby proofed" their house. But, nothing's really come up from it.

Today my dad emails me that they got a call yesterday informing them that they will need to take custody (temporary) of a 1 year old baby girl. Apparently the foster parents have a family crisis about 3 hours south and the foster agency is working on getting the baby reunited with the birth mom - so I guess the kid needs to stay local.

My younger sister is 23 1/2. So, it's been a LOOOOONG time since my dad has had to deal with babies (for more than an afternoon). My step-mom doesn't have any kids (hence the idea of foster/adoption) and it should really be an experience for them. My dad has already told me he's not doing diapers, and he's sleeping in the guest room. I'm going over there on Saturday and it should be filled with a lot of stories!! I wish them the best, but can't imagine how hard it is to be thrown into this sort of situation (basically) overnight.

 

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