WOH! What happened here?

So it has been brought to my attention that I haven't posted in a long while. My friend over at Every Stitch a Prayer tagged me in a global blog hop:

"The Around the World Blog Hop is kind of like a chain letter except it's w/blogs on the internet. It's a great opportunity to meet and learn about other bloggers. When tagged, the tagee has to acknowledge who tagged them, answer 4 questions and then tag different bloggers."

So I'm just gonna pop on and do a quickie. I did not drop dead, thankfully. LOL!! Before I get to the four questions for the blog hop I have a life update to share.

 I switched employers, again, because I was not happy with the company the school district chose to do the school spec ed transportation. It's a rotten company, very unattached from reality and I'll leave it at that. I had been seeking other employment all summer and while I did get a couple of interviews, no one hired me for one reason or another. So I worked two weeks at the above mentioned company with a new attendant, and she was a spitfire woman who turned into a friend. She's a neighbor to boot! She took me over to a different bus company in town, Nelson's, and said "You're going to fill out an application because you deserve better than this place." OMG she is a Guardian, always looking out for others. So I did, and well, they hired me the same week I applied. My new attendant said she was kicking herself because she said I was the best driver she has had in four years. Another testament to how out of touch that company is. They really do just hire any old schmo that applies regardless of driving history. I'm hearing now they are loosing drivers faster than they can replace them. Well, maybe they should consider paying more (because their wages were shitty for what we do) and treating their employees like people instead of cattle. I know I didn't feel good there. The atmosphere was horrible and not very friendly. I was just another driver there.

Did you see the eclipse recently?!
I had a moment to snap a quick photo.
That's ma'bus!

After I was hired at Nelson's, everything started falling into place. I have a car, finally, and it was free. It's a 20 year old Toyota Pasao stick shift. THAT was a bit of a learning curve. So as soon as I was told they, a close friend of mine and her husband, were going to give it to me they let me drive and learn the manual transmission. Needless to say I picked it up really quickly, as I always do. I drove it to and from work all last week and I LOVE being able to get to work on my own rather than having to ask someone for a ride, which several of my new coworkers were more than happy to do. Most of them live in the same area so it's not like they are going so far out of the way that it would be considered inconvenient. Anyhow, the car needs a new radiator or water pump, we're not sure which but it's pretty darn cheap either way. The husband, Tim, said he would replace it for me if I bought the parts. How awesome!!! He also said he would also help with the brakes (warped rotters) and rotate the tires. It also needs new suspension in the front. Well, it is a beater after all and it's awesome on gas usage. I put $10 in 7 days ago...I still have half of that left. I only drive about 5 miles to and
from work, so it's not that far. I even biked to work the first week!!

THAT was fun!! I saw the moon and the stars and there was hardly any traffic so it was really quite and peaceful. I did have to buy some bike lights and reflective tape though because it's mostly country roads on the way to work so no street lights at all.

 It did turn a bit cold and that wasn't helping the lung bug I had acquired the week before. That's when folks at the new place started volunteering to give me a ride so I didn't have to bike in the cold. So yea, the atmosphere at the new place is much-much-much lighter, welcoming, and friendly! Everyone says Good morning (didn't happen at the former employer because everyone was miserable), jokes around, is goofy on the CB....it feels very much like my first driving job over at Laidlaw. It's an extended family. I LOVE IT!!! Been there three weeks and I am full time, driving two-to-three routes a day AND washing buses between routes. I really don't mind washing buses. It's quite the workout (better than any gym membership). Who doesn't enjoy getting into a freshly washed bus? That's another thing that is very different here. I have never worked for a company that was so concerned about how their buses looked that they washed them all week long. They are a distributor for the Thomas brand school buses, so I guess that plays a roll in it. Gotta keep them looking good for potential customers. OH, and I've gone from short bus to full size bus. Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!! I still do what they call "Special Needs" transport, essentially it's spec ed.

Shaggy Mane before picking

OHHH! And when I started out there, I found gobs and gobs of Shaggy Mane mushrooms!!! So I

OM nom nom nom! Bag full of shaggies!

invited a friend out to help pick some and we made an awesome mushroom soup from them. DELICIOUS!

I am hurting for money right now, switching employers twice and being unemployed all summer. BUT, I am fairly confident that my first check is going to be HUGE with 80.75 hours and I am SO thankful for that. The radiator needs to be fixed before it freezes for the winter because at present I am just adding water for coolant. That will crack the engine block if it isn't fixed before the snow flies so that is first on the repair list. Then I have to purchase plates ($70), register it (also $70) and get insurance (around $211/6 months). UGH. It's not cheap having one of these things!!

So now on to those questions....

What am I working on?

Nothing at the moment. I haven't had the time or energy to work on anything since starting full time at the new employer. I do have an embroidered block for our (with Every Stitch a Prayer) Hallow's quilt to get to this month.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

I like to add my own personal flare, usually, either by tweaking the pattern or doing something completely off the wall with it.

Why do I write/create what I do?

Because it's fun! Why else would I do it? Ya'll know my motto, "If it ain't fun, it ain't worth doing" which was exactly the reason why I switched employers. I have FUN at this new place.

How does my process work?

Well, if I really want to do something, I think about it a lot before I start on it. Ideas will come to me as I am falling asleep, or as I am waking up in the morning. I'll think about color combinations (quilting), or composure (painting), or how it goes together (most everything else). It can be a long process as seen in some of my intuitive paintings (which, by the way, are for sale in my etsy shop...link up top!). A painting can sit around for a long time before something pops up at me. The painting tells me what it wants to become. I know, it sounds weird, but it happens more often than not. For my other crafty interests youtube plays a HUGE part in my idea process. I love watching art journaling videos and get inspiration from those to add entries into mine (never copy someone else's work element-by-element). 

Now who do I tag next?

Well, I've really come to enjoy the Frugal Crafter, her blog and youtube videos.

So I nominate http://thefrugalcrafter.wordpress.com/ to be next in the Around the World Blog Hop!

Until next time...
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