You've applied to how many jobs??!!??

As some of you may remember from previous posting, I have been out of school and unemployed for an entire year (as of this past April). Thanks to the firm but gentle nudging from a bff of mine, I have since then applied to just over 39 different job positions. Ive faxed and emailed resumes like crazy but up until the end of May had gotten nary a response- save for an automatic "I'm away from my desk email for two weeks" from one company's hiring person. Well, on May 24th I was sitting in the church office- you know, where I've been volunteering 5 days a week since November- and checking my email as there wasn't much going on in that moment. Wouldn't you know, my bff sent me yet another round of job links..
A few of them had no company name nor address to be found so I chucked them, but one of them stuck out largely from the others. The add held a few short lines involving answering a telephone and no experience necessary along with "please bring your resume in to John".. my bff added in a little side email comment asking if this wasn't a person/company that puts an ad in one our church bulletins every now and then.. immediately I looked the company up online, located a phone number and called to get their business hours for the day. I was told what I needed and that if I brought in a resume, the employee to whom I was speaking would "get it up to john". Immediately I edited and printed a new coverletter and my resume and hitched a ride with the parish house cook down to the Job location- it's only a few blocks but I didn't want to walk in the rain *lol*. So there I was, 3:30pm, Friday May 24th walking into a place that I have passed by both ways every day for the past 12 years- A quaint but extremely active trophy shop that has been in business since 1926.  I was greeted by a tall young man with a brilliant smile as I stepped through the door and presented my intention to submit a resume. I was asked to wait as the young man went to the back to get the owner- John. A tall portly Italian man bearing a rather large moustache and kind bright blue eyes came to the front desk and shook my hand. We chatted for a bit and he told me that the ad for the position had been put in the paper only the day before and he had already been handed an overwhelming 30 resumes. He read over my cover letter as we spoke and was impressed. He told me that i would be in charge of the phone, greeting customers and taking payment, along with invoicing and some light attachment work on trophies, plaques andd medals etc.  He also said to expect his call the following Tuesday and gave me a business card. I walked out the door, greeted once again by the large bell that hangs on the door handle and the hustle add bustle of Canon street traffic.
At 12pm the following Tuesday I received a call from my possible future employer and we agreed to meet at 8:30 the following morning for a chat. I went in Wednesday a little nervous but absolutely enthusiastic and met the gentle blue-eyed man with all of the pleasant energy I could muster. He told me that by Saturday he had interviewed already a few "contenders" and patted the large pile of resumes next to him, but he held mine in his hand. He proceeded to explain more about the work they do and about how June would be very busy and that I would learn a lot very quickly. He reminded me that on Monday he had had over 25 more resumes come in but he had already told those eager job-searchers that "the positions already been filled". Then he looked at me intensely, large bright cerulean eyes shining and said "we'd love for you to come work with us". I nearly fell off my stool! I was so happy, I told him I would love to work for them and that I was honoured by having been chosen from among so many. We shook hands and he passed me off to the book-keeper lady so I could get the necessary papers filled out. So, at 9:30 sharp, on Wednesday May 29th I began my new job! I worked the two days after and loved it from the first moment. My boss is amazing and patient and funny and we get along great! His son works there too and is a skinnier 30 years younger version  of his father and equally as nice, the girl who works the engraving machinists awesome and my shifts so far have taught me so much. As of yesterday June 7th, I've completed a full week at the trophy store and have learned to oxidize brass, put together small trophies, assemble plaques, de-bag medallions and ribbonize them (attach them to neck ribbons). I've also learned how to process payment, how to receive daily invoices and how to file. I answer the phone and I take customers orders and I love every single minute of it :)
Pay day is next Wednesday which will be awesome because I should  get 38 hours of pay and I'm making twelve bucks an hour.. deductions will suck but I'm all for supporting our roads and healthcare etc. I work 4 hours a day monday to friday (we are closed on weekends) from 8:30am until 12:30pm and I'm in charge of opening the store.
I've thanked John, my bff and God every day for getting me this job and I'm looking forward to a fruitful summer.
So it's not a highpaying anything that will get me closer to my career but it's definitely a worth while experience and I am hoping to stay employed with them as long as possible. My boss assured me that if I find something full time, I will get a reference from him and his blessings to leave the trophy store. All he can offer me is part time and he knows it's not my career to be assembling trophies lol.. what a great person to be working for :D
So wish me luck as we enter into week two and pray with me that the taxman and OSAP don't kick me in the butt at the same time.
Xoxox

Looking At The World Negatively...

      The other day I spent over an hour taking pictures in my backyard with my cell phone and discovered how different the world can look through a lens. Then I remembered that my cell phone's camera has a option to change the effects on it to black&white and to negative. So then I spent another hour with my very interested and extremely intelligent four year old niece looking through my camera at the world around us in negative. 

On behalf of my niece and myself, I'd like to show you what our world looked like on that very fine spring day in this merry month of May: 

Cool right? If you've ever wondered what the world might look like in blue and purple, now you know :) 

The green leaves turned purple, the tree trunk browns turned grey; reds turned aqua and light browns and yellows and oranges turned blue as well.  Depending on the way that the light was hitting whatever I was taking photos of, and also how the light was entering into the lens, it changed into bright white-ish hues of light colour. Really neat right? 

Comment if u like, im working on some transition pictures right now and will post about them another day soon. 

Have a good weekend :) 

XoXo

Slightly behind on my posts..

The last three weeks of April have been positively crazy... i went to a concert, journeyed to Manitoba and dropped my brand new not even one month old cell phone and cracked the screen in the upper left corner...

The last of those listed above greatly contributed to my lack of posting as of late but now i intend on making up for it as best as possible.

To begin with, allow me to share with you the highlights of my concert experience.
       4 friends and i went to see the Canadian Folk/Pop group Great Big Sea in concert here in our home town. It was an amazing show! The band hails from Newfoundland and are currently celebrating 20 (or XX) years. I bought a t-shirt (FYI.. womens shirts at concerts are made much much smaller for many reasons- primarily poor fabric choice- therefore if you normally wear a large or x-large you will likely find yourself just barely fitting into the ladies 2x and might even opt to wear a mens medium or large..if u feel bad about sizes just remember that its not you- its the shirt) and we sat up in the first balcony which was perfect. We could see everything and the sound was amazing- Hamilton Place is made for that though and i suspect the experience and sound quality would have been less enjoyable standing on the grass in the Molson Ampatheatre a few towns over from here. Allan Doyle and his gang of sea-mates put on a ridiculously awesome show-provided youre interested in sea-faring songs, mermaids and love. The old-tyme folk songs that are given new twists blend right in with the more contemporary sounds of their pop songs and balance quite nicely to showcase the talents of these men who have been perfecting their art for twenty years and have remained rather popular for a Canadian group... perhaps anyone can enjoy being thrown out onto the sea of no cares or ranting and roaring like true newfoundlanders.

Check out the stage:

Habemus Papam!!!!

Yesterday the Cardinals in the Conclave finally reached an agreement and the white smoke rose high and mighty from the smoke stack in Rome... The world has been Blessed with a Pope for 2013. 

The white smoke signifies that a new Pontiff has been chosen..

Since the world didn't end back in December 2012, this new year has to be about change and progression and a renewed hope and faith in God and his servants and society.

Here are some pictures of the new Pontiff, His Holiness Pope Francis I

 

Such an adorable countenance and very true to the image of Peter..

My absolute favourite picture of the new Pope!! Adorable

Personally, I think this man simply looks Pontiff-like, don't you? His visage and personage seem to exude humility and reverence, holiness and fullness of the Spirit.  The Lord definitely knew where he to send the HS when His Holiness Benedict XVI sent up his prayer of resignation... 

Funny thing about faith... You just don't know where God will send the Holy Spirit... Another one of the wondrous mysterious ways of the Lord.

Prayers of Thanksgiving must continue to be sent up in these days as the Christian world rejoices that the Chair of Peter is no longer vacant...

 Habemus Papam Fransciscum!!

We Have... His Holiness Pope Francis I

The usefulness of a degree in English Lit..

       When I got home tonight my parents were watching EWTN (the Global Catholic Television Network) and was immediately called into the television room.  They were broadcasting one of their half hour weekly segments of the program called "Catholicism On Campus" which is hosted by Msgr. Stuart Swetland who explores the teachings of the Catholic Church with the students of Mount St. Mary's University, Maryland USA. Tonight the theme of the discussion was "Catholic Liberal Arts: Why They Still Matter" and he had Robert Prescott, PhD with him to talk about his book Why to major in English if You're Not Going to Teach.  

       No wonder my mother was so anxious for me to hear the discussion- Many people in my family, mom included, feel that my degree in English is "useless towards my future". So I sat down with mom and dad and lo and behold, Dr. Prescott dispelled all the doubt surrounding my "worthless" degree choice... 

       In his book, Prescott discusses the importance of English Lit with regards to one's own secular vocation (i.e career choice) and in tonight's discussion he was asked to describe the skills that are garnered through the study of English by one of the students present. He provided the following answer,

(bear with me here, I was typing it out onto my rapidly dying cell phone's notepad app):

-Empathy; excellence in writing is that your message is tailored to the needs of your audience, rather than the correctness of your grammar. Your writing should be a gift to others.

-Analytical skills: when you study and analyse the written word you are then able to look at even the most complex issues from all points of view and see all sides to the story.

-Humble attitude: You learn that "I am NOT the last word" and to welcome the back and forth that thorough discussion allows.  When you write or discuss what you are reading, you open yourself up to criticism and learn to welcome it, saying "please tell me where i am wrong, and take me forward".

-Interpersonal communication skills: While you can be trained and taught proper writing structure, grammar skills etc, no one can truly train you to write. No more than they can train you how to Think. Studying English Literature, in any and all forms, can and will help you gain the skill sets necessary to be a functioning, thinking member of all areas of society.

       Another question posed to Prof. Prescott during the segment was the following: How do you see your work sanctifying the world?" His answer definitely helped me feel better about my current situation- searching for my secular vocation (a.k.a finding a job/career). Prescott answered that in English, its not the vocational training but the skills to immediate and peace-make in the world that you gain.  You gain the skills to lead a fractious people to consensus- i.e High Leadership Skills. You can put yourself into the shoes of those around you, and incline yourself to seek the truth with these others; It is communal- Communication...English cannot be done alone. Respect and affection with and for others and their thoughts and views is greatly needed. 

       Prescott was further asked How important is the study of poetry? and he gave his admittedly biased opinion that Poetry is rather necessary when one wants to understand the world and those around themselves who are in it.  He  proposed that there is not one person walking on earth who does not have in their heart and mind a favourite lyric, or hymn or song- the words in lyric touch everyone deeply. Poetry is words in lyric that touch each person everywhere in life, speaking to the deepest recesses of our person, connecting us as loving human beings.  Poetry is dense but provides the reader/listener with the "trues" of heart, mind and spirit and help us better engage with one another.  

       Dr. Robert Prescott, along with Msgr. Swetland, further urged their student audience to think of the psalms that are written in "the word" (a.k.a the Bible) and to consider that even poetry was at the center of Jesus' life while he walked on earth. The psalms are the words in lyric that teach us the greatest messages about -not only- God's love for us, but how we should love one another.  Therefore, words-literature-English, also have their place of importance within spiritual life and religious vocation.

The segment concluded with Monseigneur and the Professor reiterating to the students (and those of us watching at home) that English Lit will definitely help you in your secular vocations because while you can be taught to "do", you cannot be trained to think.

I'm so happy I caught this 30 minute program and I urge any one interested in  learning more about this subject to check out both Robert Prescott's book “Why to Major in English If You’re Not Going to Teach” Kendall Hunt Publishing Company, 2010. and Msgr. Stuart Swetland's series on the Global Catholic Television Network's site at:

http://www.ewtn.com/series/2006/fall2006/Campus.htm

Tonight's episode was: 

CATHOLICISM ON CAMPUS: CATHOLIC LIBERAL ARTS: WHY THEY STILL MATTER

You can find out more about Dr. Robert Prescott and his book at:
http://www.bradley.edu/academic/departments/english/news/story.dot?id=175433

I know i'm certainly going to be finding a copy of Prescott's book as soon as possible to help me further understand the worth of my English degree towards the ever-on-going search for my secular vocation.

If you wanna talk about this some more or would like more info on anything from this post, drop a comment or throw an email my way :)

XOXO
C

Another Snowy Day Here in Canada

 It's a winter wonder-land!!!

       The weather network has been calling for this 25 cm snow storm since Wednesday and at around 4 this morning we finally got it! As it stands we have about 2 feet of snow, the cars and windows and doors and sidewalks and roads are absolutely buried. All the schools were closed for a "snow day" and I didn't have to go into the church office today. Which means we have a full house here; mom, dad, my sister, myself and the birds. We woke up late, had a toast and eggy breakfast of sorts and have been chatting with my sister and niece in Winnipeg ever since- they have been living in this perpetual winter wonderland since before Christmas. SO if you're planning of visiting Canada right now, don't bother!

       I've spent the last few hours sitting at my kitchen table blogging, with my copy of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray to my left and my fancy blue-willow china loose-leaf steeping mug to my right:

The loose-leaf basket is sitting on the steeping lid.. neat right?
Isn't it soo cute?

All Time Favourite 18th Cent. Novel <3

   Here are some shots on my front and back yards to show you the result of our current weather situation here: 

Snow up the North side of the house

Close up of the same window.. Covered in snow.

Backyard

Outside one of the backyard facing windows:
my moms handing basket is covered!

You might not be able to tell, but there are two Muskoka lounge chairs
to the right of the shed.. pretty much covered.

The bush and tree that separate our front yard
with our neighbour's yard.

The evergreen bush that grows in front of our house
- shot from the living room window-

The tree's that surround our backyard are
covered in beautiful fluffy snow.

There is nothing in the world more beautiful than the forest clothed to its very
hollows in snow.  It is the still ecstasy of nature, wherein every spray, every
blade of grass, every spire of reed, every intricacy of twig, is clad with radiance.

-William Sharp-

       I feel that Winter is a time for us to sit on our rarely used living-room furniture and gaze out at the beauty of a world covered in light; I feel a renewed sense of Hope. 

I hope you're reading this from somewhere nice and warm... as for me, I'm going to steep some more Jade Dragon Mao Feng and try to get through at least 100 pages of TPDG.

Drop me a comment or an e-mail and we can "talk about the weather" if you like ;) 

XOXO

C

A Little Taste of the Old Country...

Last night my mom pulled out one of her Italian recipe books, Italy al Dente by Biba Caggiano and we decided to go through it and look up how to make pasta for manicotti from scratch- which is one of our favourite things to do :) 

So we flipped through it and came across Biba's recipe for Tortelloni with Swiss Chard, spinach, ham and ricotta- or to us Italians- Tortelloni con Biete, Spinaci, Prosciutto e Ricotta. And we decided to try it out!

So my sister and I set to work making the pasta dough and the impasto (filling) and ended up with very tasty tortelloni for dinner.  From start to finish, it took us about 4 hours but it was soo worth it because there is just nothing better than fresh home made pasta. 

Here are some pictures of our delicious masterpiece.. Enjoy!

This is how it all begins.. 

Pretty Dough Ball :D

This is the way we kneed the Dough...

Make sure you wrap your dough in cling wrap (plastic wrap)
and let it rest for at least 20 mins before rolling

All the little Tortelloni in a row

Remember to graciously flour your plate or the pasta will stick and you'll  have wasted time and effort to end up with nothing but a giant gooey gluey mess.

A simple sugo finto (light fresh tomato sauce)
suits any pasta wonderfully

Keep an eye on your pasta when cooking, because if you don't stir occasionally, it'll stick together in a big clump or to the bottom of your pot.

Biba suggests that a large wide rimmed shallow pot is best when cooking this kind of pasta (along with gnocci, tortellini, capelletti, ravioli etc)

ooooo soooo shiny....

Its best to pull one tortellone out to test if its cooked enough.. 

Strain them a few at a time and dump them directly
into the sauce as its still simmering... yum!

This book was published in 1998

This is the recipe we went off of... FYI we Italians do not appreciate or endorse the replacement of prosciutto for "ham"... ugh!

Thanks Biba!!!!

If you're interested in knowing how to make sugo finto, here are some simple steps to help you out.  P.s you'll never go back to Ragu again! 

You'll need:

-Canned whole Italian tomato's (aka plum tomatos)- 2 cans with serve 4-6 people

-fresh garlic

-olive oil

-salt and pepper

-fresh basil 

Instructions:

-Crush your whole canned tomato's in a bowl with your hands, or put them through a manual tomato sieve or crusher. 

-Add a 1 inch wide circle of olive oil into a large skillet/frying pan and warm, add crushed and chopped garlic (minced or slivered) and brown- FYI if you burn your garlic, you CANNOT use the oil, it's disgusting! so pay attention to your garlic and don't have the heat on too high. If you don't like to eat garlic you can take it out after its browned, or replace the garlic with chopped onions (pay attention when browning onions too.. same grossness issue if they burn).

-Add your now squished tomato's and bring them to a simmer. 

-Carefully drop 3-4 medium or large size fresh basil leaves in the center of the pan and drop a tiny bit of olive oil onto each leaf (this helps infuse the basil further). --

once the basil leaves have turned dark, your sauce is pretty much done (you can also pull out the basil if you don't like to see green things lol) 

-Add your salt and pepper to taste and let it simmer on medium to low heat for about 10 minutes. 

-Stir and add your pasta

-The longer you leave the sauce on low heat, the thicker it'll become.  

-Keep in mind, the joy of sugo finto is having a thinner, lighter sauce with tomato chunks.

-Pull your pasta out of the boiling water and put it right into the sauce and toss it.  When you drain your pasta completely and it dries, it won't absorb the sauce as well. 

-The sauce will be ready to use by the time the pasta is cooked (although keep in mind that certain pasta's take a little longer than others i.e spaghetti versus tortelloni).

Anyway, thats my sauce- Hope you enjoyed my post... 

XOXO

C

p.s Drop me a comment, if you want the full recipe or just wanna say HI.. always look forward to getting an e-mail as well. So don't be a stranger! <3