Pro: I went downtown on Monday to try a class at Heavens Elevated Fitness. The class was called Cardio Extreme and it was true to its word. The entire hour was jumping and jacking and high-kneeing and everything imaginable to get my heart rate up. A lot of it was somewhat choreographed- and me being the most uncoordinated person ever- I ended up improvising with a ton of jumping and clapping until I fell back into the rhythm. PS: The facilities are REALLY nice.
Con: I can’t stop eating carbs this week. I guess my body needs it, but jeeze that cheese pull apart bread from Cobs Bread has been screaming at me from the kitchen to just eat.it.all.
Pro: I just changed my email address to my married name. And went to the US Consulate office yesterday morning to have my name changed on my Passport and Social Security card. Let me just say that that office was the first place I’ve felt special since moving here. They gave me preference in every line and rather than waiting for an hour PER change (1 for passport and 1 for ss card) I was in and out in 20 minutes. To be honest, I think I was the only American in there and everyone else was just applying for visas to travel to the States. America for the win! (Well, at least for yesterday!)
Con: I got turned down from another job. People keep telling me to keep my head up and that there’s something out there for me. Which I believe…..but after being unemployed for 531 days. (that’s right, I’m keeping track) it’s hard to keep EVERY negative thought out of my mind. Is there some sort of vendetta against me? There aren’t any typos on ANY of my resumes and I have so much education and experience and enthusiasm to offer at any position. Yet still….nothing. I just don’t understand. To further..it really just makes me feel that life is on hold. I know, I planned a wedding and life is all happy happy in the partner department, but I still feel that even BOTH of us are just waiting to progress in our lives together..with the first step being me getting a job. Comprende? If I don’t get a job, we don’t travel. If I don’t get a job, we don’t have kids. If I don’t get a job, we’ll never get our dream home. If I don’t get a job, I will forever have puppy syndrome when Tyler comes home and the man NEEDS. HIS. SPACE. I get it. OHHHHHHHHH And if I don’t get a job, I don’t have the opportunity to meet people.
Which brings me to my next point (Consider this a Con, extended): You know when people ask you how you are and you always respond “good?” Well, that’s the same thing when people ask me how I like Calgary. I tell them I love it (Don’t get me wrong, there are good points like ummm my husband and my dogs and the beautiful scenery) but I don’t really. At least, not yet. I am still working on making friends– I just really miss my gym friends, my home friends, and the ability for last-minute meet-ups. I just can’t quite get the hang of how people socialize here- and I don’t want to entirely submit to it! And the fact that NO ONE wants to hire me. WTF is that? Or that just because I am the minority here and spell things differently and still have trouble counting out toonies and loonies (I MISS THE DOLLAR BILL, Y’ALL) and am just not CANADIAN doesn’t mean I have to be so isolated.
[Please don’t leave negative comments here, I got some last week that really prompted this con]
Pro: I’m done with that rant. I’m not writing it to make you all feel bad for me, it just feels better to write and publish than to keep bottled inside. So if you hated the post, forget about it, because the next one will probably be funny. I guarantee that as soon as I press Publish I will feel better and immediately regret writing the whole thing. But it is what it is.
Con: If you make apple chips, you will EAT THEM ALL. They are so good. So technically, this is a pro?
Pro: I bought my first pair of Lululemon SHORTS yesterday- courtesy of a gift card from my MIL. Still not sure how I feel about them, so I’m going to keep the tags on and wear them around the house (aka: run up and down the halls and do jump squats) to see if they’ll fit the bill.
Give me a pro and a con from you!
nutcaseinpoint 
Cute shorts!!! I used to go to classes at Heavens too, so nice! And kick butt. Jobs are hard to find, I hope something comes up for soon, it must be a pain having to keep interviewing. 😦 I feel for ya. You and me and carbs. BFFs for sure.
I’m mostly optimistic, but when the negativity starts brewing, i just have to get it out!!!!
I hate that you feel this way! For the job search I cannot imagine how frustrating it is. Do you ever ask why they did not hire you? It was something I learned to always ask, so did – sometimes it was lame but other times I had good feedback for sure. Just thinking of ideas 🙂 But know that the perfect job will come your way.
I’ve asked for feedback on every jobs that I’ve been turned down and haven’t gotten a single response!!!! ah well, at least I know I’m trying! 🙂
I think you are right – you are trying! I cannot believe they cannot take a few mins to outline why not. I would be annoyed too. You are doing everything you can 🙂 I still wish there was some way I could help you out! You worked in marketing before right?
my only marketing ‘stuff’ is an internship in undergrad, and extra certificate classes during my Masters…only professional exp is in AR- so I have separate resumes for each!
One other comment… sorry. This is only because I work for the Chamber here, but what about attending some of the Calgary Chamber functions, they have free networking tradeshows monthly – probably starting in Sept in the evenings and might get connected there? I know its awkward but it is an idea. Or any business group would work!
gotcha– i’ll be on the lookout! thanks
I love the lulu shorts! I have many pairs and no complaints about them. I don’t get chafing from running in them (some people do), so I guess that’s a good thing. When we moved to Calgary, we knew two people (those two ppl are family), so I can understand what you are going through. I met people through blogging, soccer, working out, etc. Yes, I met people through work, but no one is my age so I don’t hang out with many outside of work.
Re: job hunt. Are you focusing on a very specific type of position? What about working at lulu or a gym in the mean time so at least you have money coming in?
I think I’m just looking for separate social interaction so that I can fully enjoy those who I do see regularly…just for sanity!!! I’ve been on the hunt for part time jobs, and every time I get gung ho on it, I get a call back for a ‘real’ interview, so it’s always stunted.
Can’t wait to try the shorts! No shorts ever fit my frame the way I want to so that I can comfortably workout.
Love the shorts!
Bummer on the job front. When my husband and I were first married he took me to Kansas (which might as well have been another country) and it was really hard to meet people and get established (plus he was gone over half the time for his job). Hopefully soon you will feel like it is truly your home!
im hoping soon!!! thanks 🙂
You may have already looked at this but I’ve heard meetups are one way. When I lived in Edmonton for a short time, it helped get me out of yhe house.
Pro. I have a tan this summer
Con. I have yet to get more than 5 hours of straight sleep at a time and my kid is over a year now. Sleep training does not work for every kid.
i’ve tried a few things, but nothing ever sticks with the people ive met!
I have never bought those shorts as I’m afraid of a potential peep show when I’m teaching! but have a few pairs of their spandex wunder under shorts and LOVEEEE them!!!
they have built in undies
Good to know!
Keep your head up about the job sit.! It’s not easy, even for people who’ve been here all their lives. I know how disappointing it is to be so close to something and then get turned down. Have you ever considered volunteering in your field? Or just volunteering in general? It’ll get you out of the house and help you network. If you volunteer outside of your field, you might find a whole new interest (and job prospect!). I know working for free sucks, but sometimes that’s what you have to do. Living proof right here…ha
Con: I just ate some chocolate covered peanuts
Pro: I just ate some chocolate covered peanuts.
i have volunteered that the Y but it fell through when someone else took over. I can’t seem to find any open internships because they tend to feed on recent grads. i’ve had some leads but either have been too late to the gate or things just fall through.
While I can only sympathize on the job situation, I do know what it’s like having your life on hold waiting for something. When we built our first condo they told us it would take 1.5 years, which was perfect timing. We were getting married in a year (lived separately) and so it would allow us more time to save (esp since my hubs was still in school). It ended up taking 2.5 years which was hell. We felt like we couldn’t do anything because they only needed to give us 30 days notice of possession so we never really knew when we were moving. While it was a good investment, it was barely worth the wait.
How do people socialize here that you can’t get the hang of? Just interested in knowing how it’s different from where you are from. It’s interesting to see the cultural difference between Canada and Finland, where my SIL is from. Obviously I would expect there to be much greater differences between those 2 countries than Canada and the US.
I have a few pairs of lulu shorts and none of them I love. My legs are my least fav part so I’m pretty sure there aren’t any shorts out there that will make me love them! That being said, I think those are the shorts that were the other option for the SeaWheeze special edition race shorts and I chose the ridiculously short ones because the track shorts looked really baggy. Still regretting that decision… I need to do more leg exercises since I hate them so much and running is only helping them marginally. Any exercise you recommend for toning legs?
i think my main thing is that i jumped right from a single life with all my friends surrounding me right to married life with Tyler’s married friends. I just wasnt ready for all couple get togethers and having been thrown right into conversations about home ownership and babies. I just miss having girl time that doesnt require planning weeks in advance- and that’s where I have struggled– to find people who can do the same.