This just in!!

Rachel Ogburn, recent transplant to Portland, Oregon has just landed two, not just one but two, job interviews in the past 15 minutes.

The story goes like this.

Rachel, was having an unusually slow Monday. Waking up late she had gone to the library and to the grocery store. That's about it for her days accomplishments. Then, her roommate, Rebecca, suggested that she apply to work at Tony Bentos, a small sushi restaurant. Realizing that the window for restaurant applications was almost closed for the day, Rachel hoped on her bike and pedaled, fast as the wind, to Tony Bentos and handed in her resume.

After this she returned home to make no bake chocolate oatmeal cookies, which are, as this author types, solidifying into true cookie form. As she was about to pour the cookie mixture onto the wax paper that it requires for the hardening process she heard the alarming sound of her phone ringing. When she looked, what did she see but a 503 area code flashing on the screen. Rachel knew that this was a Portland number and answered promptly. It was Tony Bentos! They liked her so much that they called her back only an hour and a half after she handed in her resume.

Rachel agreed to attend an interview tomorrow at 3pm and to train for the job if they chose her. And in a much better mood she went back to doling out chocolate no bake cookies. When she had just spooned the last cookie onto the wax paper what happened? Why, Rachel was called again by a number beginning in 503. This time it was a restaurant that she had applied to host at last week calling to schedule an interview for tomorrow or Wednesday at 3pm. Seeing as she already had one interview scheduled for tomorrow she chose Wednesday for her interview with the second callers.

And then she sat down to quickly update her blog about the success of her day.

Rachel thanks everyone for checking in and apologizes for her liberal use of corny writing style and referring to herself in the 3rd person all post.

She wishes you all happy adventures and thinks that soon she'll be rolling in the dough.

New friends...hmmee?

OK it's hard to type the sounds that I want to make sometimes but the gist of that title is: I'm potentially making new friends at work and in general!

I am apprehensive though, since having friends can often times mean spending money. Usually, that's OK but right now I'm running a tight ship on the money front and can't really afford to spend money. Does that mean I can't afford to have friends?

I'm looking into joining a group called Hands on Portland which is a very large volunteer program in Portland where I might meet people and make friends for free! That would be nice.

Another, money saving bonus, is that as a host on the weekends I get to eat a meal for free!! Yay! I love getting free food so much :D. Now, if only I got to work the rest of the week and got food for that as well :D.

I haven't heard back from Target yet and feel hopeful that Target would have no reason not to hire me and will hire me shortly. Yeesh... It's getting pathetic when I'm praying that Target will hire me.

Thanks for tuning in.

Until next time.

Friday!

Well, it doesn't really matter because I'm not actually working M-F. Actually, maybe I should be sad because I have to go to work tomorrow (but I'm not because it's $$)!!

Still! Friday brings exciting things as I am about to go to Brides against Breast Cancer and help set up dresses and such for an expo.

Also, I get to take the little dog that lives at my house out for a walk beforehand. Obviously, my life is full of crazy thrills.

I'm about to start on my dog walking duties but just wanted to check in and let everyone know things are moving right along in Portland, OR.

I've made a new friend named Dennis. Yesterday he showed me around a popular bike/walk ride on the river. I've also found a donation based yoga/running class only a few blocks from my house so both of those things are exciting.

On the job front, I've been turned down for the bank teller position that I applied to as well as a position to be a seasonal card sales person :(. I heard back from a guest house that they will be hiring in December and that I should keep in touch. And I have heard nothing back about the parking garage work, event planning internship, or the office assistant position that I have applied to. Still, my hopes remain high. I will get a job!

Thanks for checking in and until I have more adventures of which to tell.

Getting Social (plus crepes)

Look at what I made!! Cheesy Crepes, Sautéed kale, and heirloom tomato slices. Delicious. You can tell by my obsession with food that I am still not totally flourishing on the social front but good news on that note. Things are getting better.

That's right. I'm on my way to no longer lonely. This week I made a serious effort to be proactive about my social situation so.

Monday, I had coffee with a potential friend. A friend of my friend Amber (thanks lady for the connection). It was a good meet up. We talked for hours and I think that he was very sympathetic to my social plight.

Tuesday, tonight, I went to a $3 movie with my friend Cory. He just moved here too and stayed in the Hostel with me. So, we're kind of in the same situation.

Wednesday, tomorrow night, I have no plans.

Thursday night I'm going to go to a track where the Oregon Road Runners Club has people meet to do workouts. It will be good to meet some other runners.

Friday I'm volunteer setting up wedding dresses for a program called Brides against Breast Cancer. It is only a couple hours but it will take me to a totally new part of town and that will be exciting. Plus, I'll get to meet some fellow volunteers and hang up pretty wedding dresses. What could be bad about that?

Saturday and Sunday I work and will be in contact with other employees of the restaurant at which I now work.

This adventure is becoming less lonesome bit by little bit.

Lonesome Baker

Lately, I have not been occupied with having a job or friends. And not having a job, I have not had the money to spare on fun things outside of the home (nor do I have friends to do those fun things with). And I have been baking a lot to occupy my time.

Little did I know, before moving to Portland, how depressing it is to make enough rolls or cookies to feed 8 people happily and then having to eat them all yourself because you don't have any friends. That was a lesson I soon found out.

Luckily, now I have a job and while it's only a weekend job and maybe won't make me a whole lot of money, At least I'll get a chance to make friends. Until then I may try to hold off on the baking.

Pale September

OK so first things first I still love Fiona Apple. But secondly, and no less importantly, fall, the season with all the best colors, the time of changes, the collection of moments when things are the most perfect that they can be, autumn, is HERE.

Let me preface the rest of this post by stating that when I first came to Portland some of the people that where staying at the hostel with me thought it was funny to deceive me and tell me that the leaves probably wouldn't change color here and if that's what I needed than maybe I had moved too soon! LIES!

Fall is here. Fall is here! I've seen the leaves beginning to change colors, I've seen piles of dried leaves on the ground, I've smelled the smell of bonfires. And while it is an uncommonly warm (almost 80 degree) end of September day I know for sure that the real fall is on it's way. Here are some pictures I took as evidence of the beginning of this fair season.

One of the trees in front of my house beginning to turn.

Tree in front of the library where there were also leaves on the ground.

gainfully employed...or at least getting closer.

Hope springs eternal! Or, at least, hope is renewed.

I have heard back from one of the places at which I applied to work. It would just be a hosting gig and I would need another job seeing as it would probably only be on the weekends but still, there is hope.

I also, applied to be a bank teller which, as my friend Krista reminds me, could be a job that develops into full time+benefits. That would be simply magical. I even had my first phone interview in pursuit of this teller job.

Other than that, I have been settling in to my new abode. I got a library card at my local library which is all of two blocks away. And as a special thing the library was doing for their website I had my picture taken with my new card. Really integrating into the Portland community here.

I am getting used to my new home but still need a dresser or some serious storage space. I may get a real bed in a day or two. We'll see how things go.

Things are on the up and up and all I could ask for now is a little bit of dessert.