from raleighwood to hollywood

1. hollywood's very own stairmaster

a few weeks ago, my friend matt informed me that not only is beachwood canyon (my neighborhood) a great place because of the village coffee shop with the best hot turkey sandwich in town, but because it is home to something called "the beachwood stairs." apparently just past the market after you've had a plateful of waffles and a side of the best bacon in town, you continue about fifty yards down beachwood and come upon this sign. 

the first picture was a view from the top of the stairs going back down. when i reached the top and snapped that picture, it was at that point when i realized that the shooting pains running through my legs and butt area were not worth attempting to jog these stairs on my very first time. it's not impressive to almost pass out and then yell "holy shit!" once you reach the top. although it was a bit of a workout, it was worth every step.

i'm sorry to inform you that i took these pictures a few days ago so it fits more in the category of a TEAPOTOD (three extremely awesome parts of the other day), but like i said in the video, i've had a LOT to catch you up on. later on in the day it occured to me that it might not have been as rough of a hike up those stairs had i not gotten lost trying to find them. on the plus side, i finally learned how people get up to those insanely high houses in the hollywood hills. but most of them are driving mercedes, not new balances. pretty sweet view for someone who got lost.

2. come on in! sit down, have some lunch!

 not only did i find this awesome kitchen table on craiglist today (sorry for the crappy picture), but i also got myself this completely rad side table AND my very first thing for my outdoor patio! i'm slightly beat up with bruises and scrapes after hauling two tables, four chairs, and a small end table out of my car and into the apartment all by myself, but it's always good to pat yourself on the back after a hard day's work. did i mention i was wearing a dress the entire time? i still have more furniture coming from my incredibly generous neighbor, but as of now, i have two different places to sit down and eat lunch and something to set my lemonade down on! and by lemonade, i mean coors light.

as for the white kitchen table, i'm thinking about painting it (possibly doing the legs four different light pastel colors) and then i wanted to paint some kind of design on top. my dad suggested painting two plate settings with the fork on the right--which is how i've always set the table. i like to think of myself as a pretty decent cartoonist, or as i like to say, "i dabble in the doodle" so the wheels in my brain are turning with this fork on the right concept. any thoughts or suggestions are welcome!

3. so THIS is what painter's tape is for...

for the past few months i've been using painter's tape for every project or problem that's come up around this apartment. it's held together my coffee pot, pictures on the walls, and of course at one point...the dreaded air conditioner. tonight, i finally got to use painter's tape for it's true purpose in life. and it felt good.

highlight of the day:

well, after many hours of job hunting, resume passing, and application filling out...it's official: I HAVE A JOB! that's right! somehow i charmed my way through that second interview and by the end walked out with a job. he had me correct errors on a pretend email (possibly the best part of my day, oh how i love grammar), had me file things to make sure i knew that the alphabet went from A-Z, and asked me a lot of different scenario questions. i thought for sure he would take a few days to think about all of the candidates seeing as it was such an intensive process. nope. just as we wrapped up the interview, he told me i was "sharp" (i've always wanted to be sharp) and that even though he was breaking his protocol by hiring me before even calling my references, he'd like to offer me the job. he also told me not to smile on the way out because there were other girls out there waiting for their interview. so, i put on my best poker face, held the door for the girl walking in, and wished her good luck. i hope the elevator doors closed all the way before i did that backflip...

my first day is tomorrow (saturday). and it starts at 7:50 AM. i didn't even know that 7:50 AM existed. (i really will be there on time sara! i'll bet you two spring rolls!) i work until 2 tomorrow so when you're all reading this, i'll probably be sitting behind a desk eating a peanut butter sandwich, organizing vitamins, and pretending to answer the phone for practice. wish me luck!

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