04.17.22 • Heatless Hair Curling • Friend’s Birthday • Extended Family • Self Defense •

Really quick – If you saw my balance board videos in last week’s post, maybe you’re curious about the results of the heatless hair curling technique I was trying. Here are the results…

The technique I used to get the curls was to take the belt from my housecoat, drape it over the top of my head, and wrap my hair around the belt all the way down. I started with a small piece from the front of the top of my head – where my bangs began and wrapped it around the belt tight to my head once. After the first wrap, I grabbed a second piece of hair and married it with the original piece, wrapping it around, and continuing until all my hair was wrapped around the belt – continuing down the belt. Once all my hair was wrapped on one side, I did the same to the other, so the belt with my hair wrapped around it hung almost like pigtails on my head. Then, I secured the bottom of my hair on either side with a scrunchie.

I wound up doing this pretty early in the day – I had a shower around two or three in the afternoon and once my hair was no longer wet but damp, I wrapped my hair. Because I started so early, I had to wear the housecoat concoction throughout the day, and I found that in the daytime, it was most comfortable to leave the ends of the belt down and tie the remaining bits of the belt together behind my back. At nighttime, I untied the belt and wrapped it around my head like a crown, and tied the belt back together at the top of my head, as I found that was most comfortable for sleeping.

This was my first time trying this particular technique and I believe I didn’t style it yesterday as well as I should be able to. I think that with practice, I can learn to take it out faster, and style it better, but I don’t think it was all that bad for round one.

I  originally bought a product for this particular technique – it was this long, satin-wrapped cylindrical piece of material that was a little slimmer than a pop can in width and relatively soft, but still pretty firm, and had a wire through the middle so you could shape it and have it remain how and where you shaped it. I kinda tried this one a couple of times, but I found it extremely uncomfortable and inconvenient to wear, so each time I tried it out, I took the thing out long before my hair would have ever had enough time to produce results. I liked the idea of that product and with its size, I expected it to produce loose, beach wavy curls – a look I’m very into, but I don’t think I’ll ever actually use it. That’s what inspired me to try the housecoat belt instead. I had known about that technique for longer than I have had the product I bought, but I never actually tried it out. Turns out, it is super effective and comfortable to wear, so I think I will continue trying it until I can perfect it. I learned today that I might not get those loose, beach waves on day one… Day two, however…

Another thing I want to try is crisscrossing the direction of each strand I wrap, instead of wrapping all the hair on either side of my head the same way – to see if I can get more textured curls that aren’t so prone to gather back together and form one big curl.

Back in grade eleven, my hair was just below shoulder length, and I had decided I wanted to grow it out to my belly button and back then, I decided to stop treating my hair with any heat or dye to produce healthy hair and length as a result, and ever since that period of my life, I’ve been super into trying heatless ways to style my hair. Among the many methods I’ve tried so far, this one was by far the most comfortable. For me, the comfort aspect is a huge selling point!

The next time I attempt this, I want to ensure I keep the belt close to my root as I wrap my hair until I’ve gathered every piece of hair to wrap around my belt. The reason why I opted for the half-up ponytail style yesterday was because when I wrapped the right side of my hair, I didn’t keep the belt tight to my head and it created an awkward space where my hair didn’t start curling until very far down the shaft – and it was uneven with the other side. Yesterday, I think the style would have looked silly from behind if I left all my hair hanging down.

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Yesterday was a full and eventful day.

Yesterday began with brunch to celebrate my good friend, Kelsey’s birthday. Our close group of six attended; Davon, Michael, Kelsey, Krys, Corey, and myself. We decided to try out a place called Pür & Simple for the first time.

On the note of first times, I tried my first ever smoothie bowl while I was there. I believe I’ve mentioned here before that I have difficulty eating first thing in the morning, and for me, that was first thing in the morning, so I only ate a small number of bites from that smoothie bowl, but it was pretty good! Admittedly, I was a little disappointed with the tiny amount of fruit and granola in the smoothie bowl, but maybe that’s the norm for them – I don’t know. I did find it tart, and every few bites, the tartness would hit me, but it was tasty!

At some point during the meal, one of the staff members asked our table if they could take our photo for social media. I eagerly agreed before even checking in with any of my friends, (oops,) but I checked today and I can’t find the picture, unfortunately. I would have put it here! It’s possible they just put it in a story, as it would be too late now to view that story, but if it does happen to pop up any time this week, I’ll throw it in here!

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After brunch, Corey and I, along with Davon and her boyfriend, Michael drove two-and-a-half hours to visit extended family on my mom’s side for easter!

Throughout my life, it’s always been important within my family to remain close with extended family, and we visit extended family a few times throughout the year. I’m glad that that is a value in my family because it has made for wonderful relationships I’ve been able to carry through my life! It also means that a couple of times each year, I get to eat my grandma’s Ceasar salad, and I honestly believe I would go to extreme lengths to eat that salad… It’s so garlicky. It’s so good.

I’m also going to gift you with a quote from my uncle – but I’m not going to provide any context because no matter what, it’s hilarious, and I think it is widely applicable.

“You should have been a horse.”

You’re welcome for that.

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After our four-hour visit and a two-and-a-half-hour drive back home, Michael, Davon, and Kelsey came over to resume Kelsey’s birthday festivities. We sat around with some drinks and Michael and Corey took turns sharing stories from their past. However, the most important moment from yesterday came when I got to show Michael the ten-minute self-defense training Corey showed me…

A few nights ago, while Corey and I were watching a movie, some scenes inspired Corey to teach me how to do a rear-naked choke.

Please enjoy the following video of my demonstration on Michael. Do yourself a favor and have the sound on…

Boy, am I ever grateful Kelsey thought to record that gem of a moment! I must have watched it eight trillion times by now… So far, it gets funnier every time.

04.19.22 • COVID-19 Concern •

So… Remember when I mentioned we hung out with Kelsey on Saturday for her birthday…? Well, she woke up feeling not-so-good today and wound up testing positive for COVID-19.

…Do you want to know what tomorrow is? Tomorrow is my first day at my new job.

Cool. Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool. I’m fine. Everything’s fine.

I messaged my employers and let them know what had happened, and I happened to have a rapid test in my car – my pharmacy handed me one for free the last time I went and picked up my prescription for my ADHD. I took the test earlier today and it came back negative, but I’m not sure how reliable that particular test is, since it’s been sitting in my car for a while, and I guess they’re pretty temperature sensitive. Corey’s mom dropped off another test too, which I will take at the end of the day, and I will take another one in the morning, but… Ugh.

Of course. Of course of all days, today. After I have been totally COVID-free since the outbreak began, of course, this fear would happen today.

My employer has been reaching out periodically to know how I’m feeling. I can’t help but feel… bad. I am easily ridden with guilt, and this is for sure a situation that has filled me with guilt.

Because either… Either everything is fine and I go there tomorrow and I’m fine and everything is fine.

Or.

Or I have to miss my first day of work because I’m sick. Or… I have COVID-19 and the test was inaccurate and I go to work and I spread COVID-19 around my office on my first day of work. It’s feeling like a 33% chance that everything is fine for me…

If either of the ‘or’s’ happen, what an impression to make.

Why now? Why not right after I was initially let go from my old job? Why not two weeks ago? …Why now?!

Stress.

Also, of course, I’m paranoid and hyper-fixated on everything that is going on in my body, like, is that a symptom?

I’ve been wearing my Oodie all day, and I keep fluctuating in temperature, and I’m thinking… “Is that just because of my Oodie, or do I have COVID?” I’ve been vaping to ween away from cigarettes (I know, shame.) and I’ve been convincing myself that I can’t take a full breath, and I’m thinking… “Is that just because I maybe vaped too much, or do I have COVID?” I’m second-guessing everything and I’m so nervous.

Regardless of your opinions on the pandemic, you have to agree that having the illness that shut down the world for two years on your first day at a new job isn’t ideal. Uuuggggghhhh…..

Of course, I’m also worried about the impression it may leave. Like, say I wake up sick tomorrow, or one of my tests comes back positive… I’m currently doing the right thing. I informed them of what had happened, and I’m doing all I can to keep things safe, but… What if this incident bleeds into my reputation if I don’t go in tomorrow? On my first day? What if it seems fake, or too convenient, and how do I earn that trust and respect back if that isn’t the case?

You can say all you want that that would be an example of a poor employer, but it’s not unrealistic. Really, it’s not… There are tons of people who pull stunts like this every day to get out of work, and on my first day… I couldn’t fault them for flirting with that thought.

It’s especially frustrating because of how infrequently I am sick in general. I’ve been sick once since COVID-19 started, and – it wasn’t with that virus. I think the time before that was even a year or so before that. The timing is rich… I don’t know what to do.

Poor Kelsey… I love her so much, and I feel guilty about the stress that I feel with all of my what-ifs because she actually has it and is actually currently sick. She just deserves the best things…

Hopefully, everything is fine and I’m fine and everything is fine. Hopefully also; Kelsey is fine soon, too.

I made it this far without getting COVID-19. I’ll be damned if today is the day.

04.20.22 • First Day •

Well, I woke up feeling fine, I took a third rapid test first thing in the morning that came back negative, and I messaged my employer who said, “see you in the office!” So, I got to have my first day today after all!

I arrived before my employer, and another employee there showed me to my cubicle. I guess I’m taking it over from someone who used to be there, but it felt like I was intruding on someone else’s home because there were still scrap bits of crumpled paper with notes on them and a dirty coffee mug sitting atop my desk.

I felt bad that I had arrived exactly on time because punctuality is something they’ve made known that they hold in high regard, but my employer wound up showing up ten minutes late, so it was kind of a relief! Granted, the roads weren’t excellent this morning, as winter decided to pay another surprise visit…

Today mostly entailed being shown around and introduced to everyone, and filling out various documents for HR, so it was a nice easy start to this new journey.

My employer provided me with a new keyboard and mouse, and at first, he gave me a mechanical keyboard. Later in the day, I worked up the courage to request a chicklet keyboard instead, as I find I type much faster with that style. He was surprised – which I understand, as mechanical keyboards seem to be more commonly favored, but he granted my request and I soon had a chicklet keyboard on my desk!

He also took me for lunch which was very nice. I got to learn a lot about him and the stories of his life and it turns out, he has had an incredibly interesting journey that was enjoyable and fascinating to listen to.

Based on first impressions, I think this will continue to be a positive experience. I believe I have a wonderful opportunity here.

04.22.20 • Sick • Thrown To the Wolves • Board Game! •

Well… Yesterday sucked. I woke up feeling totally fine, went into work – totally fine… Noon rolled around, which is the beginning of the one-hour lunch break, and then… Things changed. I started feeling… not so good.

It was really strange, though, because the entirety of the experience was brand new for me. It began with me suddenly becoming freezing. Like, my body was covered in goosebumps and I was shivering. I put on my second sweater and bundled myself into a ball. I looked at the thermostat, and it read 23°C, so it made no sense for me to be that cold. Just the day before, the temperature in the office was about the same, and I was comfortable in a t-shirt.

I shivered for about 10 or 15 minutes, then suddenly – I was fine.

A few more minutes went by, then I was hit with something else entirely. The texture of my cubicle walls is patterned with these fine lines laid close together, and the carpet at my feet also has a busy pattern, and again – suddenly – I couldn’t focus on any part of the patterns. Some parts of it seemed closer to me than others, some parts were blurry while others, were clear, and there seemed to almost be a motion to it…

Then, again after a few minutes, I was fine.

Another short while goes by, and I’m hit with a wave of nausea. I sprung from my desk and bolted to the bathroom where I dry-heaved a few times, and then… I was fine.

While walking back to my desk, a vertigo-like sensation overcame me where the building seemed to be rocking back and forth and the floor was behaving like waves in an ocean.

By the time I returned to my desk, I was fine.

I sat for a few minutes when I abruptly became hot and my body was covered in sweat…

Then, I was fine.

Then the patterns began to lose focus again…

During this entire experience, I kept debating whether I should inform my employer. When I felt unwell, I would think I should say something, but I would suddenly become fine again and think no, I should just stick it out. I wrote out a message to send to him over Teams, and I kept hovering my finger over the Enter key when another weird wave would hit me, but then I would get better, and I would think, no, don’t send it.

When I stopped being able to focus the second time, I decided to finally send that message. We talked back and forth over Teams for a bit – as he was out for lunch – and I was so dizzy and in such a state of confusion, that I was hardly able to type.

I went and laid in my car for a while, where I would have the same experiences of feeling horrible, to feeling fine, for about an hour. Finally, I went into this convulsive coughing fit, and that’s when I decided it would be best for me to go home – so I reached back out to my employer and informed him that I thought that would be best.

On the drive back home, I got dizzy again for a period, and then later, I got a flash headache that was dreadfully painful, but only lasted for a minute or two.

I didn’t cough once after I returned home.

I felt horrible for a while, where I was very weak and had no motivation to move from my chair, but after approximately eight gallons of peppermint vanilla tea and a long, hot shower, I was okay… I’ve been okay ever since.

Of course, on day two, right?

My employer called me later in the day and asked me if there was any chance that I left because I had been having second thoughts about my workplace, and that was a knife to the gut. I wish that this didn’t have to be my impression on day two. Especially with the lead-up of a COVID scare that I had already had the day before day one. Ugh!

I did take another rapid test, and again, it was negative.

Today, I returned to work, and today was my first work experience there, as every other day had just been onboarding, and reading through articles they have in their files to learn as much as I can, and such.

Boy, was I thrown into it today!

Originally, at the very beginning of the day, I was told that I would be creating a few tickets that came in through email to get used to the process.

About fifteen minutes after learning to create tickets, I was suddenly creating tickets – as well as answering the phone and taking tickets of my own to solve.

Okay! Aaah! Okay!

So, I was a little stressed for a while… I learned very quickly that most of their processes are vastly different than what I had learned from my last job. Even the systems that I thought I would be able to take my knowledge over from because they use the same ones are different – because they use different versions of the same one that are kept in different hosts. I wound up having to ask like, fifty questions to solve a ticket I got that would have taken me a mindless five minutes to complete in my old workplace. I felt out of my element then!

Needless to say, I’m looking forward to having the knowledge of this company’s processes and the locations of their resources and utilizing their tools become second nature. Once I can get there, I think I can excel in this role. Until then, I feel I have an uphill battle ahead of me! I hope I’m able to learn it all in a timeframe that is satisfactory for them. Today made me nervous all over again! Nonetheless, I got this. I know I got this! I’m going to be great here – I’ll make sure of it. Besides, it’s a great opportunity to add to my toolbelt. Most of the problems I’ve seen come up in the tickets, I know very well how to solve. Most. Some, I’m not so confident about, but… It was relieving to see an amount I know I’m capable of – once I understand more of their operational system. It’s all going to work out! I’ll read this back next year, and laugh at how insecure I was to start. Calling it now.

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Corey’s friend Jesse stopped by again, and they went out to buy a board game called, Betrayal at Baldur’s Gate, which I joined them in playing. Turns out – it’s a ton of fun! I suppose it’s based on a video game, but I’m not much of a gamer, so that means little to me, but it’s a game kind of like Dungeons and Dragons if your hand was held the way through playing Dungeons and Dragons…

The element to it that I find cool though, is that you build the board as you play, so you never know what’s going to happen next. You’re given these tiles, and on your turn, you can choose to go through a colored door on the tile you’re currently on into unknown territory, and when you choose to, you pick a new tile to find out where you’re going next and what is going to happen as a result. Also, with all the different parts of the game – between the tiles, the cards, the dice, the players, etc. even if you were to play the game a thousand times and have many portions of the game memorized, every playthrough would still be a unique and unpredictable experience. I think that that is really cool!

A younger me would have never shown any interest or desire for these types of games, so I’m glad I gave it a chance because I was surprised to learn how much fun they are!

Anyway, I’ll wrap up this week! Until next week, friends.

While you’re here, why don’t you stay a while and take a look around? Perhaps you would like to read a deeper post about my life, or maybe you’d like to dive into a more complicated subject that will inspire you to ponder, or just maybe – you fancy a fictional read. Whatever your poison, I’m sure you’ll find something for you here, there’s lots to explore!