WILW: Confused Blogger Edition!

Morning lovelies!

I am ready for the day! Just got back from the gym a bit ago--hit chest and tris, and BOY am I going to feel this tomorrow! Speaking of the gym, my training has been a little weird, but GOOD!! Ever since I postponed on my competition yet again, I feel like I have a renewed motivation. I am excited to get big (muscle, not fat!) and I've been working my butt off to make sure I don't slip too far off track. My goal really isn't supposed to be to lean out at this point, and I really haven't been aiming for that anyway, but at the same time, I do want to see my body fat go down a bit more and I want to see my body mass remain fairly constant.

I'm hoping a low hat will make me
unapproachable to the creepers at the gym...

I have not been hitting any two-a-days, though this does make me feel guilty at times, but my plan right now does not require two-a-days. I'm still sticking to my 5am wake up call, because that's when I feel like I am at my best. Nutrition surrounding my workouts has changed too, and I think for the better. My protein shake has been moved to directly after my morning workout instead of before. Before, I am supposed to have protein and carbs, but I find that 2 rice cakes with 2 tbsp of peanut butter does the job. Although I may cut out the peanut butter, still wary of fats.

Since changing this up though, my energy has been through the roof! I honestly can't remember a day since Kevin moved that I had stayed at the gym until 7am. I usually get there right before 5:30 and am done by 6:30-6:45. Well all this week, that has changed. The clock hits 7 every morning and I am either still at the gym, or just leaving--gotta love it! Part of this, though, is because I'm no longer wary about being on time for my job (because I am no longer "stuck" in it). And speaking of which, some job related stuff actually made it's way to my WILW list! I meant to do a post last week, but I'm still catching up on reading blogs, and was trying to scratch that off my to-do list before I posted again. So without further ado, I give you:

WILW: Confused Blogger Edition...
This week, here is what I'm loving:

• My Loft manager, Caroline--I can honestly say I have never had the pleasure of working with a manager sweeter and more accommodating than Caroline. When I was going through the difficult time with my failure at a full-time job, Caroline was so understanding. And the sweetest part is that she totally didn't have to be. I felt like I had left her high and dry to replace me when I had only just stepped into my leadership role at Loft. I kind of felt like I had let her down and put her into this time crunch of a situation to find someone to replace me. But when I approached her that fateful Monday that I decided the full-time job just wasn't my thing, she was so compassionate that it's not even funny. Side note: when I get super stressed out, my emotions go haywire, so what I wanted to be a normal conversation with Caroline turned into exactly what I expected, a bawl-fest on my part. Word had already spread a bit that I was unhappy at my new job, but this was when I decided that throwing in the towel was the hard but better decision. I asked if she would give me more hours at work while I figured things out finding a new job (she had already found a replacement for me, as was expected), and she assured me that she would. She is even keeping me in my leadership role while my replacement finished training and my assistant manager goes on/comes back from her vacation (so another 2 weeks-ish). I couldn't ask for a more generous manager!

Eating noodles out of a cup on break.
I forgot a plate!

• The job hunt...kinda--It's official, Charlottesville has a major lack of full-time employment, or anything remotely relevant/worth my time to apply for. In my job search, I have come to find that most posting on online job search websites are: a. scams, b. too good to be true, or c. attempts to lure college grads into a subpar job for little money and long hours. Fail. And while I do have a 4-5 hour long interview with a new home company coming up, I think it's in my best interest to work toward my medical sales certification. This is where the "love" part comes in--medical sales is a lucrative job, and I've applied for some positions, but they all ask me follow-up questions including the dreaded "Are you certified for this position?" My answer has typically been "No, but would definitely obtain such certification upon hiring." Wishful thinking, but not what they want to hear. So, I've decided to be proactive, and with the (financial) help of my mom, a training packet is currently en route to my apartment. I have to pass a test in order to earn my certification, and seeing as I haven't taken any anatomy classes since high school, it was only practical to purchase the training kit. Don't worry--this isn't a scam, it's one of the 2 certifications possible that most companies look for. So slowly but surely, I am getting there!
• A life/job-search related decision--In addition to good ol' Cville having no relevant full-time jobs, it has been losing its appeal to me. I think I'm ready for some new adventures (well, as adventurous as one can be when they don't care for drinking and are pretty much a homebody nowadays). I have been realizing a few things:
• Most of my friends are trickling out of town, such that in a couple years, I probably won't have many friends here my age since most of the ones I know are students at UVa.
• Charlottesville is not a young city, with the exception of the University. It's more of a city where you would settle down with your family. There are not many "young jobs" as I like to refer to them, and almost anything I find here will have me in a similar situation as the job fail--working with all married women/people, and most with kids. Not that I have anything wrong with any of that, but I would prefer to have some people my age with whom I hang out.
• I feel claustrophobic here. I know that last year around this time I had already made the decision that I was staying, but I just want out. I've heard on numerous occasions that "Charlottesville is a small town" and while I don't do anything crazy to get a reputation, I don't want my resignation to come back and bite me in the butt (although I do not plan on pursuing a job in the same field--EVER).

That being said, I have officially expanded my job search outside of Charlottesville and actually outside of Virginia. I don't think Charlottesville has enough opportunities at this point in my life, I know that I don't want to be back home in Virginia Beach, and I definitely don't want to be in some small rural area, nor do I want to be in Richmond. But I do want to remain somewhat close to some of my family, so we will see. I plan on having the medical sales certification taken care of in a month, and then I will start applying elsewhere (not that I'm not applying for anything now). 

• Fall weather & flavors--and actually being able to enjoy them (kinda)! I have yet to order a salted caramel mocha at Starbucks, though I desperately want to! But my room is adorned with seasonal scented candles, room spray, etc. My oats are decked out with pumpkin flavors galore! I have a loaf of sweet potato bread somewhere in my kitchen (shhh, don't tell anyone!). Overall, fall is treating me pretty well, although I could do without all the dreary rain!

Beautiful fall morning!

Followed by a cloudless night :)

• Holiday season--yes, it's officially that time in retail land. Holiday 1 came upon us just the other week, and so far I am loving what I am seeing! That being said, it's taking a lot of restraint to not buy everything in sight! I gave myself a $200 limit, but I really need to start saving money since I have no idea where my job hunt will take me. And I'm in the mood for some out of town roadtrips in the coming months! 

With all these life changes in store/in progress, it's hard to look past a day at a time currently. So with that said, I do not know when and where my first competition will be, but I know that as the pieces of my life start to fall into place, my training, motivation, and energy can only get better. 2012 is the new year for my competition, and I can only imagine how much stronger--both physically and mentally/emoitionally--I will be when I finally step foot on that stage!

What are you loving this week? Have you ever decided your city didn't have enough to offer you and made a life transition--how did it go??