jobeek's blog

Yay, yay and YAY!

Wonderful news for me, I get to stay part time for much longer! As August draws to a close, I knew my part time days here at work were numbered. September  marks the beginnings of going back full time, at least until March next year. My job position and description is just not a part-time gig, and it's taken a lot of proving and hard work on my part to show that it can be done. When I finally approached my boss about it yesterday, he agreed to let me continue on my part time status indefinitely.

I am a working mom, and yes, I love my job, but I have to admit that being home raising my child has a far greater draw. Scratch that--it's not really a draw as as it is a must. In fact, I don't think my heart and spirit will let me have a choice in the matter, it's just something I feel I have to do, enough so that when I can't be mom, the difficulty of it is greater than I can bear. Any love I might feel for my career goes right out the window. For those of you who can relate, it's a ridiculous calling in many ways. Some would ask, why on earth I would give up the relative peace and quiet of my desk/office artist job for a toddler in the throes of his terrible twos? I don't know, because I am his mom, I  guess, and maybe I'm a glutton for punishment but I don't want it any other way. I guess I just prefer the rewards that come in small packages--smiles, hugs, declarations of love, and seeing my little one grow, learn and develop.

For now, I'll happily take what I can get, which is 3 days at work, the rest of it off. Maybe someday soon (God willing) it will be 5 days a week. Will I question my sanity for that decision? Probably, yes. Regret? definitely, certainly, no.

Do Not Leave the House on Your Bicycle Without a Spare Inner Tube.

Did you get that? Take it to heart, and don't be foolish like me. I learned a few good lessons from my adventure today, #1 being what I already mentioned in the title. Lesson #2 is that it is almost a 2 hour walk back from Dana Point to northern San Juan Capistrano, albeit with a bicycle and a flat tire, plus a trailer. And, finally, #3, I still tan pretty darn well.

Water Shortage in CA

Its all over the news here, CA is in some very serious drought conditions this year. Authorities are making a plea to everybody to conserve their water use. I can tell you that conservation has always been a second nature for me around the house so this is not a big deal for me at all. I am really good at finding ways to keep water and electrical waste as low as possible. Two reasons why: one, having grown up in the Philippines, a country plagued by bad government, resources like water and electricity were often cut off, sometimes at great lengths of time, so I was just used to dealing with less and using less; secondly, because of our housekeeper who was rabidly insistent about not wasting water or electricity. She admonished us relentlessly and it has been etched into my brain. We were luckier than most families, because we had our own small reservoir. Nevertheless, conservation was important. Showers were short, especially if we had no power. In that case we would have big pots of hot water heated by the cook top and the indespensable tabo (a small bucket designed to ladle water, like a dipper).

Yes, you simply learn to make do, and you learn to be conscientious of your resources, whether there is a crisis or not. I simply can't stand seeing a light on when it's not in use, a car idling, water running while brushing teeth, etc. I personally do find it a blessing to have grown up an unintentional environmentalist, it certainly keeps my utility bills down!

Vintage Bizarre (a.k.a. What Were They Thinking)

I have to confess, I am a "What Were They Thinking?" junkie. I love to go to to James Lileks' site and read his books/blog which makes fun of old recipes, books, comics, photographs, and all other types of ephemera and oddities from the past. Yes, I'll even admit that I find it very hard to tear myself away when shows like "Top 10 Worst Heavy Metal Bands of the 80's," or some such drivel pops up on TV (when I actually had cable TV that is). 

You really do have to wonder what people were thinking when they painted their kitchens a lurid mustard yellow, wore bell bottoms that could serve a secondary purpose as a parachute, or cooked their frankfurters in jell-o. Okay, the first two examples are a matter of opinion, I suppose, but there's just no forgiving the jellied franks. 

As bizzare as these things may be, we should all be grateful that they happened, or we wouldn't have such a good laugh now, would we? We should be especially grateful that there was some atrocious art direction going on (or no art direction to speak of) when it comes to these record albums, appropriately titled "Worst Album Cover Ever." If you don't believe me, just check out these two gems:

Dead_friends

Mulletude

Are your eyes burning yet? As fair warning, some of these album covers may scar you for life. Not for the faint of heart.

Via WalletPop

Zubbles!

A couple of years ago, I remember reading on Popular Science (online) about a fellow who was trying to create colored bubbles. Simple, right? One would think. All you need to do is add food coloring to your bubble mixure. Herein lies the problem: when the bubble bursts, it stains, gets messy, etc. As a mom to a toddler, I could use a lot less of that. Not only that, the color doesn't really "stick" properly to the bubbles, it tends to run down to the bottom of the bubbles. At least, that is according to Tim Kehoe,, inventor of Zubbles.

It's been a couple of years since I read the article (you can read it here). And I was hoping to see it hit the market by now. Sadly, it's still not being distributed. I wonder why? According the the Zubbles website, the bubbles have disappearing ink, so when they pop, they don't leave an awful mess.

I so want these! They look utterly fascinating. I don't think I could ever get tired of bubbles. There is something about them that bring out the childhood awe and wonder in all of us.

I can't wait for these to finally hit the market.

Our New Babies

We decided to forgo buying a second car, since I'm part time for the summer only, and we'd rather not be making another car payment anyhow, not to mention the budget-gouging expense that childcare is. So, in the pursuit of a more pedestrian lifestyle:, I present my new baby.

WSD

Trek 7100 WSD

Rich's:

Mens7100

Trek 7100

Elijah's

2008 Red

Kidarooz Child Carrier

We are truly enjoying our new bicycles, and I have forgotten how much I loved bicycling. Before I got my first car, I got around just about everywhere on my bicycle. My only regret is that I didn't keep it up (getting a car does that to you), but I'm hoping to make up for that.

One down side: San Juan Capo and Mission Viejo are super hilly cities, so it's going to take quite a while to build up my stamina to get around more places. Not only that, the trailer can get pretty heavy. Elijah weighs about 28 lbs, the trailer alone is 33 lbs.

I Got Tagged

I guess that makes me IT, thanks Phisch. That's OK, my first blog post has been very long in coming anyway, so this makes for good motivation.

My random eight:

1. I work at a company that is all about motorcycling and motorcycle safety but I don't know how to ride, nor am I interested at all. One look at our So Cal freeways and you'll know exactly why. ScooterSchool, on the other hand, I find very interesting indeed (*envisions scenes from Roman Holiday and cute celadon hued Vespa with matching helmet*).

2. The last time I was on a motorcyle, I think I was only 6. My uncle rode a motorcycle and frequently shuttled my sister, brother and me (yes, all of us at the same time) to our grandparents house. I am still shocked to this day that my mother allowed such a thing. Then again, it was her bright idea to send Phisch and EG down the hill in their toy car (I'll let Phisch tell that story since I wasn't even born yet).

3. I've taken two ATV classes through my work, they were lots of fun. I could see myself ATVing, if my lifestyle and environment was conducive to it but I have no storage or money for it. I tried to get my nephew NM in a class, but they left for Austin so quickly I didn't get the class arranged soon enough. BTW, here's another random tip for you all which I found out too late. Any child in the state of CA (minimum age 6) can take our ATV class for FREE. I didn't even know that until after I tried to arrage a class for NM. You don't need to bring anything. Gear (helmets, gloves, boots) and ATVs are all supplied.

4. I have an International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma, for which I am very proud because my dad worked very hard to make sure we got a good education.

5. It took me 6 years to finish college, mainly because I wasn't prepared for life. I spent a year after high school languishing at home (I finally convinced my dad to let me go), two years in community college when I really should have gone straight to 4 year college. In fact, I could have shaved off a whole year (or more) of college with that IB diploma.

6. The street I grew on in the Philippines was Ortega, in the barangay of San Juan. I now live in San Juan Capistrano, Ortega highway being one of its main arteries.

7. I learned how to ride a bicycle all by myself.

8. I used to have a pet duck, and it won 1st place during Pet Day at my kindergarten.

Who can I tag? Nobody at this point. Everyone I would tag has already been tagged!