I hope I was elegant

Today I received an email from Beyond WWU, a service provided for my university's recent graduates. It's supposed to help students once they graduate, and by "help" I mean find the students churches to go to. That's nice. Anyway, below is the email they sent me and my response to said email. I tried to be polite.

"Dear Darcy,

Greetings again from Beyond WWU!

I hope you are doing well during this fall season. Please let me know how your transition from WWU has gone so far. Have you made connections in your new location? Have you visited a good SDA church? Have you joined Beyond WWU on Facebook?

Thanks for the update and let me know if there is anything else I can do to help you feel more at home in your new community!

Best wishes,
Beyond WWU"

Reply:
"Dear Beyond WWU,

My transition from WWU has been less than ideal. I'm back home with my parents, who have an excellent church that I'm quite familiar with, but as of yet I am unemployed. My days consist of searching for work, something that WWU never prepared me for. Perhaps this is just a lapse within my specific program (English--yes, I know, it's not the best major for an instant career), but in learning how many graduates are in the same boat, I have to conclude that although the economy is bad, WWU never prepared many of its students for many real-life beyond college challenges. In a recent discussion with Sarah H., another graduate of 2011, we talked of how we were never informed of what we were qualified to do, the importance of internships, how to apply to jobs beyond those of blue collar, how to adapt our college experiences to the requests of real-world employers, and what to do if the time comes to pay our loans and we have yet to be employed.
I do know that there was a career center at WWU, but I never knew what it did. I went in once, when I was applying to graduate programs last year, and although I don't remember the exact conversation, I remember leaving with the impression that if I wanted help from the career center, I had better be needing business or engineering career help. (That may not be the case, but I can't say that the career center was helpful)
It's great that you care about my spiritual life. Yet I think that finding a church is much easier than finding a job, so perhaps Beyond WWU should expand its options to include resources that cover all aspects of a recent graduate's life.

Sincerely,

Darcy Sturges"


As I acknowledged in my email, I may have completely missed the great aide the career center can offer. Perhaps I squandered chances to learn how to find work or internships or any of that jolly stuff. But I don't think I did. I'll post the response if I get one. Who knows, it could be helpful.

I miss people

It's boring not having a job, not having money, and living at home.

My parents are great; they've been kind and haven't questioned why I don't have a job. They know I've looked and looked and looked and looked and...

When my Aunt Karen was visiting, I was elated. She and I have recently discovered that we get along really, really well (I blame this late realization on that we don't see each other often), that kind of instant understanding that happens with a spark in the eye and two minutes of simply being in each other's company.

I've seen a couple friends scattered across this three-month span of nothing, and each time I fell into a gushing of whatever chaff was in my soul. I think consistent contact with friends lets the daily routine stuff blow away and then one can connect to true matters, and I think that I haven't been able to get past that daily chaff in months. I'm lonely.

The thing I'll always cheat for. Always.

My father's chai.

He learned to make it in Nepal. Black tea, sugar, milk, spices, all baked in the oven. Delicious. Really. Anyone who's tried it has liked it. No, that's not correct. They've LOVED it. It's amazing. And soy just doesn't compare. It's unlike any chai I've ever had anywhere; its spices are more subtle. The caffeine is not. As a rule, it's not served after 6 p.m. unless it's New Year's Eve or for some specific reason we all need to stay up past midnight. I love it.

I made some vegan chocolate-chip scones to atone for my cheating ways. First time I've ever made scones and the texture's not right, but still tasty. They go very well with father's chai.

Urban Tree Planning

I volunteered today with the Tualatin Parks and planted trees.

Lots of trees. About 250. Mmmm. Tree-planting goodness! There were about 6 of us planting for a little under three hours. It was hard work, but good. Fun. And I learned that there is such a master's degree as Urban Tree Planning. Not that I've been able to find much about it online, but the volunteer coordinator had her masters in it. Yeah.

It's learning about more possible masters that leaves me so, so confused. I like trees. I enjoyed planting them. This is a career? What other masters' programs are there? How many options do I have? And, man, are they possibilities with a B.A. in English?

All I've decided is that I'll be planting more trees, and that other people should join me. Create them forests!

It IS Wednesday.

Yesterday I went to the doctor, routine check-up stuff, you know, blood pressure, height, weight, etc.

Blood pressure's fine. Height? I'm 5'2"! Even a little over! Man, I must've really been slouching when Walla Walla measured me at 5'1&1/4". Then, weight.

I have good friends. They tell me I look good, sexy, even tiny. And yes, my clothing sizes make some jealous. I wear smaller sizes 'cause I'm SHORT. My calculated BMI is .16 away from overweight. That's, like, two cupcakes away from being officially fat.

Sooooo I sold my old desk top and used the money to join a gym with the goal of losing a certain amount by Christmas. DAAAANG. Okay. Personal trainers are ridiculously expensive. I don't have one. I'm worried.

After I graduated UCA weighing the most I've ever weighed, I've been constantly hoping to becomes super fit and slim. Hoping. I've never succeeded. Ever. I've been a member at various gyms before, taking classes...yeah. I'm so scared I'll fail again without a trainer. I don't know how to work out. Yes, I have watched more weight-loss shows than most people probably should, but I still don't know what the hell I'm doing.

Aaaagh. I don't like this. At all. I need a job. Please, Universe, smile on me today!

Salty Cookies

I made a half-batch of chocolate-chip cookies today but forgot to half the baking soda and salt.

The cookies are salty.

"Limitless" wasn't a great movie, but the concept of taking a pill to be able to use 100% of one's brain is appealing. Especially when the film doesn't touch on any activation of the subconscious.

If I had taken a pill like that today, I would have halved the salt.