Transitions--A New Job, A New Career

On Thursday, I quit my job. After 5 years of working on a project that recently came to a close, I quit my job. And part of me knew that everything would be okay, and that my boss would be kind and courteous and wish me luck, but then there's the irrational paranoid anxiety crazed part of me that was really, really scared. But like most everything else I tend to have unnecessary meltdowns over, it was okay and easy. I walked in, said how much I had enjoyed working there and how much I would miss my coworkers, and gave my last day. She told me how much she appreciated what I had contributed to the company and that she would miss me, and then I exited her office to tell my fellow editors the news as well. That's the sad part of this post.

The good part of this post is...I got a new job! Irrational paranoid anxiety crazed me is paranoid that typing that will somehow take it all away, but I like living on the edge, so I'm going to type it again--I got a new job! Some of you who have been reading a long time know that I have been living a marathon of a professional life. For the past three years, I've been working full-time and going to graduate school part time to complete my MLIS (Master's in Library and Information Science) to be a librarian (yes, librarians needs master's degrees!) This schedule has taken its toll. I have little time on weekends, I don't get to do as many fun things, and all my creativity is zapped from writing and reading for school. I've got the words "burnt out" stamped to my forehead.

With the economy in the crapper, libraries being consolidated and closed left and right, I was not counting on anything. I figured that after graduation (t-minus 6 days until my last assignment is due! oh. em. gee.) I would start job hunting and polish my e-portfolio, maybe volunteer or take another internship. I never thought I would be so lucky to have a job lined up right after graduation. Since I've been absent from our blog circle of style-savvy, creative, supportive women, I've been lurking at library school and library job hunting blogs (and the occasional HR blog) to read about career advice. Reading about everyone's experiences was driving me to new heights of anxiety because my future career outlook looked damn right dismal.

So I feel VERY lucky, and I think (and truly hope) this is going to be a good fit. I'm really thankful, but nervous. And I'm ready to celebrate.

Pale blue, yay or nay?

Mission: Find a dress for the purpose of graduation, potential summer dinner dates out with the boy, and upping Mo's happiness meter just a little.

Subject in question: Eva Franco's Belle of the Butterfly Garden via ModCloth. Subject gets extra points for the cute butterfly print, v-neckline, and light, airy summer style.

Question for my readers: Does this pale blue color go with my skin tone? I tried to think of clothes I own, and I can't really remember light blue being in there...sea foam green, yes, but no light blue. Orange for instance looks kind of odd on me, and yellow is also a hard color to pull off (but I still wear it because the shade makes me happy.) I don't know if this pastel blue color will like me or not.

But I sure do love the butterfly print.

Do you have colors you steer clear of? What do you think of the dress?

Safari Park Half Marathon Recap

[My sister and I (I'm on the left) after completing our first half marathon, the Safari Park Half Marathon. We finished!!!]

Yesterday, I ran my first half marathon with my sister at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. I have been training for the past few months, and I was nervous because I've encountered some obstacles (a hurt knee, breathing problems, chafing, oh my!) during my runs. My biggest fear was training and then not finishing (there is a 3 hour time limit.) I'm happy to report that I not only finished, but also had a lot of fun during the process. I was smiling most of the time from all of the entertainment along the course (music, animals, rousing supporters,) and watching the other runners' excitement.

The race started early at 6:30 AM, so we were out the door by 5:00 AM and arrived a full hour early at the start line at the North County Mall. It was FREEZING, the porta potty line was ridiculously long, and I was rethinking purchasing this cumbersome iPhone clip-on case I bought the day before. It sure was annoying my hip bone, but later in the race I hardly noticed it anymore because my other body parts probably hurt more at that point, ha!

This is what it looked like next to our pace group, all the way back at 11 minutes:

Above is a timing chip. I didn't know this until the half marathon, but our time is recorded via this little chip. As an added bonus, it's super cute and a nice keepsake. I was checking mine out right before the start buzzer. 

When we first started running, we were shoulder-to-shoulder and I saw the sea of people moving forward. I started running with my sister, and then got lost in my headphones and gained more momentum after mile 1. I think that I went the fastest from miles 1 to 6, and didn't even stop for water or powerade. There was a baby cow at one hydration station that people were petting, and I really wanted to stop and pet her too, but all I could think was "nooo, 2:30 pace! 2:30 pace!" Me passing up saying "hi" and petting a baby animal takes extreme circumstances, like finishing at my goal time. When I took this photo, I was feeling pretty good:

But when I reached mile 6, there was the. scariest. hill. ever. 

[Photo from half marathon runner Lucy Bender]

Really steep. Sand. Dirt. I had to walk. It was nothing I had tried to run before, and unfortunately after this hill I lost momentum. But I kept going! And going! And going! 

Eventually I got into the park, and got excited when I was nearing the end and saw this sign. 

[Photo by Georgeanne Irvine, San Diego Zoo staff]

I finished 2 minutes after my goal time of 2:30. Good enough for me! And now I have this shiny medal and wonderful memories of our first half marathon. 

 [Basking in our victory after the race] 

I can't wait until next year. We're already planning our costumes. 

Next up, I've signed up for the Color Run. I'm officially hooked. :)