Monday, May 18, 2009

Raspberry Sorbet

Mmmm... fresh as a cup of raspberry sorbet on a hot summer day. Yumm!!
I just listed this necklace on Etsy today!

It's made using sterling silver chain and findings, small jade pieces for the leaves, and a large dyed jade faceted teardrop briolette for the raspberry. Love it!!

In other news, I had a fabulous afternoon enjoying the sunshine with Erica... running errands, lunch outside at Aztec Willie's, (mmmm... super burrito), and a trip to the Portland nursery. FAB! ;)

I'm a big fan of the petunias, as I bought white petunias from the same nursery a couple of years go and they FLOURISHED. Here's the current setup on our back porch now:

There are white petunias, pink petunias, a gardenia plant being rescued, a small little peppermint fiesta something or other, and a pair of fuchsia plants. To the left of the pots is also the lavender I planted last year. It wasn't the best spot for it, as it's in the shade, but as you can see it's worked out okay. Over to the right (out of shot) is a huge rosemary bush, too, that I love using for cooking and baths, too. I read online that rosemary is great in a tub to soothe sore muscles. Go figure!

I also got a super score pair of vintage shoes in the mail today, (yay for eBay). Remember these lovely huarache sandals from the 80s? I think they're coming back. I loved them then, and I will love them now. That's Mike sneaking in on the picture, too. Sneaky sneakerson husband of mine!
Tonight I'm taking Grandma to the symphony for the season-ender of the Oregon Symphony. They're playing with a world famous violinist -- Joshua Bell. Also, last night I turned in a little 500 word piece to the editors of The Siskiyou Newspaper at Southern Oregon University, (my Alma mater). A former editor requested columns from alumni as the class of 2009 gets ready to graduate. Here's what I sent in and what will appear in next week's issue:

It’s certainly nice to think we’re totally in control of what happens to us in our lives, but truth be told, that’s not so much the case. In fact, you never know when life’s going to blindside you and take all the lovely plans you made for your post-college life – and throw them out the window.

As a Journalism grad with my Bachelor of Arts degree from SOU I decided to move to Portland to find a job in television news. What I ended up with was a low-paying internship at KOIN and part-time jobs at both Victoria’s Secret and The Limited. After months of busting my ass in the newsroom and seeing not much payoff and little respect, (although, as it turns out, that is where I met my future husband), I took a calculated risk and decided to give up my goal of being an on-air reporter and try my hand at producing instead. I took a full-time, (still low-paying), job in Palm Springs as a producer at the ABC affiliate and ended up loving the work. I liked it so much that I gave up great hours, (and again horrible money), for a graveyard shift at NBC back in Portland. Who would’ve thought I’d miss Stumptown so much?

After mere months of working a midnight to 8 o’clock in the morning shift, I took another risk and started online graduate school to become a high school teacher. Working graveyard, planning a wedding, and attending graduate school full-time proved to be a lot of work, but totally worth it. I saw a light at the end of my overnight shift tunnel, and I was excited to try something I’d never even really thought about doing before – teaching high school English and Journalism.

Of course, I wasn’t expecting the four-thirty a.m. phone call from my sister saying my Mom died suddenly, two days after she’s visited my husband and I in Portland. I also didn’t see my sixty-something year old Dad being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s a few months before that. Life threw something completely unexpected at me, and between grieving for my Mom and beginning the search for assisted-living for my Dad in Portland, changing careers, and my husband getting laid off in a tanking economy… let’s just say it was all a bit overwhelming.

I suppose that’s what I mean when I say you never know what life will throw at you. I had everything lined up to change careers. Now I’m working to get back into television again, as I realize most school districts have no money and aren’t hiring. I’m also faced with new thoughts I didn’t even think I’d be having already – babies? Maybe. Not being a teacher after all? Well, that sucks, but we’ve got to make due with what we can do.

So, that’s just it – make lemon-infused vodka martinis when life throws lemons at you, because whatever plans you may have for now, life has a way of giving you the finger and changing those plans for you. But don’t fret too much because as I’m still learning, it’ll probably work out okay in the end anyway.

That's it for tonight!

Love,

Katery :)

2 comments:

  1. So how do you make lemon-infused vodka martinis? I think that sounds like a plan...or an adjustment as the case may be.

    Love you!!!

    ReplyDelete