School

At 8:00 this morning, I stood at the bus stop impatiently, despite the fact I still had an hour and a half till my first class and could have walked to campus in less time that than. When the bus finally arrived (5 minutes later), I breathed a slight sigh of relief. Next my worries jumped to the fact that this would be my third time of campus and I had no idea were my classes were! I arrived on campus with an hour and fifteen minutes till class and started wandering to find its location. I found it and the location of my three other classes in about ten minutes and still had an hour till class. I went back to the location of my first class, stood by the door, ate a Cliff Bar and started worrying if I was actually in the right place. Thankfully, the professor arrived thirty minutes early and I had those glorious minutes to do nothing but sit, in calm, a stare at a board that said nothing but “Teachers Name / Email / Phone Number”.

Reading

Now more than ever I have noticed that I don't like talking on the telephone. I would much rather (& more quickly) reply to an email or agree to set up a meeting. And, not to exclude myself from my generation's norm – text is also a quick fix. But, my aversion to face-less conversation seemed more than just my peers addiction to technology. Well, today I think I figured it out! Earlier I was contemplating a return call I needed to make and I caught myself thinking “But I can't read them...” What was that supposed to mean? Well, when I meet with people face to face I can read/interpret their facial expressions and body language. Well then, why email: Because although I can't read their bodies, I can interpret their words. Yes, that is slightly psychoanalytic of me but I think its true. On the phone, all I have to go on is intonation, which can be manipulated much easier than body language, a cold, stuffy nose, general bad day, can change how a person sounds.

So, those of you reading this now know the best way to get in contact with me: Hope to hear from you soon!

Seeing

I haven't really posted pictures of my time in California. But, today I finally took a day to wander and brought my camera along. At my first bus stop I pulled out my camera. After about a minute I noticed that I was taking pictures of really random things: The bus sign, the cracks in the road, the roof line of the neighboring houses. Why were these the things I was focused on? The things I chose to capture?

For some reason, those were the things that I was focused on. The small and subtle differences. The sunshine was beautiful, but I didn't notice it as a shining orb but as the shadows. I noticed the blue sky as the contrast to the dark roofs an pale siding. Its interesting how in a new place it can be the small things that stick out....

And a cute squirrel for good measure:

Smiles

I have yet to find a better way to get to know a new city than to go for a walk. Monday morning I was meeting a group of girls from work for a cup of coffee (or chai as the case may be). My bus arrived twenty minutes early however (I still haven't mastered the public transport system here). So, I decided to take a walk down Park Ave. Ten minutes up one side of the street and ten minutes back down the other side.

On the walk, not only did I learn about the shops on the street, but I learned about the people who shop along the street. Often I hear people come back from visiting a new town and say “Oh everyone was so nice!” when the only people they talked to were hotel and store employees who are payed to be pleasant to tourists. Random people on the street are a far better indication of a town's personality.

As I walked, not only did shopkeepers smile and wave from behind their windows, but passersby took the time to smile and say hello. Moms pushing strollers nodded and smiled, a group of five or six old men outside a coffee shop said good morning one by one. And a funny man said “Hey there [pause] snuggle bug, how ya doin'?” to which I giggled and continued on.

I was thoroughly impressed with how cordial everyone was. It made me feel comfortable asking a stranger for directions and confident I would be greeted with a smile and a helping hand.

Well, I finally made my way back to the coffee shop where I was greet by Alison saying “Well, lets get some coffee & then you have to tell us your life's story!” It turned out to be a wonderful morning of chit-chat and “choco-chai” followed by sunny wait on a bus bench that gave me the time to write this.

Hope your new year is off to a great start & I'm off to another evening at Angela's.

Stumbling

There was a special New Year's Eve dinner at Angela's and my first night serving my own tables. It was... interesting. I was only assigned three tables and just purely dealing with the people at the tables was fine. Dealing with drinks and the computers is where I stumbled. I think that if it had been a normal midweek night it would not have been an issue. The restaurant was busy and therefore all the other servers were swamped. Sure, they were willing to answer questions, but the answers were rarely longer than a sentence and were not helpful beyond that exact moment and instance.

However, now I have had another night serving tables and things are starting to smooth out. Now the interesting thing is how little things can slow me down. There are still small things I don't know, but I thought most of them insignificant, things I could figure out on the go. As it turns out, those little things turn into big stumbling blocks when the restaurant is busy and no one can help me through them quickly.

Once again, at least now I know what my stumbling blocks are and I can work on getting them out of the way, one day and one bundle of questioning customers at a time.

Rules

Last night (Dec 30^th), I worked my first shift at Angela's. Essentially, I followed one of the other servers around and helped out were I could. In the first couple of hours, it was amazing how much I learned about the other workers in the restaurant.

Aside from their general personalities and approach to serving, I learned that everyone has there “Number One Rule of Angela's”. Some were said in jest, others were said in full seriousness. Some I will completely ignore, other I will remember only when the rules creator is around. Turns out there are very few of the rules presented to me that I will actually pay attention to.

Looks like I will be making my own rules. Trail by error seems to be the designated path when it comes to everything besides the basics of ringing up a tab. But, I'm ok with that. No need to pick up someone else's bad habits when I can create my own!

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On a side note, if you would like to see pictures of Angela's or learn more about if, please visit: http://www.angelasbistroandbar.com/

New Life

Good Gracious! What have I done! On December 28^th, I left my childhood home in the Northwoods of Michigan and got on a plane headed for the Bay Area of California. A hop from Appleton to Chicago, a skip over to Charlotte and a final jump to San Francisco.

When I talked to my boyfriend the next morning he asked “So, how's your new life?” I was a bit taken back at the question. The concept of having a totally new life had not really sunk in yet. Sure, I had pack two 50lb. bags and moved to the other end of the country and the only person I had ever met in a 50 mile radius was my new boss. But, I hadn't left everything had I?

As I recounted my first say on Alameda to him I was flooded with the realization of how much really was new. And, oh, was it an exhilarating feeling! I can't recall half the faces I met, let alone their names. Street names and building locations are still a mystery to me.

Falling asleep after our conversation, I found myself anticipating another whirlwind day on Alameda.

Here I will keep whoever is interested, updated on my “new life” in N. California. Not guarantees on frequency of post or quality for that matter.

Peace, Love and Laughs,
~Greta