Ice Cream and J.K. Rowling

I haven't been going to school or working for a week. The doctor from the hospital gave me a note of excuse and my prescription so I can get better. I am very glad for it. I needed that week, mostly from work because I was working too much and too hard. You can imagine that made my illness worse. I go back to school on Monday and I'm not sure when I go back to work.

I am watching videos from youtube and I had ice cream for dessert. :)

It's making me happy.

That's it for now. I'll see you guys later.

Hello folks,

Yes, yes, I know it has been a long time since my last post! Sorry I have not been updating my blog as much as I should have. I have been both busy and lazy these past few weeks.

I don't know if I mentioned this (to those who don't know), but my roommate moved out, so I have the room to myself. I arranged it slightly to make it the way I want it, but kept the beds and wardrobes the way it was.

Work is going well so far--until now, I think. I heard rumours that they might place me "up front" to work at Safeway's customer service. They must think I am not good enough to work at Starbucks :( We'll see what happens. I've still yet to hear from my other boss, Maggie. Although, I think the other male boss, who I met on Thursday (which was the day I had no sleep at all and I was super tired and couldn't think fully) probably thought that I was not good enough so he secretly arranged a different work path for me. However, he claimed that he doesnt know why my named was not on the schedule. I don't really like him. He is way too strict and full of himself. Another co-worker of mine thinks that she is better then everyone else and is really bitchy. She called me dumb by referring to me when she said, "I hate dumb people!" I asked her if she just called me dumb, and she replied, "Did I Stut-stutter?" I just turned away and ignored her, my feelings hurt. She also kept yelling at me like she was my boss because I was doing "nothing." :( I am starting to see a different side of my co-workers.

I received three paychecks so far. I am glad I am making some money because I am broke and going more broke.

Speaking of that--I was doing my laundry, today. As I was sorting my clothes, I realized that I may not have enough money to do both loads! I only had enough quarters to do one load (for both washing machine ($1.00) and dryer ($.75)). I had no idea how much money I had on my card. So, I decided to pick my biggest and most important load and launder it. I checked on the machine and found that my card had exactly the amount of money I needed to do my second load! I was SO happy! :D

Since Thursday, I was eating the same meal! I could not eat at the cafeteria because of my work schedule and by the time I got off, the cafeteria was already closed. :( I had pizza rolls and these shredded steak taquitoes for dinner on Thursday and Friday (had no lunch), and for lunch on Saturday. I had a subway sandwich on that Saturday night, for dinner. Today, I ate a few pizza rolls for lunch. I ate them around 3 something because that was the time I woke up from my long ass sleep. Tomorrow, I am going to eat at the cafeteria for lunch and dinner. Let's hope that there will be something good because so far, the cafeteria had been serving very disappointing meals. Two stations serve the same meals every single day (pizza and hamburger, grilled cheese and fries) and the other two stations served something different often. Unfortunately, the two stations that served different meals are not always good. Most of the time, they are overly spiced, greasy, and horribly cooked. There were several times when I seriously felt like I was going to throw up.

I had signed up to audition for a play. It's called, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." I have to memorize a children's poem that has to be 2-3 minutes long. I will audition on October 18th at 6pm :) Wish me luck!

To date, "Almost Famous" is now my fourth favorite film of all time. Kate Hudson was surprisingly good in this film. One of my favorite lines in the film is: "Famous people are just more interesting."

Oh yes, if you have twitter, follow me! http://twitter.com/portomnibus If you don't have twitter, get one and then follow me!! I connected my phone to it, so wherever I go, I can post what I am doing on twitter!

Starbucks Job, Day 2

I don't even feel like updating my blog...but I am doing it now.

I woke up late AGAIN! Although, I did make it to work on time and clocked in EXACTLY at 7:00am. I started reading the books to become a certified Barista and skipped the activites that I had to do with my boss. We didn;t do them until after noon because there weren't enough people behind the bar.

She went through some guidelines with me and then we did coffee tasting! The first thing I tried was the coffee pressed Yukon Blend espresso. It's a multi-blend coffee with Asia/Pacific and Latin American coffees. I liked it very much. It was especially good drinking it after eating a brownie! YUMMMM. Then I had the Organic Shade Grown Mexico espresso. I didn't really like it. It had that taste of spices and some kind of nutty flavor. I had tried it with creame but it didn't make it better. The creame just took away the coffee flavor. Then I had this Pikes Place coffee which I didn't really like and also had that instant columbia coffee. I didn't really like that either. I don't remember which of those three I had tried with cinnamon cake. But it did taste good having it with one of the coffees!

After that, Dreama had to do an interview with a guy and I went to the backroom and watched a starbucks video for my workbook.

I didn't wear my apron or hat..but I did dress all black because she told me to. I will probably wear it tomorrow or on wenesday where I'll actually start working (cleaning, etc), but not make coffee yet.

I also RAN to the school cafeteria at 11:30am, for lunch. I did eat my lunch without having to eat it too fast and made it back to work on time, clocking in exactly at noon.

I also bought this really cute starbucks mug! It has that iconic mermaid :D She's so pretty *drools* and the design and color is so cute!

I need to do my homework...

Until then,

Michael

P.S.

A tip I learned:

"Starbucks" came from Starbuck, a coffee loving character from Herman Melville's Moby Dick

Starbucks Job, Day 1

I planned to wake up around 5:30am so that I could get ready and make it to work 15 minutes before 7AM...but I did not do that :( Instead, I woke up FIVE minutes before the time I was supposed to be at work. I got up, got dressed and washed my hair in the sink. I had no time to brush my teeth. So, I chewed orbit white gum to make my mouth feel "clean" and minty. I also ate half of my Luna nutrition bar on the way. Halfway to work, I got a call from my boss, Dreama. She told me I was late and I explained that I was on my way.

When I got there, she didn't yell at me. The first thing she did was take a picture of me looking confused. It was for the "picture call" on her cell. We laughed at the fact that I was SO tired. Ha. When she laughs, she's like: EAHEAHEAHEAHEAHEAHEAHEAH! She's kind of obnoxious. The female janitor is also VERY VERY loud and obnoxious. I don't know if she's crazy (I'm kind of exaggerating).

I was SO tired that I was still mentally asleep. I was having a hard time thinking and a hard time hearing. My attention span was still poor. I didn't even get half of what my boss said. She didn't take it a big deal. We did some paper work and then I began the online training courses. Before that, I had swiped my time card so that I could get paid! :D The online courses took me ALL day (around 8:30am to 3PM); HOURS to complete! I am only halfway done...

My lunch time is ONLY 30 minutes! Today, on my lunch break, I went to my room to get my social securtiy card so that Dreama could copy it, and then I went to the cafeteria to see what was being offered. I didn't want what they were serving. I didn't have time anyway. So, I walked back to safeway, having only 8 mins left. I bought a delicious sandwhich and a fruit punch flavored gatorade, to eat. I ate it during my training, after I checked in.

In my training, I have to learn about the history of safeway and how it functions, the business, how to serve customers, how to handle situations, etc etc. And then, I had learned how to use the starbucks cash register and computer, etc. It was all boring. I just can't wait to learn that stuff, by physically doing it (rather than interactively with the online courses)!

Here are some pictures of stuff I got :D I will take a picture of me, fully dressed in my uniform, tomorrow. Click images for a larger view (not too big, though).

Includes Starbucks hat, Starbucks green apron, and my name tag!!!

A Stabucks kit to be a Barista!

2 Starbucks VIA™Ready Brew instant packages. More info: Link

Starbucks Passport and The Green Apron Book

A hideous colored yellow starbucks shirt that my boss gave me because she didn't know anyone my size (small). Front:

Back:

I am having second thoughts about the job, now. I know it will be hard work and I am willing and excited to do it. I am just afraid that I won't have enough time to do my homework and study. Let's hope it will go smoothly. *Keeps fingers crossed*

Until then,

Michael

P.S.

My homework is to read the short story Araby by James Joyce, for english 203; read for psychology, modules 2, and 18-20; and do my online math assignments.

And Good Luck Alisha. :D Put a smile on your face.

and, of course, thanks Bri. I LOVE all of your comments lmao.

"y to much? but do it all" - Nikki's little note.

Jeez. I was on the phone with my dad earlier this morning because he was helping me with a few things. He gave me a tip for men, and he also told me that he will order two black polo shirts from Target and one black pant from Dickies, for my job. Everytime he asked me a question, I would answer him and explain myself as I normally do. At one point, he was like "k just shut up." I was like: excuse me? And then at the end of the conversation I was like, "Thanks. Have a great day," and he hung up....

I remember Christian Siriano, from Project Runway saying, "Ewww don't get bitchy!" Haha that's exactly what I was thinking after I got off the phone with dad. Moody talk is disgusting.

Then I went to my 11 o' clock English 102 class, which took place at the campus library computer lab. I checked out a few books for my research paper that I have to do for that class. Then, I went to lunch.

I had this beef fajita thing and it was good. In line, a kid went in front of me because he wanted to see his friend, and noticed what he did. He was like sorry and getured me to go foward. I responded by saying, "No that's okay. You're fine :)" I let him in front of me.

After lunch, I went back to my room.

I had received a call from Dreama, my new boss, and I missed it becuase I was too busy trying to get to my 8 o' clock Psychology class. I called her back after lunch and she didn't answer. Then, she called me back and I didn't answer. It's funny how we kept missing each other's calls. So, I left her a message saying that I will make it to safeway at 7AM on saturday (and sunday), for my training. Yes, I will be training this weekend and perhaps I'll start my job on Monday. Haha, Hannah was like "Barista Michael!" :D I'm excited to learn how to master the art of coffee making. *brews* STARBUCKS!

It was hard trying to figure out Dreama's number! Her voicemail that she left me, this morning, was not clear. I listened to it a million times and realized that Dreama gave me the wong cell phone number. I am glad that my cell phone keeps track of missed calls. So, I clicked that number and it was the correct one. I didn't get a call back, yet.

UGH so much for a relaxing weekend....I have so much catching up to do on my homework, a lot of studying to prepare for exams, and a lot of training to do for my job.

My stomach is upset and I don't know why. I am going to go relax and read before I start my homework. I think I will have subway for dinner.

Until then,

Michael

P.S.

Of course, it's September 11. Patriot Day.

America's Next Top Model, Cycle 13 on YOUTUBE!

I haven't updated my blog!

Yesterday, I had some things happen, which I will not mention...

I decided to drop out of Business class because taking five classes was too much, on top of work and my plan of working out at the gym. I also want to be able to have my own time, for pleasure.

Today, I didn't do much. I just woke up and went to my classes (Major Themes in Lit., and Math). Yeah, it was a pretty boring day today and yesterday. Nothing exciting. We get those days sometimes or often :)

I also checked out Kaavya Viswanathan's book called How Opal Mehta Got kissed, Got Wild, And Got A Life. I heard rumours that her book was plagiarized. I don't care if it is. It's a well written book, so far. I am enjoying it :D I also checked out Nikki Giovanni's book of poems. She is one of my most inspiring and favorite poets :) :)

Yesterday, I was trying to find a poem by Wole Soyinka. I was going to give one to my friend Sal, for her birthday, today but I didn't. Also, her unique name just reminded me how unique Wole's name was. Though, I did find this:

Dedication by Wole Soyinka

for Moremi, 1963

Earth will not share the rafter's envy; dung floors
Break, not the gecko's slight skin, but its fall
Taste this soil for death and plumb her deep for life

As this yam, wholly earthed, yet a living tuber
To the warmth of waters, earthed as springs
As roots of baobab, as the hearth.

The air will not deny you. Like a top
Spin you on the navel of the storm, for the hoe
That roots the forests plows a path for squirrels.

Be ageless as dark peat, but only that rain's
Fingers, not the feet of men, may wash you over.
Long wear the sun's shadow; run naked to the night.

Peppers green and red—child—your tongue arch
To scorpion tail, spit straight return to danger's threats
Yet coo with the brown pigeon, tendril dew between your lips.

Shield you like the flesh of palms, skyward held
Cuspids in thorn nesting, insealed as the heart of kernel—
A woman's flesh is oil—child, palm oil on your tongue

Is suppleness to life, and wine of this gourd
From self-same timeless run of runnels as refill
Your podlings, child, weaned from yours we embrace

Earth's honeyed milk, wine of the only rib.
Now roll your tongue in honey till your cheeks are
Swarming honeycombs—your world needs sweetening, child.

Camwood round the heart, chalk for flight
Of blemish—see? it dawns!—antimony beneath
Armpits like a goddess, and leave this taste

Long on your lips, of salt, that you may seek
None from tears. This, rain-water, is the gift
Of gods—drink of its purity, bear fruits in season.

Fruits then to your lips: haste to repay
The debt of birth. Yield man-tides like the sea
And ebbing, leave a meaning of the fossilled sands.

That's good, huh? I liked it, even though I didn't really understand it...

Anywayy, I have to go write my essay (which I will post on here, perhaps tomorrow), for English 102. It is due tomorrow. I'll explain the whole thing when I post the essay.

I also didn't do my first "writing" assignment for English 203 (Major Themes in Lit.). I was supposed to write a short summary and make a few bullited notes, for the short story A & P by John Updike, but I had given Jonathan my assignment paper (because he didn't make it to class). The story seemed SO tedious to me. I didn't even really understand it. I had to do some research. Still, there was no excuse why I shouldn't have done it. Oh well. I will do my first essay that is due October 1st.

...Don't worry, dad...

Until then,

Michael

P.S.

I haven't told you, but I took the drug test the day of my interview. The results should arrive tomorrow or on Monday. Whichever day, that's when I get to start training for my job :D Let's hope it arrives by Monday so I can take the weekend off before I start! (and yes....I will pass the test)

WOHOO!

I got the job! I will be working at Starbucks in Safeway!

I get paid 7 something an hour, so that's not bad I guess.

The interview went very well and I am glad it did! Dreama, who is ---*phone rings* IT"S TIFFANY! Aww she's sending me a picture of her daughter right now. We just got off the phone and she will call me tomorrow, during her lunch break. Her voice is SO different! She sounds SO grown up and mature (4:42PM).

Anywayy--what was I saying? *reads previous passage* SO, Dreama is the boss of Starbucks and she is really excited for me to work there! I made her laugh, so that's good. It's one of those techniques that works very well during interviews and shows how socially comfortable and enthusiastic you are. I also heard that Dreama is a bitch...so I don't know. As of now, I see no reason why I should dislike her. :D I need to go back to safeway, tonight, to buy Luna bars (which I totally forgot to do!!).

I gotta go now and start on my homework! I need a lot of catching up to do.

Until then,

Michael

Nerves and Excitement

Heyy all! I am back at school, today. I got up at 8:45 AM to get ready for the day. I tried that Cliff nutrition bar and I don't like it...I prefer the Luna bar.

Yesterday, nothing much happened. I slept in (which was a bad idea, of course) and I felt weak and tired when I woke up, around 12:45 PM. The night before that, I had taken 2 Sudafed Pe night cold pills. So, that made me drowsy and weak...

I had subway with my friend, Megan, and her friend. I chose Italian BMT on Parmesan Oregano bread, as I always choose :) It made me FULL.

My friend, Melissa, came over (at 4pm) to my room to pick up her phone, which she had left in my suite mate, Alex's room. We talked about personal things and she said she'd text me for dinner. She left close to five PM, then she texted me to go to dinner. I sat at the table with friends but I didn't eat. The food looked gross so I went to safeway to buy a sandwich, instead. I didn't really like the sandwich and I couldn't eat all of it because I was still full from Subway.

I have the job interview today. Wish me luck!! I feel confident that I am going to get it, but am nervous about the time issue. So, I don't know how it's going to go. The interview is at 3 o' clock. I'll be sure to update you guys.

Dude! I started trying this new experiment. I decided to use my Pantene Pro-V shampoo (with bamboo, avocado, and grapeseed) to scrub and clean my face with. I did it for two days and NOTICED that my face was looking CLEANER and my pimples were diminishing! My Dove body soap doesn't really work...but this Pantene shampoo does! It doesn't excessively dry my face, so that's good :) You should try it and see the results!

I went to my 9:30 class and we talked about a short story called A good man is hard to find by Flannery O' Conner. It's a good story; I liked it. It was dark and twisted. Anyway, I spoke in class, mentioning my point of view about a particular situation stated in the story. As I was talking, my face got hot, my hands shook insanely, and I was stuttering! It was bad! I have a hard time controlling my nerves. I can't help it!! Fortunately, I got my point across--and it was a new discussion that we couldn't finish because it was time to go. Jonathan wasn't there :(

After class, I posted two of my advertisements about hiring a photographer onto the bulletin boards. I want to model and I need to start making a portfolio. I will post more today.

AHHH I am behind now...I didn't do my homework this weekend lol. Darn, I have SO MUCH catching up to do!

I JUST checked my myspace e-mail and I got a message from my old best friend, Tiffany! I am SO excited! She gave me her number so we can stay in contact! YES. I am SUPER excited now :D I was afraid that we lost contact because she doesn't go on myspace that much. I called her but she didn't answer, so I left a voice mail. Hopefully she'll get it.

Anywayy, I'm starving so I'm going to head to lunch and to my one o' clock math class.

Until then,

Michael

Labor day weekend, Day two.

I had a BIG lunch/brunch. I ate an omelet (with ham, olives, onions, jalapeños, and some cheese), noodle soup with vegetables and chicken, salad (topped with bacon bites), and a delicious cheesecake! I was full! The "chef" like ignored me while I was standing in line--and this jock, who just arrived, yelled at the chef the order he wanted. I was like....okay.....I'm standing in line. I didn't think of it as a big deal because the ingredients to the omelet wans't going anywhere and I was patient. Whatever--I did enjoy the meal though :) That's all what matters.

Before I went to lunch I did 20 push-ups while I jammed and jigged to Beyonce's Check on it and Ego. I also looked at my videos and pictures I took, while I was in Lajes, Portugal (I may upload some pictures and videos...but not right now). I miss those days! OH, I also had that Luna nutrition bar for breakfast because I was hungry. It was good! Now I have to try the Cliff nutrition bar and pick which bar I liked. If I like both, I'll buy a week's worth of both.

I have been watching youtube videos and I have found a lot of very interesting clips. I subscribed to two people--and followed one of them right here on blogger.

Ugh...I still have an itchy nose with nasal congestion AND, I need to be doing homework! I procrastinate so easliy! I must FOCUS! *clicks on youtube*

Until then,

Michael

----------

Text Message Conversation:

Brigitte: Laugh at me one more time and I will punch your testicles!

Me: Threaten me one more time and I will grow breasts.

Brigitte: I will kill you. Now...how big are your boobs?

Me: Big D's!

Brigitte: Lmao. Your boobs weigh more than you.

Me: ahahahaha!

Labor day weekend, Day one.

I am trying to finish my laundry but all of the dryers are OCCUPIED!! I stood there for about 20 mins for someone to come in and take their finished loads. No one came...so I decided to go back to my room and come back in about 15-30 mins. By the way--it costs one dollar per washing machine load and 75 cents per dryer load. Today, I spent $3.50 for laundry. (OMG I did math! Isn't that surprising...)

Anyway, I took two tylenol cold daytime pills. I think I have a cold because I have nasal congestion, runny/itchy nose, irritated throat, and a minor headache due to my congestion. I had brunch around 12:45PM (delicious omelet, not-so-good- french toasts, carrots, and dry fries with ketchup...). After lunch, I took one benefiber (I suffer constipation) and it helped! Also, from now on, I am going to try to drink water from the sink and test how it is. The water doesn't taste very well, but I hope that it doesn't contain anything that will make me sick. My stupid water filter doesn't really work and I am drinking those sediments that are in the filter. I think that is making me sick because every time I drink my "filtered" water, my stomach gets upset. I also hate spending all my money on water bottles!!! I could use them for laundry!

I also bought two nutritional bars. One is called Luna for women and the other is called Cliff bar. They contain vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein!! I will try both of them, one on tuesday, and the other, on wednesday. Whichever I like, I will go back to safeway and buy a week's worth because I am going to eat them for breakfast. I can't run around school with an empty and monster-growling stomach! People can hear that and I can't concentrate! I also fart more when I have an empty stomach...

Pop-tarts, cinnamon muffins, and biscotti isn't doing well for me, as my breakfast meal. They are either too sweet or not enough filling.

Today is the Adams State football game and I didn't know it. I noticed it when I walked outside of the dorms (on my way to the Student Union Building, where the cafeteria is). I saw the stadium seats filled with cheering people and bands. I don't know if my roommate is playing because his helmet is sitting on his desk, right next to me. I hope the best for all of those players! *Update* We lost :(

I didn't go because I didn't feel like it and I don't want to sit in the sun for hours. Not only that, I don't have anyone to go with...Instead, I had gone to brunch and started my laundry. I did go to several sport events (football, soccer, and basketball), last year, and I enjoyed watching them :)

I am going to try to start my homework today and clean up my room a bit. It's very untidy and dusty. Gosh I am so tired...andd all of my roomies are gone for the weekend (Idk about Jonathan. Perhaps he's at his girlfriend's, where he usually is).

I must go to the laundry room now and see if the dryers are vacant.

Until then,

~ Michael

**Update** I went back to the laundry room and stood there for about 10 minutes. FINALLY a girl came in and took two of her finished loads out of two dryers. As soon as she left the room, I took the dryers! :) Just as I was filling the dryers with my clothes, a student came in to try to occupy the dyers. He had THREE loads. I am sure glad I waited, stubbornly. He left because the rest of the dryers were still occupied, half of them finished and half of them running. In 60 mins, I will return to get my laundry and fold them.