Attitude of Gratitude V4#1 - Friends

Today is November first, again, already. I'd like to try and do the "Attitude of Gratitude" thing again this year (for the fourth time!) I've noticed that people are doing something similar on Facebook but I'm going to keep my posts here because it gives me room to expand on my thoughts if I need/want to.

My first entry is being grateful for friends. I have SO many wonderful people in my life and I am constantly reminded of just how blessed I am. I've been in Ontario for just over a year now and I have developed many amazing friendships but the deepest ones are definitely with Jess and Grace (who dressed as each other for the Harvest Party at church. It was hilarious.)

With them I can totally be myself, be silly, be happy, be sad, be real and they totally support me.

These two are only two of the people I am proud to call friends. Even when we have cookies on our faces :)

By the way, if it's not obvious, I made my costume. I'm the siren/mermaid on the Starbucks logo!

Attitude of Gratitude V3#25 - Starbucks

I have an undated list in a note book of "Jobs that May Be of Interest to Me". I estimate that it was written sometime in 2007. I distinctly remember writing that list. It don't exactly remember what the impetus was but I remember that the parameters were "if money wasn't an object". Meaning I opened it up so that I could write down any job no matter what the wage is. It was sort of a dreaming, not conciously goal setting exercise. Here's what I put down:

• Starbucks Barista
• Tour Guide - preferably at a Historic Site
• Tourism Officer
• At a Railway company (CPR/CN etc)
• Mapping/Geography

Interesting. Some of them are really, really vague. Some require a lot more explanation. I never added to the list although I've thought about it a lot.

Notice though how "Starbucks Barista" is at the top of the list? I searched my blog and the first time that I can see that I acknowledged wanting to work for Starbucks was in August 2009 when I was considering applying for school. Anyone who has read this blog for any length of time knows how obsessed I am with the company. Now that I'm working there, I sometimes have to pinch myself to realize that it's actually happened!!!

Today I finished my official certification. We definitely identified "areas of improvement" but overall my boss is really happy with me. He used terms like "friendly, optimistic, efficient and a good communicator". I'm looking forward to strengthening my areas of weakness.

I love my team as well. There isn't a single person who, when I look at the schedule I think "I have to work with them?" And the people that aren't at my VERY top of list, are the ones who keep me really accountable and call me out when I'm not doing something right so they're actually really, really good TO work with.

We were supposed to have our Christmas party on Friday but it got put off to January because we couldn't convince anyone from the other stores to work. I'm sad. I was actually really looking forward to it. Not everyone can say that about their work parties! It shows how much I like working there. It's tiring for sure and sometimes I'm just not in the mood, but invariably when I get there, it's all good. Especially at Christmas time. Starbucks at Christmas is the best and I love being part of the joy!

I am thankful for my job and that I get to fulfill a dream of working at Starbucks!

Attitude of Gratitude V3#18 - Via

I've confessed before in this blog that I'm a closet instant coffee drinker. Well, I'm happy to report that, thanks to Starbucks, I've "upgraded" my tastes. I still drink "instant" but now it's "microground" and really does taste much better. As barista's we get a free pound of coffee a week, or, a box of Via. As you can see, I have a bit of a collection :) I *love* the Christmas blend and there's rumours of Verona coming as well. The Iced Via was my saviour this summer while I was packing in a major heat wave and while travelling. I went through a few boxes of it on the road. It worked well to stop at a gas station, buy a bottle of milk, and have coffee!

A quick Via funny, the other day one of my fellow barista's said that he keeps Via in his glove box and when he's out and about he'll drive through at Tim Hortons and just order hot water, and then add Via. Smart!

Today, and most days, I'm thankful for Via. It's faster and cleaner than "real" coffee and cheaper than actually goin in to the store (although I do that a lot too). Have you tried it? What do yo think? What's you're favourite flavour?

Wordless Wednesday: Ready for the day

April 12 of 12

I believe that after over a year of doing 12 of 12's, this is the first time I've ever uploaded the pictures ON the 12th!!! Go me! So, I actually totally forgot about it until lunch. Well, I knew about it, I just didn't have ANY time. With year end having just passed and the bookeeper in today, my office was like Grand Central so it wasn't really conducive to taking pictures. The first shot I got during the day was of the beautiful cherry blossoms that I park under each day at lunch. The smell so wonderful. I love this time of year!

I had a good mail day today. An official letter from WLU welcoming me to the school (the acknowledgment I've been looking for!) and a CM workshop gift certificate as a thank you for referring a friend to a local CMC.

On the way back to work I treated myself to a Dark Cherry Frappacino with the gift card I got from my cousin a few days ago. It came in thank you card for letting them stay with me during the Olympics.

My cousin mentioned this book in her Facebook status. It's VERY different from what I usually read but it's extremely captivating already. I'm only a little way in to it but I really want to find out what happens next.

The picture on the left is symbolic but it requires a lot of explanation. First the time, I left the office at 5 (I get off at 4:30) That means I was in my car listening to my radio at 5pm which means it's on FM2/CH6 which means it's on 94.1 KMPS out of Seattle. Why? Because at 5pm Tony Thomas plays his "Five O'Clock Test Track". Today was Dierks Bentley's new single called "Up On The Ridge" Love new music from Dierks!!!

I had a new recipe I wanted to try so I stopped at the grocery store for broccoli and parmesean cheese...$30 later...well you get the picture :P

This is the recipe. It's a super simple one from Kraft. My finished product is on the left.

After dinner I headed out to my last regular evening of Square Dance. I was glad that it landed on the 12 of 12 because I wanted to capture it but I didn't expect having so MUCH to capture! We had the graduation for the new dancers. The club president enlisted me to put grad caps on each of the dancers. When I finished I realized there was an extra one. It was for ME! I actually technically progressed from beginner to Mainstream in April 2007 but I was in Texas when that grad ceremony happened so I missed out. I got my certificate but not everything that went with it. It was really special to be recognized and included in the celebrations tonight. Kind of symbolic as well because I'm "graduating" from this group of friends and going out in to the big world! One person said "just think, the next cap you'll wear will be black - when you graduate university". I have to admit, I've been so focused on STARTING school that the idea of FINISHING hasn't really even been on my mind. Realizing what I'm committing to is huge and exciting.
What followed was an evening of fun and silliness. Have you ever tried to dance with paper bags on your feet? The worst part is simply how loud it is!!! LOL

A few weeks ago we had a "recycle sale". Everyone brings the square dance clothes that they're not wearing anymore and offers them up for sale. I got rid of most of the stuff I don't wear at our Fall sale but this Spring I brought my club jacket in. (You can see it in the last picture of my first 12 of 12 post here" I can't remember if I actually paid anything for it or if I was just given it so I decided to pass it on to someone at no charge. Mostly I just didn't want it sitting in a box because I won't be wearing it. Maureen (middle) just happened to be downstairs when I went down to find a lucky soul to adopt my coat and since it fit her, I gave it to her. She's a new dancer so I thought it was appropriate. This evening, as a thank you (because I wouldn't accept money) she brought me this plaque. It says "DREAM: Shoot for the moon, even if you miss you'll land among the stars" She also included a little note that reads "

Dear Heidi, When I was in nursing school, I had a sign over my study area that said Though semesters never last, tough students do". I couldn't find that one, so I hope this one will do.

Thanks again for the jacket. We will miss your friendly smiling face at square dancing. I am sure you will do well with your studies.

Best of luck! Maureen.

She had no way of knowing but this plaque is extra special because "DREAM" is my One Word for 2010 and I didn't have anything to represent it. I made sure to tell her and I know this is one thing I'll find room to bring with me to Ontario.

The club also gave me a card with a special name tag that says "Missing Link". That choked me up a bit. I guess it's the first of many goodbyes! I'd better get used to this!!!

So there we go, a 12 of 12 posted before 12 on the 12th! Woohoo!!!

March 12 of 12

At work on time. Woohoo!
Breakfast of muffins...I think I need to do a layout dedicated to these things. They tend to show up in my 12 of 12 often...

It's roll up the rim time! No luck...but the latte was good.
The funny thing this year was McDonalds was giving away FREE coffee for the whole duration of Roll-up The Rim. I have a few coworkers who get coffee at Tim Hortons or McDonalds every morning...McD's got their business for those two weeks. Personally, I like the chance of winning.

And more coffee. This one is in the green mugs that this office has had for YEARS.
I'm working on ripping all my cd's to my laptop. As I finish them, I'm lining them up in the hallway so I can keep track of what I've done and what I still have to do. So far I'm up to 11GB of music!
The requisite self portrait. It's Friday, I wore a denim skirt to work :)
The sun came out and made the purple flowers lining the walk way to my building more vibrant. I love spring :)
Tonight was Meredith's birthday celebration. We started the evening at a local Mexican restaurant and then went back to her parents place.

Treats on the table.
Mere's friends Julie (left) and Amy brought out the ice cream cake.

Make a wish!

The cake. Love the red high heels!

December 12 of 12

Saturday morning...and most other mornings at this time of year, this is what I start with. Coffee with egg nog and yes it's instant coffee. My dirty little secret :P
Saturday morning also means the Country Top 40 countdown is on from 10-2. I listened to it off and on and what I missed, I`m catching up on now on Sunday night when it is replayed. I listen to it most weekends though.
I made my Christmas cards again this year. Making them is the easy part. Writing in them is what I struggle with. I spent the better part of the morning writing ones for the people at church.
But ran out so I had to make more.
While I was making more cards I watched "It's a Wonderful Life". My Christmas movie staple...probably my ONLY Christmas movie staple come to think of it.
At 12:30 I left home and met up with a friend to see New Moon for the second time. We enjoyed it even more, if you don't count the loud "Team Jacob" contingent in the theatre. They got annoying really fast. Still, I can't wait for Eclipse!
When I got home I put on some Christmas carols (this is becoming a list of what I listen to during the day! That's kind of appropriate though. The radio/cd player is the first thing I turn on when I walk in the door or get up in the morning and the last thing I turn off.) This is my Christmas collection.
With the tunes going, I was inspired to FINALLY hang some pictures. I picked these up at a garage sale a few months ago and they've been leaning against the wall since then. I love ferns and fiddleheads so these are perfect for me.
I tried to bake but it didn't turn out at ALL. It's supposed to be squares but I burnt the top and the bottom didn't cook. I have an idea of what I did wrong in the mixing process but the bottom line is, it flopped. And that happens sometimes. C'est la vie.
I went to a Christmas party anyways. I was hoping to take the squares but as you can see, there was LOTS of food (this is only one table. The other one is across the room!

I couldn't resist this picture of Evan. Must be nice to be so little that you can use your chair to sit on AND hold your plate :D

And lastly, my new Tupperware!!! I'm very excited to use it :D

Oops. Apparently I forgot a picture of myself yesterday. Here I'll cheat and borrow one that someone took of me at church today. It's been COLD all week and this morning during service it finally started snowing big fat fluffy flakes.

Attitude of Gratitude V2#4 – Starbucks

Shift Eight, Shift Four

Aka *$

Aka “star” “bucks”.

It’s a stretch. I know. But it’s more interesting than just titling this post “Starbucks” or “the Wednesday Night Coffee Crew” which is what really applies. Anyways, enough silliness. I do want to post about our Wednesday night group.

Attitude of Gratitude V2#4 – Starbucks

If you read my $7.13 a day blog you’ve probably noticed a pattern. Most Wednesday’s after church a group of us go out for coffee. 90% of the time it’s Starbucks (and you thought all Canadian’s drank Tim Hortons!) We do go to Timmy’s on occasion, usually when someone is starving and the pastries at Starbucks just aren’t going to cut. We find that we like the atmosphere of Starbucks over Timmy’s though. Plus, the staff there have come to expect us and they are really tolerant of us rearranging the tables and chairs when necessary in order to accommodate a larger group. Of course we always put everything back. A few weeks ago there was a train shuttling across our normal route between the church and Starbucks. Everyone else waited but I went the long way around. I went up to the counter to order and the barista asked “by yourself tonight?”. Everyone else ended up joining me, but my drink was half gone by the time the train passed!

The “group” fluctuates. There’s a basic core of us but not everyone comes every week. For the most part we are the “unmarried”, childless individuals of the church between the ages of 17 and 30, give or take. It’s kind of our unofficial “youth group” although there’s no leader and no set agenda. Often we’ll discuss what we heard in church but it’s not a structured debrief by any means. Lots of other topics come up as well, from school, to work (or the search for work), travel plans, etc. Mostly it’s just a time to get together and chat, with no expectations.

We usually arrive by 9:30 and Starbucks closes at 11 so we’re gone by then. In the summer we tended to stand around outside and chat longer but now that it’s cold and rainy we all scatter pretty quickly. Once in August we got our drinks and then went out to a school on a dark prairie road and watched the meteor shower.

I don’t always feel like going out but I try and join the group if they are going because I know I’m going to miss this casual connection when I move. This group has grown closer as a result of these dates and for that, I am thankful.

September 12 of 12

I haven't posted a 12 of 12 since May although I have been taking pictures. This is a few days late but at least I'm posting it.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

I woke up at my regular weekday time (6:42 am) even though my alarm wasn't set. SO not cool because I ended up being kind of tired for the rest of the day. The benefit was I got my day started early which is always nice.

Since I was up I made myself a cup of coffee with the French Press I got for Christmas. I don't use it a lot but I have been lately.
Next I went down to the Farmers' Market. I wanted to take pictures there but I couldn't get a good angle. Instead I came home and took a picture of all my veggies after I put them in my beloved FridgeSmart Tupperware.

This weekend the Canadian Country Music Awards took place in Vancouver. I considered going to the show but I just couldn't swing it financially with New York and everything. On Saturday CMT hosted a Fan Fair Street Festival so I convinced Mom to go with me. Traffic was absolutely insane and we didn't even end up staying all that long. The festival was disorganized and crowded. On stage when we arrived was Steven Lee Olsen, Victoria Banks, Jessie Farrell (and her guitar player to her left) and, my favourite, Doc Walker.
I saw Doc Walker (the only act I really cared about) and then decided that since I've already met them twice and I have their autographs four times, I didn't need to stand in the forever long line to meet them again. I did take a stalkerish photo of them talking to other fans though :D Left is Chris, middle is Dave and right (cut off) is Murray.

Paul McGuire of CMT Canada (left) and Karen Daniels and Clay St. Thomas of JRfm introduced the next round of performers. Next up were Jason Blaine, Aaron Pritchett (and his guitar player), Johnny Reid, and Terri Clark. They had major technical difficulties during this set and Jason ended up playing guitar for Aaron on "Hell Bent for Buffalo". It was great to see Johnny (he ended up sweeping the awards ceremony on Sunday by winning Album of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, Video of the Year, Male Artist and Fan's Choice) and Terri Clark. Terri's been laying low lately but she's got a new CD coming out and I believe she's planning a tour in the next little while.
Down the street and away from all the screaming fans we found Casey Clark taping the Chevy Cross Canada Countdown (one of many things he does). He was gracious enough to pose with me (and put up with my star struckness).
Rob was in town again this weekend but he elected to hand out with Dad who was working a car show. Mom and I picked him up on our way back home and stopped at Liquidation World on the way. I bought the shoes on the left a few months ago and *love* them. They're Sketcher brand Crocs. Saturday I got blue and black ones as well. Oh and they were only $6.88 a pair so it's not like they break the bank.

Look who's on the cover of Country Weekly!!! Isn't Jake cute? :D
My offical CCMA Awards program. I bought it because it has fun anecdotes and mini interviews with each of the nominees.

I had dinner with Mom and Robert at my parents house. Afterwards we were sitting on the deck experiencing all the wonderful sounds of city living. Airplanes flying over, loud annoying music, kids crying, geese overhead, and then to add insult to injury, someone decided to mow their lawn. It was NOT relaxing and it was HOT out. We were debating doing an ice cream run when I logged in to Facebook and had this conversation with my friend Naomi.

So, that's how I ended Saturday. At Naomi's playing Super Scrabble and eating ice cream. A great finish to a busy day.