MyMart

So, most of you know that I’ve recently changed locations for my job. All of Mylan’s Morgantown IT and Legal departments consolidated into one location, rather than spread out over 4 locations around town. Our new building is what everyone around town refers to as “the OLD Wal-Mart” which is attached to the “old mall” which is a ghost town at best.

Mylan likes to cleverly add “My” to the beginning of many departments/ applications/ happenings that go on around here. For example, the application that my team developed is called “MyPortfolio”. We see and hear things like “MyOpportunity, MyRewards, MyUniversity”....you get the point. So it was only natural that when we found out we would be moving into the old Wal-Mart, that it became lovingly called “MyMart”. (only in certain circles, of course!). Now, of course, they renovated the old Wal-Mart, turning it into a sleek office building on the inside. You would never know that it was a Wal-Mart at one time...if it weren’t for the outside. That’s a pretty distinctive thing to have to change. So yes, the outside, greenhouse and all, still looks like a Wal-Mart without the sign (plus some windows...), but the inside is incredible. It was a great move for me because it’s around an 8 minute drive from my house!! This means that I don’t have to get caught in the middle of Morgantown during 5 o’clock traffic! It cuts down my evening commute about 40 minutes. Needless to say, I appreciate the move.

I mentioned that this Wal-Mart was attached to the “old mall”-the Mountaineer Mall. When it was a Wal-Mart, you could enter in, pass the food area on the left and hook a left into the mall (passing tons of WVU and Steelers gear, of course). They amended the entrance to the mall, making it “Mylan secure” with an incredibly complicated turnstile. To move from our office to the mall, you must swipe your badge over the sensor, step into the weight sensored circle and wait for the door to smoothly advance one space to drop you out on the other side. It sounds like a suction cup on the inside. If you mess up the timing, you’ll look silly just standing in the turnstile waiting for it to move. (I have passed that area several times only to see someone standing in this exact position wondering how this process actually works....and in case you were wondering...yes, I did help them:-)

If you master this process, you have won the right to enter into the Mall. Now, right around the time that the Wal-Mart moved out of this building (2005 I think), all of the stores began to leave this mall. The only remaining stores are Goodwill, another local Thrift store, a home store of some sorts, the social security office, a salon, a Subway, and a hot dog place. There are a few other random things like a senior center, but it’s hard to tell what they really are because there are no signs or advertisement giving away their locations. The main idea is that it’s old, and deserted. This also means that the mall has a certain “smell”....it’s like....hmm...moth balls....or what I like to refer to as “the old people smell”. (no offense to those of you that think you’re old....you’re not...so this doesn’t apply to you!) The “old people smell” is like a wave that smacks you in the face when you enter into the mall. It’s very strong and in every nook and cranny of the mall. Luckily, our office does not smell like this...yet! The only connection to the mall is this air tight turnstile. There is also a door that remains unlocked between the turnstile and the actual mall, but this does little to keep out the smell.

I was walking past this area last week and found a group of around 5 people standing there looking perplexed in front of the door. I immediately prepared myself to go into “tutorial mode” to explain the door function...but then realized that’s not why they were standing there. They were all sniffing...and asking what that smell was in this part of the building...in this portion of the hallway. So, being the nice, informative person that I am, leaned into their group (of whom I didn’t know any of them) and whispered...”it’s the old people smell from the mall”. They gasped! Our worst fear had come true....the smell was seeping in! Now we all fear that one day we will leave our office and our families will utter...”what’s that smell?” as we enter the door. That’s a bummer....

Before I depart from my description of MyMart, I must share my most recent discovery in the mall. A hurricane simulator. Yep, you read it right....a Hurricane Simulator! I was walking back from Subway or the hot dog place one day and noticed that this machine had just appeared in the middle of the hallway between thrift stores. At most malls, you would expect strange things like this...but who drops something like this into a deserted mall?? I was expecting to open the door and walk into the magical land of Narnia or something...very mystical. We got a coworker to try it out-Gus. Thanks to Gus, we now know that’s it’s difficult to breathe in 90 mph winds....Thanks Gus! 

All in all—it was a good move. I’m very thankful for MyMart and the opportunities that it holds within. Not to mention that MySubway has awesome cookies for only 49 cents a piece! MyScore!

God is good!

So isn't it amazing how God answers our prayers?  I mean, yes, we all know that verse, "ask you shall receive", but do we really believe it?  If we did, I'm sure that we'd be alot less stressed out about the things of life. 

My test yesterday was a success.  I really believe that God calmed my nerves for me.  The exam consists of 200 questions in 4 hours.  I spent the first three hours doing my first pass through the questions.  For these, I was calm, cool, and collected-very comfortable about my studies, focused on the task at hand, and not concerned with the outcome.  The computer allows you to mark any questions that you would like to return to later for review. So I spent the next 45 minutes reviewing those answers.  I did begin to get nervous and shakey when I had about 30 minutes left.  Not because I was nervous about the time, or about answering the questions correctly - but because I knew that as soon as I walked out of that room away from the computer, I would be given the results.  That scared me to death!  Forgot to pray about that :-)  All sorts of things were going through my mind at that point from, how am I going to react if I don't pass, to how the guy handing me the print out with the results would react if I didn't pass.  That would be a hard job.  I didn't want to make him uncomfortable.  Luckily--I didn't have to worry about that because I did pass, but my stomach was all in knots over it regardless!  And Adam, the guy who handed me my results (what are the chances that God gave him my husband's name??), gave them to me with a smile, proud that the person who had been in that testing room the longest had come out successful.  You see, the testing center had people there for all reasons--Clepping out of college courses, tests for jobs, and certification exams.  Not many of those last 4 hours, so I saw many people come and go during my time there.  I am thankful for my experience, and even more thankful, that I don't have to study anymore :-)  Praise the Lord!

Now, I can focus on my next journey in life...where will it take me? You'll just have to wait and find out :-)

Hopefully, this certification will bring better opportunity into Adam's and my lives.  Even if it doesn't, it is a huge confidence booster that I do have at least the knowledge to apply to Project Management.

Thank you all for your prayers--God did answer them--and the answer was YES :-)

I Passed!

Thank you all for your prayers for my PMP Exam!  It worked!  God really did calm my nerves and give me clarity during the test.  I did start to get jittery towards the end though knowing that I would find out immediately after taking the test if I passed or failed.  I passed!  Praise the Lord for answering all of our prayers!  We took a celebratory round of golf in for the afternoon and then dinner at Rod's house (by boss), with another coworker and her family.  Fun day...time for beddy-bye....good night faithful friends. :-)

This is me venting...

I need to vent so my mind will stop wondering...but I will not because it is not a positive or uplifting vent in any way!  So I will leave you with this quote that always makes me laugh :

"A life vest if to protect you from drowning.  A bullet-proof vest is to protect you from bullets.  A sweater vest is to protect you from pretty women."

ah..that's better :-)

So, most of  you know that I have been studying since May to take my PMP (Project Management Professional) Exam.  It's coming up this Saturday morning from 8am-12:30pm.  I would like to solicit as many prayers from you all as possible!  Passing this would mean great possibilities for success at my job and would really validate this career I have started. 

It's not likely that I will pass it my first try.  Many people have to take it at least twice before they pass.  I am hoping to NOT have to do that since it is quite expensive each time I take it.  Also, in order for certain opportunities to open up in the near future, I need to have this certification now.  So--needless to say, I'm a little nervous about it (that's probably an understatement).  It is a test that is built to be tricky and weed out people that don't have the experience they say they have (the application process to even become eligible to take the exam is quite rigorous). 

With that said--I need your prayers!  It is going to be really tough and I do not feel as prepared as I would like to be.  Please pray that these last few days before the test I use wisely to study the things that will be the most useful for me on the exam.  Also, I have a really hard time sitting still and focusing on one thing for four hours straight-so pray that my mind be focused on the task at hand instead of wandering to random subjects in my life.  (Is that just a girl thing??  I can't even stop my mind from multi-tasking...)

I've heard that they score the test while I am there (computer based test), so I should know the results before I leave that day.  I will update the results, good or bad.

Busy Busy Weekends!

This weekend was a really busy one!  Friday night, we went out with Adam's family for his birthday dinner at his new favorite chinese buffet...No 1 Super!  After dinner we went back to his parent's house for ice cream cake and some hang-out time with Adam's cousin, Chris, who just got married. 

Saturday, we hurried up to University Town Center to run some errands and then off to the Wing Cook-off to judge.  Let me tell you--I would have NEVER in a million years tried some of the flavors that I put in mouth for that competition....but, I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed many of the unusual flavors that were presented!  One of them, whose maker will remain nameless, looked like a deep fried piece of poop with white chunks on top.  Turned out it was Pina Calada flavored....I don't recommend it.  It was thick and mushy from the coconut syrup on top...Blah!  I wish I had thought to take a picture.  I just don't know what that team was thinking sending that into the judges......blah just thinking about it!  Got to hang out for a little bit with some great friends there and then headed off to the church for weekend rehearsals.

This weekend, we sang "Don't Stop Believing" as performed by Glee.  Adam and I got to sing the leads and I had a BLAST!  It was so much fun!  Angie, a good friend of mine, told me that she took a nap that afternoon after all the wings and dreamed about me singing that song as me...and then turning into Rachel (from the show "Glee) singing it...which is an honor-because she has an AMAZING voice!  We finished up the evening after the church service eating dinner at Olive Garden with a fun crowd.

I know what you're thinking...and yes...I gained weight this weekend :-)  Who cares!

Today we went in for the morning services to greet the students back in town with an awesome stage set and music set.  Tim is preaching a series on finding your Identity in Christ...I'm very excited to hear the next messages!

We came home and I studied for a while and then took a break by going to support my favorite co-ed softball team "The Phils" in the playoffs!  They have had a winning season and it was a blast subbing in when needed and also just watching some of their games.  Go Phils!

Now, I'm studying....well, that's not true....now--I'm typing this blog.  But I felt like taking a break to ramble for a bit.  Oh--not finished yet!

So, outside the stage entrance to our church was a little bat clinging to the brick column.  We have seen him before....let's call him...Maurice.  Yes, Maurice likes to join us for church every now and then.  About a month ago, as he was flying through the sanctuary during a Saturday practice, he stopped to take a break a little too close to a new singer that was there.  Chad politely wrapped up Maurice in a cloth and put him outside.  I like to think that Maurice really enjoys being a part of Chestnut Ridge Church.  We do say that this is a church for everyone....really.  So Maurice finds comfort in "hanging around" outside the building.  Here's a picture of him....cute little guy.

So, I'm glad that our church really is appealing to everyone...even Maurice!

Not for the weak at heart...

Seriously...if you get sick easy, just skip today's story.  You'll survive just fine without it.  I just feel obligated to put something out of the norm in this blog for some reason...

So, Monday was a rough day at work.  It's ok-I hardly EVER have rough days, so I figure everyone is due one now and then.  This is what I am going to blame the cause of a pretty bad headache that I had Tuesday morning when I woke up.  Now, if any of you know me well, you know that I HATE to miss out on things...even work...so I was determined I was going to drag myself through my morning routine of getting ready for work and make it there able to do my job efficiently. 

Well...I was half right....maybe not a complete 50%...probably a little less.  About 30 minutes before I had to leave to make it to work on time, I took some medicine to try to calm down the horrible pain stabbing the left side of my face.  With that, I downed a glass of water to help it to work quicker. 

Adam woke up while I was stumbling around upstairs and of course told me to stay home today and just call in.  (He's so sensisble when I lack the ability to be).  But of course...I didn't listen.  I continued putting on my make-up, straightening my hair, ironing my clothes.  Adam walked out the door and about that time I felt as if I was loosing control.  Yes...I threw up.  But you know what's worse....(this is where it gets gross and personal...just skip it...honestly...).  So I'm throwing up, with this clear acid pouring from my mouth and nostrils (because I had no food yet that morning) and I realize something.   I just pooped in this toilet 5 minutes earlier....gross....  Now you're feelin' me...it was disgusting.  About that time, I conceeded and called Rod (my boss) who COMPLETELY understood that I should not be coming into work that day.  I brushed my teeth and crawled back into bed.

Now--I am so stubborn, that when I woke up a couple hours later, I thought that I felt good enough to go on into work.  I could still make a 10:00 meeting that I had, so why not just go on in for the day?!  Silly....I get there and sit across from a coworker who says..."you know...you don't look sick...you look sad...like a puppy died."   Well that's good--at least I don't look sick :-)  Truth is--I wasn't sick, I just still had a headache that would not quit.  I stuck it out for two hours and finally gave back in to this ridiculous headache.  I spent the rest of the day in bed with my eyes closed.  It was nice.  It did finally go away around 6:00-I had a second helping of Relpax to get it for good. 

Wednesday--good as new!  Just so you all know, if you ever see me and I look sad--you'll be glad to know that no puppies have died....I probably just have a headache!

Birthdays to spare!

We have so many birthdays around us for the month of August!  And you know what that means....birthday cakes!  Or in my case....Birthday Cupcake Cakes!

Adam's father, Tony, had a birthday last week, but we are waiting to celebrate with Adam's family until they get back into town (which is today).  Adam's birthday is this week.  Our friends Corey Smith and Eric Meadows birthdays are both this week as well....So needless to say...I've made alot of cupcakes this month!  It's very exciting to have an excuse to try out new designs!

 For the boys, I made a sports cake.  It is mostly a golf course, with a small football field lining the front of the course. I made 4 golf balls for the course (even though this cake was only for 3 birthday boys) because I figured if these three guys got together to play golf...they'd probably invite Chad Griffith along...so he got a ball too :-)

 
 We spent Sunday afternoon and evening in Pittsburgh watching a movie, eating dinner and playing games at Dave & Busters, and practicing death-defying feats of traffic acts inbetween here and there.  We got to eat our cupcakes for dessert and then posed for a ridiculously strange drawing of the group to remember this joyous occassion. 

We told the artist not to quit his day job....Although, my eyebrows have never looked so good!

Saturday, when I was decorating the cupcakes, I also made Tony Etris' cake.  Tony is an amazingly talented artist.  He does murals and caricatures (sp?) and is just an all around talented man.  To honor Tony, I attempted to do "Starry Nights" by Vincent Van Gogh in cupcakes.  I think it turned out pretty good!

Luckily, the hardest part of this cake was mixing the icing.  Once I got those to the right colors, the rest was just a bunch of swirls.  Here are a couple of pictures to show the process. 

Step One : Mix the icing colors

Step Two : Flatten the cupcakes to make a canvas (cookies inbetween).

Step Three : Outline the major parts in the correct colors

Step Four : Fill in with mixes of icing colors

Step Five : Swirl it all together with toothpicks!

Piece of cake!  Or should I say, cupcake!
I had a really fun time making these and an even better time eating them! 

Now it back to focusing on studying for my PMP exam coming up on the 28th!  Hopefully I can reign in my "management skills" and pass this thing.  I did find a Bible verse that I feel is an appropriate guideline to the type of Manager I aspire to be:
  Titus 1:7-9
    "Since an overseer is entrusted with God's work, he must be blameless--not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkeness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain.  Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined.  He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it."

I challenge you to do the same!

Mon County Fair Talent Show.....

No, I wasn't in it!  But Our former band was (Under Shelter) and rocked the house to a victory! 

Adam was asked to MC the event so he kept the night going, and when a second round judge didn't show, I was asked to judge to decide the winner.  There were some interesting acts last night, from solos to dancing to stand up comedy--it was quite a sight!  

The fair part, by the time we walked around, was a little bleak-but it was late so I'm sure that people were riding the rides earlier in the evening....I think...?

On a more personal note, my grandfather has been in the hospital with some heart problems.  Please keep him and my grandmother in your prayers. 

Now-to start my Friday!  Happy Friday, everyone!  Hope it is only the beginning to whatever you need this weekend, whether it be rest...fun...or fellowship! 

And now-a picture that makes me smile :-)

Lexi's rough morning

So, lately, our cat, Lexi, has had some pretty rough mornings.  She most of the time will curl up next to me during the night and is usually there looking up at me for my morning round of cell phone snooze wars.  A couple times this week she has woken up around 10 minutes before my alarm goes off, deciding to get her morning workout in and leap around the room/bed like a gazelle....which needless to say is not appreciated by both bedroom inhabitants.  She also likes to roll around and chew on the computer cords while I'm checking my email in the mornings....again...bad kitty!

This morning, all of those "bad kitty" early mornings must have gotten to her...

Luckily, I was there to hold her hair back.

Your Love is Everything to Me

As I was driving to work this morning, I was listening to a practice CD I have for a service in a week or two.  I got stuck on one of the songs "Your Love is Everything to Me."  Here are the lyrics:

When I am dry and thirsty Lord,

And I'm crying out for more,
I know I can trust in Your love.
In the darkness in the night
When I'm starving for the light
I know I can trust in Your love
....
Your love heals every disease
Your love fulfills my every need
Your love is everything to me
Your love is everything
....
I will not forget
I won't forget Your promises
I will not forget
I won't forget Your love.

It got me thinking...do I really believe that God's Love is EVERYTHING?  Do I believe that it fulfills my EVERY need??  If I do, that means that I shouldn't worry or feel down when things in my life don't go exactly the way I want.  What it means is that God loves ME.  I should cling to that fact and find joy and peace in it.  Everything else in my life is just an added bonus if it's loving or fun or positive.  My happiness should not depend on those things, but only the one thing I can depend on.  If I can REALLY trust in His love...then I should.  All the time.  No matter what circumstance I am going through. 

Thank you Lord, for Your love. Let it be everything to me, and help me not to forget it!

Wings and Softball

We had a fun evening last night!  It was the grand opening of The Wharf restaurant on the waterfront and they had 10 cent wings....could it be any more of a calling to me??  I love wings and to make them so cheap?!  It was quite packed, or course, but I really enjoyed my hot wings and Ranch (just in case you were wondering, their Ranch does live up to my expectations...wonderful!).  I was incredibly stuffed and then we headed off to watch some of our friends' coed softball game!  The Phils are 13 and 1 so far this season and are doing AWESOME!  Go Phils!  

While we were watching their game, I had an interesting conversation with the daughter of a couple on the team.  Her name is Cody and she is this incredibly talented actress-and only 15 at that!  She does a lot of community theater here in Morgantown and was telling me that they're in need of more actors/singers for their upcoming musical-Sweeney Todd!  So after discussing with her the practice schedule and a little bit about how everything works there....she convinced me to audition!  Crazy, right?  How can I toss another thing into my schedule??  But I have always wanted to do community theater and never thought I had the time.  Cody says that the practices are weeknights..and on days that I usually am not doing anything!  What are the chances?!  So, I'm excited to give it a try...see if I've got the skills to do this.  I loved what theater I have done in the past, so I figure I can try this out and see if it's something I'm comfortable with continuing.  The show is around Halloween and they use a lot of the same cast members from show to show-so if I wanted to continue, it would give me a foot in the door.  


So!  I'll do a little audition and see what happens!  We're trying to get Adam involved, too-but he's concerned about time commitment as well, so he probably will be unable to do it.


So anyway...that's what's new with me...Now I'm ready for a fun filled Sunday tomorrow - cookouts, outdoor baptisms, and practice for our upcoming special at church from GLEE!  Fun times!  Don't Stop Believing!

Carbon Monoxide!!

Dramatic Title, eh?  WELL, last night, as I was dreaming away in "Nicki's World", I was awaken by a talking alarm.  By the time that I realized that this was not some new creative way my phone was attempting to wake me up in the morning, I deciphered that it was 1:30 and I was hearing the voice of a pleasant woman saying "Low Battery" followed by an extremely loud BEEEEEEP!   I can only assume that I heard this several times while sleeping and thought it was my phone alarm since I found my phone in my hand and under the pillow  (remember my morning routine....I take it very seriously:-)


Lexi was looking at me like--WHO IS TALKING TO ME??  So I ask Adam, while half asleep, "Do you hear that beeping?"  He said-"Yes".  I follow with, "What is it?"  1:30 Adam responds, "Is it higher or lower than you?" 


What?!?  Who asks that question??  I said--"Higher".  So, out rolls Adam to investigate the talking beeper.  It's our Carbon Monoxide detector on the ceiling....which is really high by the way...and INCREDIBLY difficult to remove from the ceiling.  After about 20 minutes of Adam trying, me wandering around him trying, me trying, Adam finding the manual and trying, me reading the manual and trying again....I gave up and welcomed my new found battery attendant into the dream that I was about to enter into.  Adam fixed it a little while later and came back to bed. 


This morning as I was recalling what happened, I watched a video of my niece, Ruth, that kind of reminded me of what I must have looked like last night while all of this was going on.  See what you think :  (New link-it should work now!)

Isn't she hilarious?   And just so you know...we replaced the battery...which was a 9volt, which I just HAPPENED to have in an old guitar tuner of mine! Praise the Lord we had one so we could make the alarm stop!


Here's how I found it this morning...guess Adam got angry with it :-)

Morning Facebook time

Most of you know that I am a very methodical person. For example-I do the exact same thing every time I get into my car. Yes--you'll just have to trust me on that one.
It's funny how these little routines in my life keep me on track, on time, and calm. Let me tell you something that has become normal in my morning routine.
The Routine::
In the morning when my cell phone alarm goes off, I grab it and put it under my pillow while pushing the side button for a 5 minute snooze. Now I know what you're thinking...not a very smart thing to do, right? Well....yes, you're right, but I do at least keep it in my hand. So, next is a different alarm on my phone that I set for 4 minutes later-which, as you can guess is immediately met by my thumb on the button turning it off (still under the pillow). Next comes the snooze of the first alarm 1 minute later....are you keeping up with this? And four minutes after that-the Snooze from the second alarm. Now, this little circle of musical pillow continues until I break free of whatever crazy dream I am having and decide to get up.  I roll over Lexi, who thinks that I'm playing some type of cruel game with her ears and immediately tries to bite whatever body part might be gliding over her head. (bad kitty...) Next, I grab my robe and put on my kitty house slippers and leave the dark bedroom with my sleeping beauty (yes, I'm talking about Adam) stays wrapped up tight in the covers. I take a bathroom break, shower (I'm just going to leave out my bathroom routines if you don't mind), and exit the steamy bathroom towards our sink area. I grab a Kleenex to wipe the leftover mascara from under my eyes, use my daily nose spray for my sinus issues, put on deodorant, and grab my electric toothbrush for my morning adventure. Now--THIS is the fun part. I like to make sure to spend PLENTY of time brushing my teeth. So....I wander...while brushing my teeth....Usually just into the office to check my email. So yesterday, I ended up wandering onto Facebook and had the laugh of my life!  I scroll through the posts to my friend Lauren Byrer's and read this:

"If you see a little boy pooping in our front yard, please feel free to call me. Yes, he belongs to us and no, we don't condone it."

Hilarious...and what completes the post are all of the comments and suggestions from people afterwards like :

"Jack is just going green. Why waste all of that fertilizer by flushing it down the toilet?", "You can get really nice pooper scoopers at Southern States", "I have an extra muck rake if you want to borrow it for this phase.", "I was going to ask you how potty training was going. Successful, I guess :)".

Thank you, Lauren for your hilarious view of the things in your life. I love having a morning laugh as part of my daily routine!