The Basking and the Pelting

Good WINDY afternoon to all of you. Still without an employment schedule, I have had the freedom to travel to the beach whenever my heart has desired. Despite warnings last night of picture frames toppling over due to rude wind gusts coming in through our open windows, Briana (roommate) and I decided to venture out to bask in the sun on this rather warm day. The result: "bask" is entirely too friendly of a term for the conditions that awaited us. It was so windy that we were PELTED with blowing bits of sand and water. If it wasn't painful, it may have actually been quite humorous. As it was though, the sand scratched every inch of me and burrowed its way into my hair, ears, eyes, nose...EVERYWHERE! I smell like a sandy fish at the moment.

The job hunt has taken an interesting twist. Yesterday afternoon, I agreed to accept the part-time position promoting the tobacco awareness project at the hospital. In return for my acceptance, I had to agree to succumb to a drug test in the hospital lab and sign release papers for a criminal background check. The staff took it as very serious business, and despite my innocence, I felt rather intimidated. I am not allowed to start working until my drug tests results return, and their arrival is not anticipated for at least five more days. I guess that equals more beach time for me! :)

Despite the drug test proving to be an interesting obstacle in itself, I am now faced with the dilemma of finding a second part-time job that successfully fits into my schedule with the tobacco thing. It's quite complicated actually. I could accept a biology and chemistry department work study position here at school, but I may very well run into snags with scheduling as I may not be available during class time when the summer professors may need me. I could turn in an application to a nursing home here in town and let them train me as a CNA, but the hours there are off the wall, including a 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. night shift every Wednesday. Though it sounds adventurous, I don't know if my brain could handle such a crazy schedule. To complicate things further, there is a possibility that a position could open up at the medical clinic here in town, but I will not even receive word of that until Monday. That "possible" job would be ideal, but to wait could be a gamble as these other possibilities would likely pass. I would have never guessed the job hunt would be such tricky business. It's wearing me out!

On the plus side, in addition to bike rides and beach time, I'm 300 pages into my first novel of the summer of 2009. It's incredibly refreshing to read a novel that I won't be tested over - one that I have hand-picked and can simply enjoy for entertainment value. Deception Point by Dan Brown is so far proving to be quite the suspense. It's one of those books that has so many cliff hangers that I feel like I'm holding my breath the entire time I'm reading and feel as though if the secret isn't spilled soon, I'll suffocate from the suspense....dramatic, I know, but it's what happens when you have the serious book worm genes.

I think I'm going to attempt a bike ride in this awful wind. If my blogs are discontinued, know that I have been blown to Africa and I'll resume my life story from there at an undisclosed date. :P