moving forward

The big news of the week (in my little life) is that I decided I would start applying for other jobs within the state. I've been at my case aide job for about 2 months, and I know it's not long, but the application process can take so long, so I figure I might as well get a head start. I've applied for 2 jobs so far. I'm excited about it! The more I think about it, the more I dread the thought of working at a nonprofit. I always thought I would like to focus my work on Nonprofits (thus my Nonprofit Management and Leadership focus at GVSU). Alas, I've been burned by enough nonprofits that the thought of working at one right now scares me. I like the state because they're so straightforward. If you don't get a job or promotion, it's probably not going to be because someone in upper management has a vendetta against you or because they don't like your face or there is some misunderstanding, it's because you're probably not qualified enough or your past performance has been unsatisfactory according to quantitative measurement. You have to stick to very clear bureaucratic lines, or else all hell will break lose. I find that comforting at this time in my life. I know it reeks havoc in other ways, but a lot of my frustration with the nonprofits I've been involved with in the past couple years has come from unclear boundaries and expectations and personalities reigning unchecked and supreme. Maybe someday in the future, I will go back to nonprofits...we'll see.

We had a Groupon for a one month membership to Prairie Life Fitness, which expires today. But yesterday I bought a Groupon for another gym in Lincoln called Goodlife Fitness. They have around 100 classes per week, and a huge gym with machines and weight lifting equipment. I visited it last night after work, and I'm very excited! I like going to fitness classes.  Though sometimes they can look silly and make you feel silly, class workouts usually push me farther than I'd go by myself and get me moving in different kinds of ways. Classes keep me interested and focused on being in shape, which is helpful. That's why I'm excited.

Yesterday at work I mostly slacked for the last hour and spent time looking at "Best Albums of 2012" lists. I actually made a spreadsheet of the top 50 albums from 3 different music magazines. My plan is to start listening to as many as I can. Luckily, I spend about 5-7 hours per day on my computer and can easily listen to hours and hours worth of music daily. I've already gone through 3 or 4 seasons of Radiolab and caught up on most of my missed episodes of This American Life. I used to listen to NPR all day, but I kind of got tired of that with the election and fiscal cliff nonsense. I'm thinking maybe I will occasionally listen to Morning Edition, and maybe some Fresh Air from time to time. There are so many great shows from NPR to listen to, but there's so much music I've missed out on! I remember when I was volunteering at WYCE, I used to know most of the albums in the Top 50 lists. Now I only know some of the musicians. I miss listening to music; I miss enjoying music, though I've been getting a little better at it in the past few months. Right now I'm listening to Mala in Cuba, from an artist I know and like from my WYCE days, Mala Rodriguez.