Apartment Hunting!

Wow, again it has been awhile since I have post anything on here. It has been pretty stressful, we are apartment hunting. We have to be out of our apartment by the 10th so we are in a rush to find something we like. We have had a bit of a hard time finding something in Berkeley. Many of the apartments are overpriced and not well kept in Berkeley, I am guessing because of UC Berkeley being so close. I went and saw some apartments that were about the same price that we pay now but about 5x worse and then some that have extremely small bedrooms that would not fit a double size bed with some reason a big kitchens or some with really small kitchens. The good thing is since some of the apartments are older a lot of them have hardwood floors which is nice since most of the apartments with carpet needed the carpet replaced! We have one apartment here in Berkeley that a friend showed us that we may be interested in but we are just checking all our other options because since the lease is for one year we want to make sure we have seen all the apartments possible. We also checked in San Francisco since Antonio wants to live there sooooo bad in the Marina. We actually did find a few that were not as expensive as we thought they would be but it is so hard to get an apartment there since there are so many applying for the same apartment! But we will see what apartment God provides us. We did procrastinate and that is why we are in such a rush now. I kind of had a mini meltdown on Sunday since I felt like we were not going to find something in time and we would have to be out of our current apartment with no place to put our stuff but I am feeling pretty calm now and we are planning to have something set up by Friday or Saturday. We have 3 apartments to see today and 1-2 tomorrow and hopefully that is it!!!! So I am hoping the next pictures you see will be of our new apartment!

A quick update

Hey just a quick update...I have another interview with a health clinic. I have had an interview with the place before at a different location but they have filled that particular position and passed my application to another location. Both jobs are for a Health Educator position but the topics that I would be educating clients on for this position maybe a bit different just because it is for Teens. This clinic has many locations and hire many bilinguals due to the clinic focusing on families who don't speak English or don't have a lot of money. I hope that when they tell me more about the position that it would be something that really interests me! I ask for you all to pray for me that my interview will go smoothly, that I won't get too nervous, and that my words would come out clear.
I will keep you all updated :)

Interview

I finally had my first interview for a full time position. I had just sent the application about a week ago and they called me for a group interview. At the time I really didn't know what they meant. I figured it was like the one I had for Early Head Start where there were 4 or 5 people from the program that interviewed me at the same time. I have to admit at first I didn't even want to apply, it looked like it would be an emotionally draining place to work and I just didn't know if I wanted to have a job that I couldn't wait to find something else. But, I decided I would since Antonio was encouraging me to just apply since a girl he works with used to be a receptionist there and said if I got an interview she would put in a good word for me.
So I went to the interview thinking that I need to be positive because this may turn into something I might really enjoy. When they told me it was going to be a group interview they meant that there was going to be 5 other girls applying for the same or different position all sitting together around 1 big table. It was nice because it felt like everyone was just answering questions when they wanted to but it also made it hard to know who the interviewer liked and didn't like.  So, I really don't know how well I did but as I heard who I would be working with I gradually thought that it really was not the job for me.
The center is for children who have been abused, neglected, or have been in foster homes multiple times and have no where else to go because no one else will take them. The center is for severely emotionally disturbed children. I would have chose to work with the preschoolers ages 2-6 and she said that we would have to be ok with children biting, spitting, hitting us, and we would have to learn how to hold a child down if they were out of control and causing harm to themselves. My heart goes out to those little kids but I believe that it takes a certain type of person to be able to work with children like that. I am sad that parents are neglectful and are not responsible parents but I'm not sure if I am the one to work with those children. I was thinking maybe 2-6 year olds wouldn't be that bad, I maybe would get bit once in a while or something but there is hope to change those little ones but the more I thought about it...I don't want someone to bite or hit me. I have thought about if I am chosen for a 2nd and 3rd interview I would go and see what happens and if offered the job to just take it so I can make some extra money until I find something I enjoy but they don't really pay that much, they actually pay less than what I was making in Nebraska. Which is really bad in California since the cost of living is higher! So, the search is still on unfortunately! But thought I would keep you all updated :)

A job!

Well I have some exciting news...I am not unemployed anymore! Today Pea in a Pod called me again to offer a little more on their salary.  I decided to go ahead and take the job. I figured that when I found a full time job I would deal with any problems that may arise. This store never mentioned committing for a year like the other store did so I am hoping that if I do find a full time job that I will not have any problems with that. It may take months for me to find something else and this job seems to be pretty nice. It is nice that it is fairly close to home, about 4 miles which takes 10-15 minutes to drive. I start filling out paperwork on Friday afternoon. I hope I made the right decision and that it is a good job!

Interview

Some of you may know that I had an interview last week. I had applied for A Pea in a Pod at a nearby mall, thinking that it would be a good temporary job. Last week a different store which is much bigger and is a Destination Maternity/ Pea in a Pod combo store in Walnut Creek called and said they got my name from the other store and would like to see me. I went in for the interview and almost thought I would be late due to the traffic being so bad. Google map does not tell you how bad traffic can be haha.  At the end of the interview they told me that if I were to work for them I would have to commit to them for 1 year. They continued to tell me that even if I got another job I would have to fulfill my commitment with them working at least 1 day a week. It seemed  logical because they don't want to take the time to train women all the time but since it was in a different city it didn't seem so logical for me to work there for that long only part-time. So, they told me to think it over and call them back in a few days. I had a hard time making the decision because I really need a job and it actually would have been a good job working with pregnant women and that is where my passion is but, I felt like I wouldn't be a good employee if I couldn't commit to them for a year. I decided if I am going to commute that far it would need to be full time. I called them to let them know that I was not interested and I really needed to find something that was full time. SO...now that you have more info than you probably wanted to know the main point is that I am still looking for a job! I don't mind if it is part time or full time as long as the commute is worth me driving or taking BART so I would be making money. I spent late last night applying for 3 more jobs, so hopefully something will come up soon. I ask that you keep me in your prayers, that someone will call me soon for an interview, that I would find a good fit and that it would be somewhere close!

Updates

I haven't posted in a while so I thought I would post an update. Not much going on at all here actually, that is why I haven't posted haha. This weekend was a long weekend since Antonio didn't have to work on Monday. We went to an Indian restaurant with a new intern that Antonio works with from Germany and had a nice dinner and ice cream. I made a really good beef stew that was very delicious thanks to a recipe that my mom gave me and I got some knitting and crocheting done as I watched some old episodes of American Dreams.  I haven't heard a word from any of the employers that I gave applications/resumes to this last week or so, so needless to say that is a bummer. But that is what is going on over here in Cali.

NOW HIRING!

I finally decided it was time to just get a part time job until I got a job that was full time and in my specific expertise. I really wanted to find a job using my Spanish and/or working as a Certified Breastfeeding Educator. I have come to the realization that you cannot get a job as a medical interpreter in California unless you have taken a certification exam. So I looked into taking the exam and it is under revision and I am not able to take the exam until the revision is completed. So, I have been focusing more on finding a job that is working with pregnant women which is my real passion. I have applied for a few breastfeeding educator jobs at WIC but have received no answer and there really is not much out there at this time that is not working as a nurse in the OB unit in a hospital. So, I am going to continue to look for a job of that kind but until then it's time to find something else! So, this morning I have been on the move at a local mall because I called tons of stores yesterday and checked if they were hiring and to my surprise Loft, A Pea in a Pod, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Victoria Secrets are hiring and even though they are not hiring but are accepting applications I dropped a resume at Teacake Bakery which makes decorated cupcakes and cookies, yummm....there is also a Target that will be opening up the beginning of March that is hiring and I need to go online to apply. Near my apartment there is a very yummy gelato place called Lush that Antonio and I get gelato often and a cupcake and bakery shop called Love at First Bite that are accepting applications so I am hoping at least one of the jobs on that long list of jobs will call me! So, even though it is not what I expected it is necessary. I told myself I was never going to work retail again after working at K-mart for 4 years in college, but I am back to looking for a retail position. I am glad I was able to get that experience in college because it looks like it may come in handy and since I was at the customer service desk, sales floor, cash cage, and checkout supervisor it looks good on a resume. I only pray that God provides something soon before I get too discouraged that I am not qualified to do anything! So, that is my job status as of now and hope the next update will be about getting an interview!

A few pictures of my apartment

Here are a few pictures of the the outside of our apartment. We are almost done unpacking and once I put up my Christmas decor I will put up some of the inside!!!

Rooftop sitting area

The Building

Sunset view from the rooftop

Apartment Hunting...Still!

Yes we are still apartment hunting but finally it is coming to an end. We have been checking out Walnut Creek and we are seeing an apartment in the city today. So we have basically checked out the whole area...Berkeley, Rockridge, Jack London Square in Oakland, Walnut Creek, and finally today San Francisco. So, hopefully we decide and get all the paperwork done. I am just worn out from looking at so many places I can't wait till it is over and we can have our own place rather than stay in a hotel,which is nice at times and a pain on others.

Pictures of what we have seen so far, not much but they are nice!

 Here are a few pictures, some of when we were walking around I spotted some flowers that my husband recognized that he thought were like the ones like his grandmother used to have, which is always nice to see in the winter, some palm trees which are new to the eyes from where I am from, an outside flower shop, and finally a glass of water that we had at a Thai restaurant.

Palm Tree at the Claremont

Flower shop on Shattuck

Thai Restaurant glass of water

The Claremont Hotel Club and Spa (our hotel)

A view from our room

Claremont hotel tower

Our View from our hotel room!

Here it is all rainy today :(

Our Little Friend!!!

Here is our very nice hotel that my husband's company set us up in and a picture of our little friend this morning outside our window. I also added a picture from our view today and a view from yesterday, you can see that it has been yucky all day raining and misting. You cannot see across the bay anymore or the bridge but when it is sunny and not foggy you can see the Bridge in the distance.

Thursday Berkeley Market

Yesterday we went to the Market as we were on our way to Crepevine for Crepes. (Loved the Sweet Crepes, not so much the regular meal ones, (NUTELLA, STRAWBERRIES, NUTS! YUMMMMM!!!!!!) It is so nice to have fresh produce. There was one in our old city where we were but there are so many here and so many different things, I tried fruit that I have never even heard of. I should sell some of my crafts or bake...Hmmm... Anyways here are a few pictures and a picture of the pomegranates that we bought to have later!

So, we have arrived!

So we have arrived at our destination. There are many things that are different than I am used to. Pedestrians have the right of way and can just start walking in a pedestrian crossing section of the road and not even have to look, if you don't give them the right of way you can be fined a minimum of $104. Crazy, so sometimes you hardly see someone and they just start walking! What is nice is that everyone is walking and biking. We see a lot of parents with the little child seat connected, parents following their kids to school on their bike, or like my dad always wanted to make was the bikes that have a small bike connected (all one bike) for kids to ride behind and petal if they want to. There are so many places to eat from whatever country you want to try. We have hit a few ice cream places of course and they have been also great. I have noticed the in thing being boots, skinny jeans, and scarfs! Which is a cute chic look!! I guess I am still not convinced of living here yet I still miss home and feel like I should be going home soon, but I think that soon it will click in that I will be staying for a bit. This seems like a vacation. Our hotel is awesome, very nice called the Claremont hotel, everyone talks about how great it is. We have been walking so much I feel exhausted at the end of the day since we have been walking in the neighborhoods and trying to find where we want to live. It is also because once you find a parking spot you want to keep it, it is so hard to find parking here. You either have to have a specific parking permit for a certain area, pay, or you can only stay up to 2 hours in some parts of the streets. I think we have finally found the neighborhoods we like and so we are just waiting to find the perfect and reasonably priced apartment. Well that is all for now!