Get a job woman

I've been horribly lax when it comes to this side of my blog. I'll be sure to give myself 40 lashes with a wet noodle - might not get to 40 because I'll have eaten the noodle before that point. I haven't been doing too much that deemed worthy of noting. I officially hate...strike that; hate is a strong word and I don't care too much for it, so corrected - I officially despise literary searches. They are so mundane. Mike has been gone too for quite some time, he practically had back to back trips to Sweden and just recently returned from Chile.

Actually, Monday at the office and Tuesday at home I was counterproductive. While slowly taking notes for the social injustice assignment, I was designing in the paint program what my future home will hopefully look like. :) It has a nice eclectic style to it; there are Spanish elements, thanks to working at Market to Market in St. Augustine, as well as my own heritage, and traditional Japanese features due to my fascination with the culture. However, some of design seems predominately Japanese, especially in the doors. This is fine though I wanted a more Spanish look to the front door. Oh well, I have plenty of time to tweak the design.Ideally, I would like to build the house in the Florida panhandle. My parents own a plot of land in the Compass Lakes area (off of I-10 near Alford and Cottondale. I'm hopeful that the land will be passed to me and they won't sell it off beforehand. We used to go up there just about every summer when my brother and I were younger, but now that we're older I seemingly have to beg to get them to even consider travel there. While they rather travel places like Costa Rica and New York and all those exotic places, I find myself drawn to the calm and simple life of Compass Lakes. I've never been one for large crowds of people, especially for extended periods of time. I just love it there; there aren't a ton of people, the air is so clean and crisp you can taste it, the area isn't built up, not all the roads are paved so you're driving on red dirt roads most of the time, and the trees go on for miles and that isn't an exaggeration. Where our land is located is great because its just down the road from McCormick Lake perfect for swimming and get togethers. Its like being on vacation in your own private corner of the world. :)

Its kind of ironic really. This place is so peaceful and our little plot is located on Battleground Ave.

This whole thing of me drawing up plans and designs are attempts to further my parents decision in eventually handing the land over to me. I had brought up idea to them over the weekend while I was home and my mom wasn't too keen on letting me have it and building on it - saying that they were thinking of retiring there, which I assume meant building a house. To which I replied that would be fine but if they could retire in the house I want to build. My dad especially is always going on about them moving in with me when they get older. Kind of like payback. Any who, my mom doesn't want a two-story or a large home that she'll have to end up cleaning. If I can find away to incorporate an elevator (I saw a perfect example of one in an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition) because they'll be too old to get up and down stairs, maybe she'll settle and meet me halfway. I'll even put their bedroom on the bottom floor. Which means they would be getting the main master bedroom. The second and third bedrooms would be upstairs - one of those would also be a master suite but not nearly as large.

I've got to do my best to sell this idea to them - especially mom. By the time it comes to building this, all the kinks and design flaws will have been weeded out. Let's knock on wood!

Getting back to work

Well I'm finally back to work in the actual building! And some more good news...I finally got my ID badge. I hate my picture on it though. I'm not entirely sure if it's worse than my previous school ID or my driver's license pictures. But it doesn't matter because I finally have it and hopefully that's the last time I'll have to go to the security office.
Today, I've been working on the literature search for the social injustice paper I'll be working on with Mike. It's going slowly right now. These searches have to be the most tedious of tasks for my internship. While I was home during the Labor Day weekend I made sure to snag my Criminal Justice text book hoping it might help me. I just thought of this, I should have grabbed my Policing in America text book as well.

**I'll finish this when I get home because I get to leave in like 30minutes

Mood: Sick
Thoughts: Why do my eyes still feel this way??
Listening to: Courtney Love
Drinking: Zephyrhills bottled water
Should be: Taking a long nap to get well

At least it's not H1N1

I'm so tired of sneezing. It's been non-stop today. The days before that, coughing. Yep I'm sick...starting to get a little better but still sick, though not as sick as my cousin John has been. There's a possibility he had(s) the dreaded swine flu or H1N1. That's the reason I haven't been on here and probably won't for the next few days.
I'm also still recuperating from finishing that Sweden presentation. Thank God for Labor Day Weekend, it gives me time to recuperate and work on my story.
Expect another post in a few days.

Mood: Sick and tired
Thoughts: Meh
Watching: Law & Order: SVU marathon on USA
Eating: Oreo cookie
Should be: Sleeping

It's important to look again

Worked with Mike this morning on the presentation and it was fruitful. We got a lot done. I'm working on it a little more tonight before handing it off to him to fill in some holes. Then tomorrow I'll get a chance to look at the finished product before it heads off to Sweden on Monday. I'm feeling good about this.
I went back down to Nancy's office yesterday to get the mess the school made of getting an ID badge. I wasn't able to get it on Monday because of some mess up....I thought Flagler was the only place where no one knew what was going on? Am I still in that Twilight Zone??? Ugh. It goes without saying that I was frustrated. So my badge is on hold until they get that figured out. Well I sent an email to both Dan and Mike about the problem on Tuesday. Dan was pretty quick about it as he sent a copy to Nancy who worked her magic and sent a reply back to me...which I didn't see until I was on the phone with Mike talking about the problem. She had said they mixed up on some forms and for me to come back in on Wednesday. So that's what I did yesterday only to find out I had refill out a Volunteer Background Check form I had already filled out over 2 weeks ago. It was after 10:30AM by the time I got out of her office. I could have filled it out then and there and headed to the Security Office (I'd probably have my badge by now if I did) but there were some spaces that I couldn't remember what I had filled in before. I should have brought the copies with me. So I took it back home, thinking I could bring it back by the time the Security Office closed (they're only open until noon - bogus). Well by the time I got back to my aunt's house it was well after 11AM. I just made plans to drive down early today and do it, but plans with Mike kind of messed that up. I'd go tomorrow but I think they're only open Monday through Thursday - again another bogus. And of course Monday is Labor Day, so it's a good chance they won't be open then either. Tuesday is when I'll do it, bright and early. I tell you, what an inconvenient adventure. And if not Tuesday, then someday. =)

Mood: Working
Thoughts: I miss Punk'd
Watching: Punk'd - Salma Hayek just got punk'd by Penelope Cruz
Drinking: Ginger ale and Apple Juice

Must not close eyes and procrastin....zzzzzz...

It's about that time to crack down on this presentation, which has undergone a successful round of procrastination. Mike will be here bright and early in the morning to get working on it. 8 in AM to be exact. We'll work until 10 or so because he has a call to take then he's off for a possible gym workout, but will return sometime later in the afternoon to continue working on the slides. I have a feeling Friday will look about the same.

Mood: Sleepy
Thoughts: I shouldn't have had that glass of sangria
Watching: Criminal Minds season 3
Eating: Oatmeal Raisin cookies
Should be: Sleeping and working on presentation

Sweden is quickly approaching

Du gamla, Du fria
Thou ancient, Thou free

I'm working strong, hard, and long on this presentation. I realize how wrong that sounds now that I've written it out. But I am working on the team's presentation for next Monday in Sweden. Things are moving along...far from smoothly. Thursday and Friday Mike will be working with me on the slides perhaps the last times I'll work on them before they fly out. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. Excited that I get to be working on something so prestigious. This presentation is going to be presented to over 50 individuals from around the world - Denmark, Ghana, the Netherlands to name a few. So far I've worked on this and an article (which I'll hopefully be getting money for). The best part is that I'll be getting my name on them.
How great is that? A post graduate college student getting her name on presentations and publications. I'll also be working on publications of my own, they'll have focuses in the Forensic Psychology and Criminal Justice realm. This is really is an enriching opportunity for me, regardless of what my mom and aunt say about it being too cushy of an internship. It would feel really wonderful to get published. I would love to get my fiction published (and of course finished) first, but this would almost be better. These articles would possibly be published in Criminal Journals or something like that - at least that's what I'm hoping.
It is depressing to know that Mike will be leaving for Oregon soon. Yesterday was his last official day at college. He'll still be assisting the Family Center on certain things. I'll then be working under Dan and Vivi. I still have yet to meet Vivi. She's still on maternity leave; she had a baby girl. Well I should try getting back to work.
Do you think if I drive a black SUV, people will think I'm part of the FBI?

Mood: Working! Working! Working!
Thoughts: I hope I can get this presentation done before Monday (Sept 7), and that its good
Watching: Criminal Minds season 2 - Gideon is writing his farewell letter for Reid to find, suspenseful
Drinking: Oceanspray Cranberry juice
Wish I Was: Outside in the pool soaking up some sun and my daily dosage of Vitamin D