After recently declaring this a very uninteresting blog, I was informed by an observant, humble, and sacrificial friend that the cause of this flaw was simply that my blog was lacking one crucial thing: the mention of him.
My mistake.
Obviously everyone wants their blog to be interesting, so I would like to remedy this situation and have an uninteresting blog no more.
*ahem*
John Admire - a terribly interesting fellow - resides in Philomath, OR with his wife and two children, attends Suburban Christian Church where he works with the high school youth group, manager of All Family Vision Care.
Or, in other words, he's youth staff, like myself, and my boss. So I have to work with him on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. And the occasional Saturday. ...yay...
There.
Boredom averted.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Chic, euro, eco friendly wheels
But mostly just CUTE!
I've been wanting a scooter for quite awhile, but because there's always something better to spend my money on, I've never seriously considered it. Recently however, I've decided that because of my current stage in life (single, good income, lots of local activities, low living expenses, etc.) this really was the ideal time to go take those ski trips, get that scooter, and take those electric bass lessons while still being able to save and be responsible with my finances.
Mom and I had been on a scooter kick a few summers ago and she'd actually gone to a few stores and gotten information on them, helping me realize (probably not to my benefit) that having one for my own wasn't such an unattainable goal. Recently a friend of mine purchased a Vespa (so incredibly cute and totally fits her!) once again "reviving the fire" to get one for meself. Just about a month ago, I (totally on a whim) decided to stop into the third street motorcycle store (I can't remember the name) and look at current pricing, styles, etc. Because I'd looked into them a bit in the past and I've had friends with scooters and motorcycles, I had a pretty good idea of what I would be getting into and was able to ask (and get answers) to practically every question possibly related to scooter ownership. After about 45 minutes of looking at the machine specs, helmets, jackets, licensing requirements, recommended servicing calender, price sheets, etc, etc, etc... I walked out of the store with the very exciting and scary idea that I'd have a scooter by the end of the summer.
Dad, of course, wasn't entirely thrilled when I came home and started talking about my latest idea. He isn't exactly keen on any of us riding around on public streets amongst cars on fast, small, totally open bikes. He also, being the good dad that he is, didn't want to see his daughter go out and drop several thousand on a new "toy" just because it was cute. He was never completely against it though, so when he gave me the "Okay, I'm gonna ask the dad questions: ....how much does it cost?" and I was able to give him everything he would've wanted to know and more, he seemed quite satisfied and I got the silent "I'm still not a fan of the idea, but you're good to go."
Sooooo - skip ahead a few weeks - I'm signed up for Basic Rider Training to get my license next month. I'm looking into jackets, helmets, and gloves. A friend has offered to store the scooter in her barn during the winter months. I've been collecting tips from my other scooter owning friend. And I've pretty much got my scooter budget totally ironed out.
It's terribly exciting.
I've been seeing scooters all over the place. It's fun to see how other people gear up for them and where they ride them. It's also been nice to have a visual on what other drivers will be seeing when I'm riding around.
I'll be getting the Honda Metropolitan. It's about $2,300 at the place here in town. All the servicing and repairs can be done right at the store, so close by and convenient for me. It's gets about 100 miles to the gallon. It requires virtually no maintenance compared to my car. It can only carry one passenger and has a lockable seat trunk large enough to hold a full face helmet.
So, here it is!!!
(Ain't it cute!)
You can use the link to get a 360 of it. I'll be getting the Ghost color (as shown below) :-)
http://powersports.honda.com/2009/metropolitan.aspx
I've been wanting a scooter for quite awhile, but because there's always something better to spend my money on, I've never seriously considered it. Recently however, I've decided that because of my current stage in life (single, good income, lots of local activities, low living expenses, etc.) this really was the ideal time to go take those ski trips, get that scooter, and take those electric bass lessons while still being able to save and be responsible with my finances.
Mom and I had been on a scooter kick a few summers ago and she'd actually gone to a few stores and gotten information on them, helping me realize (probably not to my benefit) that having one for my own wasn't such an unattainable goal. Recently a friend of mine purchased a Vespa (so incredibly cute and totally fits her!) once again "reviving the fire" to get one for meself. Just about a month ago, I (totally on a whim) decided to stop into the third street motorcycle store (I can't remember the name) and look at current pricing, styles, etc. Because I'd looked into them a bit in the past and I've had friends with scooters and motorcycles, I had a pretty good idea of what I would be getting into and was able to ask (and get answers) to practically every question possibly related to scooter ownership. After about 45 minutes of looking at the machine specs, helmets, jackets, licensing requirements, recommended servicing calender, price sheets, etc, etc, etc... I walked out of the store with the very exciting and scary idea that I'd have a scooter by the end of the summer.
Dad, of course, wasn't entirely thrilled when I came home and started talking about my latest idea. He isn't exactly keen on any of us riding around on public streets amongst cars on fast, small, totally open bikes. He also, being the good dad that he is, didn't want to see his daughter go out and drop several thousand on a new "toy" just because it was cute. He was never completely against it though, so when he gave me the "Okay, I'm gonna ask the dad questions: ....how much does it cost?" and I was able to give him everything he would've wanted to know and more, he seemed quite satisfied and I got the silent "I'm still not a fan of the idea, but you're good to go."
Sooooo - skip ahead a few weeks - I'm signed up for Basic Rider Training to get my license next month. I'm looking into jackets, helmets, and gloves. A friend has offered to store the scooter in her barn during the winter months. I've been collecting tips from my other scooter owning friend. And I've pretty much got my scooter budget totally ironed out.
It's terribly exciting.
I've been seeing scooters all over the place. It's fun to see how other people gear up for them and where they ride them. It's also been nice to have a visual on what other drivers will be seeing when I'm riding around.
I'll be getting the Honda Metropolitan. It's about $2,300 at the place here in town. All the servicing and repairs can be done right at the store, so close by and convenient for me. It's gets about 100 miles to the gallon. It requires virtually no maintenance compared to my car. It can only carry one passenger and has a lockable seat trunk large enough to hold a full face helmet.
So, here it is!!!
(Ain't it cute!)
You can use the link to get a 360 of it. I'll be getting the Ghost color (as shown below) :-)
http://powersports.honda.com/2009/metropolitan.aspx
Random photos of Valerie
These are just a few photos that are a bit old, but were finally downloaded off my phone or from discs. All were taken by Sarah. All are of me (yeah, seems a bit vain, but it looked like a funny collection).
A few of the many faces of Tea Snob:
A few of the many faces of Tea Snob:
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Green eggs and ham
Excerpt from a story time I had with a three year old on Tuesday:
I am Sam. Sam I am.
"Why is he upset?" "He's upset because he's trying to read, but Sam keeps bothering him." "Why is Sam bothering him?" "Because Sam is trying to get him to try green eggs and ham." "Why?" "Well, because Sam thinks they taste good and wants other people to enjoy them too." "Why?" "I'm not sure. Let's read and see if we can find out."
(skipping ahead)
In a house? With a mouse? Would you, could you with a mouse?
"Why is the roof red?" "Umm, the chimney is red. Probably because the bricks are red." "Why?" "Because they wanted it to be that color." (Was not going to explain the brick making process at the moment.) "Oh...... what is that?" "That's the roof." "Why do they have a roof?" "Because roofs keep the rain out." "But the rain would go through the roof." "No, the roof is very thick and keeps the rain out and keeps the warmth in." "How does it keep the rain
out?" "Well, it's thick, and it has shingles that the rain slips off of, and the roof is crooked so the rain falls off better." "Why does the rain fall off?" "Because it doesn't stick to the shingles and the gravity just keeps pulling it down until it gets to the ground and the dirt soakes it up." "Oh..... why?" "Well..... because that's how gravity works." "Oh." "Shall we keep reading?" "Yes."
We did actually finish the book. I just hope her mom didn't hear the whole thing in the other room. I'm sure it sounded terribly intelligent. :-p
I am Sam. Sam I am.
"Why is he upset?" "He's upset because he's trying to read, but Sam keeps bothering him." "Why is Sam bothering him?" "Because Sam is trying to get him to try green eggs and ham." "Why?" "Well, because Sam thinks they taste good and wants other people to enjoy them too." "Why?" "I'm not sure. Let's read and see if we can find out."
(skipping ahead)
In a house? With a mouse? Would you, could you with a mouse?
"Why is the roof red?" "Umm, the chimney is red. Probably because the bricks are red." "Why?" "Because they wanted it to be that color." (Was not going to explain the brick making process at the moment.) "Oh...... what is that?" "That's the roof." "Why do they have a roof?" "Because roofs keep the rain out." "But the rain would go through the roof." "No, the roof is very thick and keeps the rain out and keeps the warmth in." "How does it keep the rain
out?" "Well, it's thick, and it has shingles that the rain slips off of, and the roof is crooked so the rain falls off better." "Why does the rain fall off?" "Because it doesn't stick to the shingles and the gravity just keeps pulling it down until it gets to the ground and the dirt soakes it up." "Oh..... why?" "Well..... because that's how gravity works." "Oh." "Shall we keep reading?" "Yes."We did actually finish the book. I just hope her mom didn't hear the whole thing in the other room. I'm sure it sounded terribly intelligent. :-p
Friday, February 13, 2009
I CAN SEE!!! (and I'm a likin' what I see in the mirror ;-D)
A very handy benefit of working at this eye clinic is that I get eye exams and hardware at discount! (Esp. handy as I'm becoming more and more near-sighted over the years.) So, yesterday, the doc let me have a bit of a reprieve from the front desk and gave me an all inclusive eye exam (I got to look at the inside of my eye!!! Really trippy! And, btw, it wasn't blue.) It was actually very enjoyable. Yes, I got a slight headache that lasted for about an hour and a half, but considering everything he did (he wanted me to do EVERYTHING so I would know what the patients experience) it really wasn't bad! Anyways, the exam went well, I got my prescription, and during a lull in the day I tried on a few frames to try and get an idea of what I wanted. One of the opticians offered to help and she began to pull out frame after frame until I had at least fifty pairs in front of me! :-) To condense: I tried every new and cool frame on, got to take three frames home and get the family's opinion, took them back the next day to find that they'd let me just buy the frame from the stock instead of waiting for a new pair to get shipped in, they also had my rx of lenses in stock, the manager made a special trip back to the store (after leaving early) to cut them to shape, aaaaaand I got my complete new pair of glasses that afternoon! Exam to glasses in 28 hours. Very exciting. I'm liking it very much. :-)
(and thanks to Sarah for taking this photo!)
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Name fun
Another facebook timewaster. I wasn't going to do this one (and I actually didn't on facebook) but after reading through it with my own name, some of the answers were so dorky and laughable, I had to put them up.
1. YOUR REAL NAME:
Valerie Frances Hazleton
2. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME:(mother and fathers middle names)
Celeste Earl
3. NASCAR NAME:(first name of your mother's dad, father's dad)
Lloyd Robert (Then switch that around and you've got my younger brother's name)
4. STAR WARS NAME:(the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name)
Hazva
5. DETECTIVE NAME:(favorite color, favorite animal)
Maroon Dog
6. SOAP OPERA NAME:(middle name, town where you were born)
Frances Corvallis
7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd fav color, fav drink, add "THE" to the beginning)
The White Breve (That sounds yummy)
8. FLY NAME:(first 2 letters of 1st name, last 2 letters of your last name)
Vaon
9. STREET NAME:(fav ice cream flavor, fav cookie)
Mint chocolate chip chocolate chip (Hahaha. So uncool.)
10. WAITRESS NAME: (1st pet's name, street you grew up on)
Tinkerbell Goodnight
11. GANGSTA NAME:(first 3 letters of last name plus 'izzle')
Hazizzle
13. YOUR IRAQI NAME:(2nd letter of your first name, 3rd letter of your last name, first two letters of your middle name, last two letters of your first name then last three letters of your last name)
Azfrieton
14. YOUR GOTH NAME:(black, and the name of one of your pets)
Black Frisky (that was the most un-goth combo, other options are Black Zeba, Black Tinkerbell, or Black Dove)
15. DANCER NAME: (name of your fav perfume/cologne, fav candy)
Happy To Be M&M :-) (also could be Dark Vanilla Thin Mint or Herve Leger Paris Smarties)
1. YOUR REAL NAME:
Valerie Frances Hazleton
2. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME:(mother and fathers middle names)
Celeste Earl
3. NASCAR NAME:(first name of your mother's dad, father's dad)
Lloyd Robert (Then switch that around and you've got my younger brother's name)
4. STAR WARS NAME:(the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name)
Hazva
5. DETECTIVE NAME:(favorite color, favorite animal)
Maroon Dog
6. SOAP OPERA NAME:(middle name, town where you were born)
Frances Corvallis
7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd fav color, fav drink, add "THE" to the beginning)
The White Breve (That sounds yummy)
8. FLY NAME:(first 2 letters of 1st name, last 2 letters of your last name)
Vaon
9. STREET NAME:(fav ice cream flavor, fav cookie)
Mint chocolate chip chocolate chip (Hahaha. So uncool.)
10. WAITRESS NAME: (1st pet's name, street you grew up on)
Tinkerbell Goodnight
11. GANGSTA NAME:(first 3 letters of last name plus 'izzle')
Hazizzle
13. YOUR IRAQI NAME:(2nd letter of your first name, 3rd letter of your last name, first two letters of your middle name, last two letters of your first name then last three letters of your last name)
Azfrieton
14. YOUR GOTH NAME:(black, and the name of one of your pets)
Black Frisky (that was the most un-goth combo, other options are Black Zeba, Black Tinkerbell, or Black Dove)
15. DANCER NAME: (name of your fav perfume/cologne, fav candy)
Happy To Be M&M :-) (also could be Dark Vanilla Thin Mint or Herve Leger Paris Smarties)
The Silliness You Miss If You Aren't On Facebook
Yes, if you don't have a facebook, you are missing out on a world of fun and interesting tidbits. But not to worry. I have taken it upon myself to enlighten you. :-) This is pretty much the same idea as the 16 random things, but with 25 things instead. It ends up spreading around facebook because people fill it out, "tag" 25 friends in it, and if you get tagged, you're supposed to fill it out. It ends up spreading like a cold. I ended up really bored last night and finally did it for the amusement of my friends that kept tagging me. That's my reasoning, my excuse, now whether or not you waste your time reading it, is up to you. :-)
Rules:
Do you really need to read the rules again??? Hasn't everyone already read them at least thirty times.......
Yeah, I just took them out. Ha. Now, just because they're not here for you to look at, when you try to do this, you'll forget what all your supposed to do! Hahahaha!
*Side note to the people I tag: If you haven't done it, I really don't care if you do this or not. It's completely up to you. Though, yes, I'm sure I'd find yours entertaining and enjoy reading it. Feel free to ignore the tag though. :-)
Here goes:
1. I don't really see the point of doing this as I've already done the 16 Random Things About Me. I also don't care to put enough thought into this as to ensure that these are new facts, so I won't apologize if there's duplicates. I do hope noone feels shortchanged because of this.
2. I can change the oil, install and remove snow chains, and change any fuse on my car thanks to a great teacher named necessity and another named tightwad.
3. I've played violin for ten years.
4. My full name is Valerie Frances Hazleton. I was named Frances after my mother's mom (yes, my grandmother).
5. I love jigsaw puzzles but considering my personality, I'm always shocked I don't get exasperated with them sooner.
6. I actually enjoy listening to opera, if I'm in the right mood.
7. I've never been to Disneyland, Disneyworld, or the like. I don't think I'd enjoy it if I went.
8. There are one or two Jonas Brothers songs that I actually.... umm... *cough*... like. :-p You can blame my little sister for that.
9. I enjoy being very girly at times. Or frequently. :-)
10. There are veggies that I still don't like that I thought automatically became edible when you reach adulthood. Yeah, mushrooms are still gross. Though, technically, they're a fungus, not a vegetable.... anyways:
11. I've owned a fish, a bird, a rabbit, a cat, and a dog. The cat made sure the dog knew she had seniority, the bird scared the cat, and the fish and rabbit kept to themselves.
12. I've always wanted to be a very refined, mature lady though I will probably never be one.
13. I helped bail hay one summer. It mainly involved "driving" a huge truck through the field years before I was old enough to legally drive... or reach the pedal very well.
14. I prefer manual over automatic.
15. I like gardening.
16. I have two best friends even though, technically, that's not possible. Oh well. Don't tell them.
17. I'm very often intrigued by complex things I don't immediately understand. Rocket science, engineering, chemistry, genetics,... math. :-) Jk
18. At around thirteen years old I decided that I wanted to be 5' 5" and not be stuck at 5' 4". It worked. I just forgot to tell my younger siblings that they were allowed to get stuck at 5' 4".
19. I really like the sub woofer in my car.
20. I've always enjoyed the fact that I can say "I have two sisters and two brothers" (vs. my brothers that have to say "I have one brother and three sisters"). It's balanced.
21. I'm really hurtin' for these last few facts..... I'm tired.
22. Mom trained us to use very good phone skills and we were always told we should get jobs as receptionists. Guess what two of my jobs have been!! :-)
23. I really enjoy working with the high school youth group.
24. I'm halfway through The Shack and am not impressed yet.
25. I'm a night person that tries very hard to be a healthy morning person.
Rules:
Do you really need to read the rules again??? Hasn't everyone already read them at least thirty times.......
Yeah, I just took them out. Ha. Now, just because they're not here for you to look at, when you try to do this, you'll forget what all your supposed to do! Hahahaha!
*Side note to the people I tag: If you haven't done it, I really don't care if you do this or not. It's completely up to you. Though, yes, I'm sure I'd find yours entertaining and enjoy reading it. Feel free to ignore the tag though. :-)
Here goes:
1. I don't really see the point of doing this as I've already done the 16 Random Things About Me. I also don't care to put enough thought into this as to ensure that these are new facts, so I won't apologize if there's duplicates. I do hope noone feels shortchanged because of this.
2. I can change the oil, install and remove snow chains, and change any fuse on my car thanks to a great teacher named necessity and another named tightwad.
3. I've played violin for ten years.
4. My full name is Valerie Frances Hazleton. I was named Frances after my mother's mom (yes, my grandmother).
5. I love jigsaw puzzles but considering my personality, I'm always shocked I don't get exasperated with them sooner.
6. I actually enjoy listening to opera, if I'm in the right mood.
7. I've never been to Disneyland, Disneyworld, or the like. I don't think I'd enjoy it if I went.
8. There are one or two Jonas Brothers songs that I actually.... umm... *cough*... like. :-p You can blame my little sister for that.
9. I enjoy being very girly at times. Or frequently. :-)
10. There are veggies that I still don't like that I thought automatically became edible when you reach adulthood. Yeah, mushrooms are still gross. Though, technically, they're a fungus, not a vegetable.... anyways:
11. I've owned a fish, a bird, a rabbit, a cat, and a dog. The cat made sure the dog knew she had seniority, the bird scared the cat, and the fish and rabbit kept to themselves.
12. I've always wanted to be a very refined, mature lady though I will probably never be one.
13. I helped bail hay one summer. It mainly involved "driving" a huge truck through the field years before I was old enough to legally drive... or reach the pedal very well.
14. I prefer manual over automatic.
15. I like gardening.
16. I have two best friends even though, technically, that's not possible. Oh well. Don't tell them.
17. I'm very often intrigued by complex things I don't immediately understand. Rocket science, engineering, chemistry, genetics,... math. :-) Jk
18. At around thirteen years old I decided that I wanted to be 5' 5" and not be stuck at 5' 4". It worked. I just forgot to tell my younger siblings that they were allowed to get stuck at 5' 4".
19. I really like the sub woofer in my car.
20. I've always enjoyed the fact that I can say "I have two sisters and two brothers" (vs. my brothers that have to say "I have one brother and three sisters"). It's balanced.
21. I'm really hurtin' for these last few facts..... I'm tired.
22. Mom trained us to use very good phone skills and we were always told we should get jobs as receptionists. Guess what two of my jobs have been!! :-)
23. I really enjoy working with the high school youth group.
24. I'm halfway through The Shack and am not impressed yet.
25. I'm a night person that tries very hard to be a healthy morning person.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Woohoo!!!!
I'm just slightly excited and dazed for several reasons:
a) the weather took a turn for the sunny today. That's always energizing.
b) Sarah just had a big change take place, I will let her spread her own news. :-)
c) I finally got my car washed... it's shiny and clean.
d) the sunny weather coaxed me outside long enough to spruce up the yard. It's nice to clear away some of winter's gray from the garden beds and see more green.
e) the house is clean, and even though it's a home day for me, I don't have to spend it all cleaning. Yay! *lame celebratory dance*
f) there have been several good changes in the material, communication, and relationships that I'm affected by and/or are in charge of in the high school ministry. I'm becoming more comfortable and assertive in my leadership position (certain details, planning, and policies are becoming second nature and it's freeing me up to focus on taking leadership and making decisions more authoritatively). I also feel that it's being recognized and respected by those I'm working with. *satisfied grin*
g) I'm starting a new job!!! It's a receptionist position that I actually interviewed for a year and a half ago, but due to a missions trip that took place the same month that the old gal would be leaving, they couldn't hire me. A friend from church, who is the unofficial office manager and had recommended me for the job the first time, approached me two weeks ago to inform they were hiring again. I wasn't terribly sure if it would work out as I nanny for a family two days a week, some other scheduling stuff was up in the air, etc., but there were many pros to taking it up, so I applied again. I talked to Dad about it last Tuesday or so, verified that the position was still open on Thursday, emailed my resume on Friday, went in today for an informal interview, and start work this Thursday at nine. Aaaaaagh!!!!! The family that I work told me that they're very flexible for whatever ends up happening, the clinic is willing to work with my schedule, the clinic opens at nine which means I'll be able to be home to get Dan off to school in the mornings, and it's a less than five minute drive away which allows the option of walking to work on nice days such as today. Wooooooow!!!! It's just now starting to sink in. Sooo, yeah, I'll start all my training and such this Thursday and we'll see how it goes! Oh, the business is All Family Vision Care, in case you were wondering. :-D
and h) I'm just slightly wired on a Starbucks double shot and coffee. Hehe.
a) the weather took a turn for the sunny today. That's always energizing.
b) Sarah just had a big change take place, I will let her spread her own news. :-)
c) I finally got my car washed... it's shiny and clean.
d) the sunny weather coaxed me outside long enough to spruce up the yard. It's nice to clear away some of winter's gray from the garden beds and see more green.
e) the house is clean, and even though it's a home day for me, I don't have to spend it all cleaning. Yay! *lame celebratory dance*
f) there have been several good changes in the material, communication, and relationships that I'm affected by and/or are in charge of in the high school ministry. I'm becoming more comfortable and assertive in my leadership position (certain details, planning, and policies are becoming second nature and it's freeing me up to focus on taking leadership and making decisions more authoritatively). I also feel that it's being recognized and respected by those I'm working with. *satisfied grin*
g) I'm starting a new job!!! It's a receptionist position that I actually interviewed for a year and a half ago, but due to a missions trip that took place the same month that the old gal would be leaving, they couldn't hire me. A friend from church, who is the unofficial office manager and had recommended me for the job the first time, approached me two weeks ago to inform they were hiring again. I wasn't terribly sure if it would work out as I nanny for a family two days a week, some other scheduling stuff was up in the air, etc., but there were many pros to taking it up, so I applied again. I talked to Dad about it last Tuesday or so, verified that the position was still open on Thursday, emailed my resume on Friday, went in today for an informal interview, and start work this Thursday at nine. Aaaaaagh!!!!! The family that I work told me that they're very flexible for whatever ends up happening, the clinic is willing to work with my schedule, the clinic opens at nine which means I'll be able to be home to get Dan off to school in the mornings, and it's a less than five minute drive away which allows the option of walking to work on nice days such as today. Wooooooow!!!! It's just now starting to sink in. Sooo, yeah, I'll start all my training and such this Thursday and we'll see how it goes! Oh, the business is All Family Vision Care, in case you were wondering. :-D
and h) I'm just slightly wired on a Starbucks double shot and coffee. Hehe.
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