I've caught the travel bug. I think it's a ladybug.

Monday, July 14, 2008
Saturday was a nice relaxing day. I woke up around 9:30 instead of 7, and that was nice. I ate breakfast, lounged around the apartment and just enjoyed myself. After lunch I met up with Amber and Christy and we went in search of a wedding dress for Amber. This excursion didn’t last as long as I thought that it would. She found two dresses that are gorgeous (not my taste, but still beautiful) and that look great on her. She’s going to have them hold them so she can show her mom, but the search is still on. I talked to Sandy on the phone that afternoon and my Grandma is not doing too well. I don’t really know how to deal with it, so I’m kind of not. The get my mind off of things I decided to go shopping. After that I ate dinner and started a new book that I’ve been wanting to read. It’s really good!

Sarah and I made plans for her to pick me up that night and we decided to go to a nice wine bar rather than down to Broad Ripple and walk around like we’d planned due the rather wetness of the weather. Her and her boyfriend Dan picked me up around 11 and we headed out. Sarah’s friend Kamil (pronounced Camille. He’s Indian) met up with us there. The drinks were great and we were having a great time! We left the bar around 2:30 and headed back to Kamil’s apartment to continue the festivities. I was initially nervous about hanging out with them because I didn’t know Dan or Kamil at all and I’ve only met Sarah a couple of times, but I was determined to meet people and be social. I’m really glad I did because I had a great time! Dan and I exchanged numbers so when Sarah heads back to Missouri we can still hang out while I’m in town. Kamil and I got to talking too and he’s a really nice guy. Him and his girlfriend of a couple years recently broke up (like less than a week ago) and he was joking while we were out on the balcony that Sarah and Dan probably thought we were making out out there. I laughed and someone we got on the topic of him needing to find a rebound girl and how I was not going to be the rebound girl, so there was no chance of us making out that night. It was a rather amusing conversation. At the end of the night I gave him my number so we can all hang out again another time and reminded him that he should find a nice rebound, and that she should not be me. He was a really nice, fun guy and told me repeatedly throughout the night (in a non-creepy way) that he thought I was really beautiful. It’s nice to meet people that are out of college and actually know what they’re doing in life. We didn’t end up leaving Kamil’s until around 5:30 that morning and I slept a good part of the next day, but it was worth the fun of the night before! Sarah and I had made plans to go to the mall the next afternoon, but we talked around 3 and both agreed that it just wasn’t going to happen! I spent the rest of the afternoon watching lame made-for-TV movies and reading my book.

It was really great hanging out with them. I really had a blast and it felt good to get out and socialize. I also got to talk to Sarah about some LC stuff, which was really good. Talking to other past LCs, I’ve always walked away feeling a renewed sense of confidence, but talking to Sarah did not have that affect on me. She told me that she’s really glad that she didn’t get the east coast because she knows those girls would have just walked all over her. Whoa. What if that happens to me? What if the girls don’t see me as a helpful tool and respect me? The odds are that there are going to be at least a few chapters that don’t receive me in the most friendly, welcoming way, especially if I’m there on a discipline visit. Ugh. That’s really scary for me to think about. Today at work we had to read a book called “I Heart Recruitment”. It was a good book. I found that most of the information in there is already stuff that I knew, which made me feel good and good about our chapter but there was definitely stuff in there that I found helpful. There were things that I found helpful recruitment wise and things that I found helpful to me personally, like the section on small talk! I have always hated small talk because I find it awkward and I never know what to say. I’ve been told that I hide it well and am pretty good about keeping conversations going, but it’s still something that I’ve always felt I needed to improve on. There was also a nice list of other books that are helping in improving skills needed to recruit, such as conversational skills, leadership skills, etc and I think I’m actually going to invest in a few of these books and read them. I mean, it can’t hurt me, right? There are 23 books on the list, so I don’t know where I am going to start and if I am going to try and make it through the whole list, but we’ll see. I think I good plan of action for the moment is going to be read one recreational book, read one informational book. I don’t have any books with me except the one I just finished and the one I’m currently reading, so I suppose I’ll have to buy a book, send one home, buy a book, send one home. I’m ok with that though.

I would like to now talk about Indiana and the differences between here and Texas. First of all, the weather. The women here are so cute. We’ll be outside and they’ll complain of how hot it is while I’m thinking “It’s only 86 degrees. It’s 101 in Austin right now. This is NOT hot”. Seriously, that’s what the weather is like everyday here. It does get humid, but it’s still pretty bearable. I look at the weather on my iPhone everyday and everyday Indianapolis is like 85, Kerrville is like 93 and Austin is like 100. And it’s so pretty here! It rains every few days (which I think is amazing and I love it!), usually at night, which is nice, so everything is nice and green. And there are so many trees! Everywhere! Trees that we don’t have in Texas! Since coming here I have decided that Texas is not that great. Austin is great and I love Austin, but Texas in itself is really just not that great. Living in Texas, I feel like we’re brainwashed to think that we’re the best state, but we’re not. Especially aesthetically speaking. It is true, though, that people in Texas are friendlier. I’ve figured this out just being out shopping. The employees are just as friendly (I imagine its part of the job requirement) but the other customers just aren’t. I didn’t really think of people in Texas as being super friendly until I got here. The people here aren’t necessarily rude, they just aren’t friendly. And they don’t smile nearly as much either. But it sure is beautiful outside! It’s crazy how many liquor stores that have here too! I feel like there’s one practically on every corner. AND – you can buy liquor in the grocery stores here! Shampoo on one isle, Jack Daniels on the next. It’s crazy. You can’t buy alcohol on Sundays though, no matter what time it is. Being here and seeing how different things are makes me really excited about getting to go to other states and experience them. It’s also making me realize that just because my family and friends are in Texas doesn’t mean that I have to live in Texas. It does make me sad to think that I might not live close to them, but I really need to think about what’s going to be best for me and make me the happiest. At the moment, I have no idea what or where that is.

Like I said earlier, we had to read this recruitment book today, and now that I’m done with it I don’t really know what we’re supposed to be doing the rest of the afternoon. Everyone else is out of the office today because they’ve all already left for convention, so it’s just Nicole and I. We leave tomorrow morning and I’m so excited!! It’s about 1:30 right now and we’re supposed to be in the office until 5. I’m sure we’ll find something to do…