Odds & Ends

New York City sure has some of the best people-watching and weird happenings that I have ever experienced. Last week as I was walking to work I had a man dressed in a sandwich suit (he was handing out coupons for the corner deli shop) say "Eat me, baby" to him as I walked by. If anyone has ever seen the episode of Sex and The City where this happens to Miranda, you'll understand why I was almost in tears laughing as I walked the rest of the way to the subway! I also had a pretty cool steel drum band play some tunes on my subway ride to work last week- it was a separate day.

Matt and I went to visit our friends Ted and Katie Hart at their family get together at their lake house in Conneticut last weekend- they called it a "hoe-down". They were such great hosts, and there were a ton of events and activities for the family planned (lots of younger kids), like a tug-of-war, egg toss, sack races, a juggler, a mariachi band, and swimming and intertubing on the lake with the boat. Everything was followed up with a feast of bratwursts, hamburgers, corn on the cob, and mountains of salads and desserts. I was tempted to get up for some karaoke, but the kids had the mike so I didn't want to butt in. :) Most of all, it was great just to spend time with some great friends from home.

Still waiting on updates with the job I have been interviewing for...
and waiting....
Keep the prayers and good luck coming my way!

Xoxo,
Tara

Trip #2 to CA and Tina & Robert's Wedding

Here I am, back in good 'ol NYC after a great trip home to see family, friends and be in my awesome friend Tina & her fiance Robert's wedding in Laguna Beach. It was a very quick trip... I felt like I only had a short amount of time to "check all the boxes" of everything I wanted to do while in town. I got to spend time with my sweet grandma Mildred (who picked me up from school every day, took my to my dentist appointments- so I owe her a big thanks for my pretty smile, and taught me how to bake), my aunt and uncle Robyn & Dennis and the new changes/additions to their house, share my new experiences of New York with my grandparents Stan & Eunice, and get dinner and hang out with my parents. I wish I could have spent more time with everyone.

I did get to indulge in a little bit of beauty treatments with Michelle B.- we got lunch at our old favorite deli in Dana Point and I got to enjoy the best mani/pedi I've had in months (for less than $30 bucks too- what a steal compared to NYC prices and services). I also got to spend time with my Cali hairstylist Jenna to touch up my California blonde highlights before the wedding day. Dinner and drinks followed at my favorite place to relax with my favorite couple, Amy and Dave, at the Monarch Beach Bay Club. I really enjoyed the gorgeous Orange County sunset, cocktails, and fantastic company.

On Friday, it was on to the airport to pick up Matt- flying in from New York for the weekend's wedding festivities. The wedding rehersal and dinner took up most of Friday, and we needed to get our rest for the big day. Saturday's call time was 10am for me, to start hair and makeup, and be ready for photographers/videographers etc. (I call them the wedding paparazzi). Pictures for us followed at the beach by the Montage Hotel, and then off to the ceremony at an art gallery called 7 Degrees in Laguna Beach. The ceremony was beautiful, and the reception/afterparty were great and showed touches of both the bride and groom's family, interests and heritage (like their "Tokyo Tea" and "Cuba Libre" cocktails). I put a few pictures up, but I will try to publish the link for all the wedding pictures I took with Picasa.

Now that we are back in New York, I am waiting on pins and needles for the next steps with my latest job interview. I am in the running with one other candidate for a position with a great company, and if I do get the job it will finally turn around my life and my perspective here in NYC. Please keep me in your prayers!

Xoxo, Tara

PS- I forgot. I caught the bride's bouquet of flowers.... look out Matt! ;)

Weekend escapes (or escapades) in DC!

Matt has been in Washington DC for the past three weeks for a work conference with the Marines, so I have been sweating it out back in New York. It has been sooo hot! I miss my nice, breezy California weather. We both toured around the National Mall and mostly hung out in the air-conditioned Smithsonian museums. Checked out the Air and Space Museum where they had some of Matt's F/A-18's on display and did the flight simulator... only SOMEONE didn't show me during practice how to turn the plan around 180*. We ended up doing constant barrel rolls when I tried to find enemy aircraft behind us! Oops. The American History museum was pretty cool, too.

I explored Arlington Cemetery and more of the National Mall while Matt was in his workshops one Monday and took some great pictures. Too bad it was 95* out... I chose the wrong day to walk 5 miles around town! We also got to hang out with Ike and Nicole and Graham and Tiffany for dinner and drinks on the weekend, and indulged in all-you-can-eat Maryland Blue Crab for dinner one night (complete with Old Bay and vinegar... Matt was in heaven). It's been a fun few weeks, and nice to get away from NYC for a bit. Still on the job hunt, pushing forward on interviews. With any luck, I should hopefully have secured a new job within the next few weeks! In the meantime, Matt and I are looking forward to coming back to CA to visit with friends and see Tina and Robert get married!

Sweating out the summer

Here we go... I have been extremely lazy in keeping this blog going, so my new resolve is to at least post something once a week. Let's see how I do!

I haven't been too motivated to write about our (and my) life here in NYC so far because, well, it hasn't been an easy adjustment. I knew leaving my job, family and friends in CA would be hard, but I didn't realize it would be this difficult. I feel like I have a love/hate relationship with NYC. Sometimes I have moments like I did last Thursday, as I was walking home from a job interview during rush hour from Times Square. (Yep, I had a job interview in Times Square. So weird but strangely cool.) There were all these tourists walking around taking pictures, and I walking down 5th Ave. towards home in my suit with my briefcase, passing the New York Library, Grand Central Station and looking and the Empire State Building, and I realized that some people (crazy people) would probably kill to be in my shoes. But all I can focus on right now is that I have no job, and I wish I had my career back. Bartending is getting me by, but during the summer all the city dwellers leave, so it's pretty painful scraping tips together from the measly crowds that are coming in for a drink right now. I'm barely paying my bills, so I'm not really going out and experiencing this city the way I want to. Even taking a cab somewhere to get a coffee in a cafe hurts the budget. I guess the positive way to look at it is that I am really learning how to conserve, live on a budget, and be smart with my money.

I'm really thankful for one thing- Matt. He has been soooooooo supportive of me, never pressuring me to get a job (because I am already pressuring myself to the limit), never hassling me, always calming me and reassuring me as he supports the both of us. I am seriously such a lucky girl.

The other great news this past week- my interview that I went to in Times Square was for an open sales position here in New York City with my old company, Covidien. I was laid off along with the rest of my sales division last September, and left the company on good terms. The recruiter that placed me with Covidien 3 years ago contacted me to interview for this position. It is a partner division to my old position, and I used to sell the same products. The interview went really well, and I am hoping to be re-hired into the company within the next month. Cross those fingers!

Matt is in Washington DC for the next three weeks for work training, so I'll be taking the train down to DC to hang out with him on the weekends. I'll try to be good and post how our weekend visits in DC and Annapolis go.

Xoxo,
Tara :)

Sights to see in NYC

Sights to see in NYC

Here's a new photo album to check out of the places we are exploring as we get settled in the city! Click on the post title to view the album. Enjoy!

First week in NYC

It's been seven awesome days so far, and Matt & I can finally see the floor of our apartment in Murray Hill... no more moving boxes! Our place is coming together and feeling more and more like a home. As soon as I can figure out how to upload a picture gallery, I'll show everyone the before and after shots.
One of the first tasks we did last week in pouring spring rain was to drive over to Target in Brooklyn to get any missing necessities. It was an entirely different experience for me from a Target run in California, with our big parking lots and ample spaces right in front of the store. The drive alone was new for me, but when we arrived we had to pay $10 bucks to park for an hour and run two blocks in the rain to the store. I think it made us think twice about what we would buy, because we would have to carry it back! Our trip to my favorite CA grocery store, Trader Joe's, was along the same lines... it's the only store in Manhattan, so it also included a 30 min. wait in the checkout line while Matt hiked back the car to pick me up curbside. We also finally had our TV and internet hooked up at the end of this week, so we are now again a part of the modern century, with ESPN and everything!
Matt's sister Jackie came to stay with us this last weekend too, so it gave us a chance to start exploring the city for hot spots to eat, drink, and hang out. We found a few good restaurants, and some places to visit in the near future. We met up with friends for dinner and drinks in Soho/Union Square, and my next morning included a hangover and a craving for Dunkin' Donuts coffee and tylenol.
As this week starts, my focus is to continue to press for a new job so I can finally have two solid feet on the ground in this city. I have a couple of good opportunities in the pipeline, and Matt just keeps reminding me to stay positive and have faith that the right job will come my way. A good friend had similar advice; she said that sometimes good things fall apart so that better things can fall together... I think they are both right. I am absolutely loving life here in Manhattan so far, and I'm taking in the differences with patience and a grain of salt.

First Post

Hi everyone! I'm just barely getting used to this blog-thing, so bear with me. I should have everything set up in a week or so. Stay tuned!