New Job

I get to wear scrubs!

I got a new job. The chocolate shop wasn’t working out. So, I abruptly quit and spent 5 days searching full time for a new job. I focused my search (craigslist.com) on finding a job as a dental assistant and also applied to some bakeries and restaurants because my resume just doesn’t support my ambition to work the field of dentistry. (I just felt so guilty for what I was doing to people's teeth by creating sugary temptations I felt I had to make up for it by working in a dental office...just kitting). Later on one evening right before going to bed I checked craigslist one last time and found a position open for a dental receptionist very close to our apartment. I quickly created a cover letter and e-mailed that along with my resume. Matt told me I should stop in just to show that I was serious about the job. This turned out to be good advice. The next day as I was thinking about the job I felt good about it and prayed I would get the job. I went out and found the place and stepped inside. I introduced myself to the current receptionist who in turn introduced me to the dentist. He was very surprised and said to me, “But I haven’t set up any interviews yet; I just posted the job last night…” I reassured him that I was just stopping by so that when he saw my resume he would know who I was. He decided to interview me and set me up to do a working interview for the next day for the full day. Yahoo! So I worked/observed the next day and talked to the dentist several times to touch base. At noon he expressed desires to still interview other candidates to see what his options were (which makes sense since I have no experience whatsoever in dentistry or being a receptionist). By 5:00 he offered me the job saying he felt good about me. He gave me a dollar increase from my last job. Now I work 8:45 to 5:15 M-F and I have benefits, better working environment and hours, a genuinely nice boss, and am learning the “family business”. Matt was very happy. He asked me: “So, how does it feel to be starting the job you will have for the rest of your life?” There is a lot to learn and to be totally honest I really would rather be doing assisting, hands on stuff, but I feel very blessed to have gotten what I got. It is strange to have a job sitting all day though…my feet are like haaaa. It has been difficult being the new girl in a small office of only 5 employees total but it is working out. Now Matt and I can discuss dental stuff and he doesn’t have to hear me go on about crazy people and chocolate. The Lord will help us as long as we do our part.

Yummy Mess

I was whipping some cream for a dessert on Sunday using my new hand blender which is SO handy and I wasn’t paying attention and got cream everywhere!! Matt helped me clean it up…with his tongue!

It's Official!

This afternoon I met up with Julee in Times Square and officially signed away my life to Uncle Sam! If you didn't know, I have been in the process of signing up with the Air Force for the last several months now. Today I took the Oath of Office in the center of times square. How exiting! As I did it I knew that I was doing the correct thing. Not having an idea of what I would be swearing to I thought the oath very powerful:

I, [name], do solemnly swear, (or affirm,) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. (So help me God.)


After that it took only about 50 initials and 20 signatures and now I am US property. I will finish school normally and then afterwards will be a dentist for the Air Force for the next 20 years. Just kidding only three. They will be paying my tuition and giving me a stipend for the last three years of school. After that I don't know where we will go other than it will be where they tell us to. Maybe we will luck out and go to Hawaii or Germany. But then again maybe we will be sent to Mt. Home Idaho.

After all was said and done I was so exited, it made me feel very patriotic.

For those of you who have never heard of the oath of office (probably everyone) this is what it says on Wikipedia:

The Oath of Office is a solemn oath taken by officers of the United States Uniformed Services on commissioning. It differs slightly from that of the oath of enlistment that enlisted members recite when they enter the service. It is statutory (i.e. required by law) and is prescribed by Section 3331, Title 5, United States Code[1]. It is traditional for officers to recite the oath upon promotion but as long as the officer's service is continuous this is not actually required.[2] One notable difference between the officer and enlisted oaths is that the oath taken by officers does not include any provision to obey orders; while enlisted personnel are bound by the Uniform Code of Military Justice to obey lawful orders, officers in the service of the United States are bound by this oath to disobey any order that violates the Constitution of the United States.

Pets

I have almost always had a pet. They are fun and make things seem more like home. The only problem is that pets and Manhattan don't mix well, and I didn't want to add to the mess on the sidewalks. So I did the responsible thing and got a fish tank for my birth day.

We went to the pet store with Chandler (we were babysitting him, he is five) and bought five gold fish. I am not a big fan of gold fish but they were cheep and I needed some fish to get the pH right before I got more expensive fish.

One fish though didn't like being taken from his 150 other buddies and went on a hunger strike. I have never understood why people (or fish) do hunger strikes. How does going hungry make people give you what you want? Well I wasn't going to take any attitude from a fish and so I had to let him go...

Drilling

This is my first entry on "our" blog! Matt has been doing this single handed until now. A couple of days before Matt's b-day I made Funfetti cupcakes and took them to school to celebrate his 27th birthday with his fellow students and friends. We had a rather dry get together (I forgot to bring milk) in a side room on the 6th floor of the NYU Dental Center. Since I didn't have work that day Matt burrowed a friends lab coat, thanks Ryan, and I headed into the lab with 120 other students wearing white lab coats. (I fit right in...only I was the only girl with a lab coat that was 10 times to big!) I watched Matt insert an Amalgam filling into a plastic premolar in a dummy's permanently open mouth.

(not actual tooth)
It was pretty cool. I left while he finished up his requirement for the day and then I got to go back up and do some drilling!


I wasn't very good at it. The thought of doing that on real teeth in a real person's mouth is scary!! I am glad it is Matt training for this and not me. Good luck all you dental students; keep up the good work!

How Cold?

How cold was it today? Frozen piss cold!





Julee and I both had the morning off today and so we set out to explore. When the alarm clock woke us up the radio said that it was 15 degrees out. That might not sound all that impressive to those who live in Rexburg or other places were it is that cold all winter, But believe me there is a big difference between dry cold and humid cold! We bundled up and headed out. I was wearing two coats and so was Julee, it made me feel like I was Ralphie's little brother off of the Christmas Story. It actually took effort to put my arms down.

When walking in Manhattan an important survival skill you learn quick is watching were you step. If you don't pay attention you are guaranteed to step in several little presents left by the local population of little rats people call dogs around here. This morning something was different though. The piss was frozen! This set me off on a tangent about how ranking things on a scale of one to ten is too easily exaggerated. When speaking about how cold it is, it should be: "on a scale of one to frozen piss." That way when someone asks how cold it is you can say it is frozen piss cold, and they will know one, that it is really cold, and two, that you are not just exaggerating or comparing it to...lets say, the weather in Florida.



After that excitement we got on the 6 train and headed up to the end of the line to Pelham Bay Park. The park is part of the Bronx and is the biggest park in New York. Julee and I stopped at a diner for breakfast and then spent an hour exploring a small section of the park. We saw a WWI monument, ran through leafs, saw gees, walked on a beach, thought about swimming, and lastly skated on a frozen pond. Wow it was nice to get out of the city and at certain spots you couldn't even see any tall buildings! It was cool to be able to get close to the water and smell the coast.

Christmas in New York

Julee and I celebrated our first Christmas alone. Last year we were still living in Rexburg and were able to hang out with Natalie, Jared, and Julee's grandparents. Christmas in New York was fun; it was like living in a movie. Julee worked hard making Chocolates and I worked at an out doors store selling mostly coats. For me it is now a relief to be able to take a vacation from work and start going to school again.



A week or so before Christmas there was a stake Messiah sing along. When it was first announced I thought it sounded nice, but probably not. Then in church I heard someone talking about how great it was. We ended up going and WOW! It was awesome! There were about 10 people playing stringed instruments, a trumpet, drum, and best of all a base, tenor, soprano, and alto. When the tenor got up and sang the first part it blew me away how loud he could sing. From there the night only got better. Julee and I tyred to sing along when the congregation was supposed to sing the chorus parts but after I sang out of place twice when nobody else was making any noise we stopped. The base could sing louder than scream. By far the best music that I have ever heard around Christmas. What talent in the stake!




On Christmas eave Julee and I met up in Grand Central Station after work and then went for a walk over to Rockefeller Center to look at the huge tree there. It was beautiful, very big compared to most Christmas trees and very small compared to the buildings. Unfortunately it was really packed with people (mostly tourists).





When Christmas morning finally came we opened our presents and enjoyed not having to work. We both missed out families and were grateful for the miracle of cell phones that allowed us to call everyone. Julee received a hanging Jewelry box and earrings form me, and she gave me a Beautiful Blanket she made for me, a beautiful journal, and a pair of shoes.



Christmas was Wonderful for us and We hope it brought you closer to Christ.