some pictures

for some reason they didn't upload yesterday, so i am trying again.

silly little vixen

Heather rocks!

I just spent many half-naked hours with her, and she did an unbelieveable job with the photo shoot!

Know what I just realized? I forgot to bring the shirt i bought in chicago! that's what i was going to post a pic of on here. oh well, guess i'll substitute with this asian dominatrix picture. Look out, I bite!

I'll fill ya'll in with why exactly we had a photo shoot in the near future. in the meantime, it's past my bedtime and i have my first day of work tomorrow. yip-de-freakin'-do-dah.

cheers.

on belay?

Does this employment drama never end??

I was supposed to start the new job tomorrow... however, bossman realizes that it would be silly for me to go to this convention tuesday, and i should instead go wednesday. Alas, i have one more day to try and do everything that i have procrastinated on all year. ;)  And of course, now that I am supposed to start working, I have an interview offer with canton twp as a park ranger (sounds fun but it's only part time) and the guy from Bridger Fire finally called back! I was starting to think they didn't want me anymore, since i was supposed to hear from them over a month ago. looks like i could still pack up and get out of this sprawling hell hole suburb if i wanted to, but can't convince myself that $10/hr with an uncertain work week is enough for me to comfortably live off of. my "potential advisor" wrote back and said no new news on funding, but a few proposals under review. why does everything in life take so long when you want it, but happens too fast when it's unwelcome?

yikes, having a hard time typing cuz steve and i went to planet rock for some climbing! despite climbing a little bit all summer, i lost any bit of strength/technique/talent that i may have gained on the rock in colorado. this little girl flew up a V5 overhang while i was trying to reach for a big chunky hold on a V0. I never said i was good, i just said that i have done it. doing something, and doing something well, are not to be confused. ;)

stever was nice enough to help me tape my video for "king of the jungle 2" casting call. it was a blast! i had a good time until the last segment, i just ran out of good ideas! it was so sunny and windy outside that it just wasn't turning out as well as i hoped, but we had a good time and that's what counts. tomorrow i am getting nekkid for heather! i guess i am rolling around in water?? she's also going to help me out with my "special shoot" that i need done. hee hee. i promise i'll post some pics on here and reveal my surprise.

you do WHAT?

It's hard for me to explain what I do at my new job, since I don't actually start until Tuesday. And my first day of work involves driving 2 hrs to Grand Rapids for a soil erosion convention, dressed all business-bitch style and setting up a display for what we do. Does anyone else think it's funny that I have to explain what we do, when I'm not even totally sure what we do? It shouldn't be that bad. Lots of hottie contractors and landscapers to flirt with. Hee hee. So here is the official "job description":

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This position will involve supervising the native seed farm and all aspects of seed and plant sales, plant propagation and any general nursery operations. Office tasks will include answering the phone, taking orders, providing estimates, spreadsheet development, report writing, and other general office tasks. This position may supervise volunteers and/or work crews on the farm and installations.

This position will also serve as an assistant ecological consultant regarding ecosystem restoration and management, natural stormwater management and treatment, natural features inventory, native species specifications, plant installation, soil bioengineering, wetland consultation, bird & mammal survey, endangered & threatened species analysis, conservation easements, grant application, and other natural solutions.

The minimum of a Bachelor's Degree is required for this position in: Botany, Ecology, Horticulture, Wildlife Biology/Habitat, Natural Resource, Plant Science, or related field. General horticultural, gardening, or farming skills are highly desirable for this position. Applicant must have excellent technical writing skills, competent knowledge of the Windows 2000 and Windows XP operating systems and excellent abilities in all Microsoft Office Professional products (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, FrontPage, etc). Applicant must have some experience with reading and interpreting a variety of map formats: soils, topographical, aerial photos, NWI, and MIRIS.

Applicants should be highly motivated and possess good teamwork competence, good written and oral communication skills, ability to work with a diversity of people, self-motivated, and ability to work with minimal supervision. This position is physically demanding and may require outside work in all seasons. You must have a valid Michigan driver's license and reliable transportation (mileage will be compensated for work related travel).

Experience desired in: Nursery operations: propagating native plants and nursery maintenance; General Farming: driving tractor, harvesting and planting, IPM training; or Landscaping: planning, installation and maintenance, or Habitat Restoration: harvesting and planting native seed and plants, invasive species control, and prescribed burning; or Ecological Consulting: native plant identification, natural features identification, wetland delineation, literature and field research.

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As you can see, it sounds very intense. Somehow, I am very qualified for this job. Guess being a jack-of-all-trades has finally paid off; who'd of thought that it would be a GOOD thing to do everything from electroshocking fish, digging up exotic plants, driving tractors, mowing turf, collecting seeds, and selling blinds and wallpaper, while possessing wildland firefighter certification and a pesticide applicator's license? What can I say, I'm a curious person. :)

Stupid Gonzaga had to go and lose like that yesterday. At least the Wings were wholloping LA when I went to bed last night. We tried to go to Planet Rock and go climbing, but they were so busy! Try again today or Monday I suppose. We had decided NOT to head north for skiing... guess what. They are getting a bit of new snow and it's great skiing conditions tomorrow. Unfortunately, Steve has an appointment tomorrow so we can't go. Ugh. I am never going to learn how to snowboard or ski!

Brackets!

I've never been a huge basketball fan; however, I love brackets. And I usually end up doing surprisingly well because I don't really have any expectations for any of the teams. I  mean, I know who is supposed to be really good, but the rest of them is just A. looking at how they are seeded B. dumb luck and C. personal bias against a state or a school. Example: if I don't know what school the abbreviations stand for, or if I've never heard of the school, I don't pick them. Why? I figure that if they were that good, I would have heard the name before. Also, I hate Texas. I did pick Texas to win, but usually I always pick against them.

Know the best part? I am absolutely rockin' the brackets this year.

As of right now, I was only wrong on 5 teams, and this first round is nearly over! I think that's pretty bloody good, especially since I didn't expect any of those teams that I got wrong to actually go on to the next round.

My final four? Gonzaga, Wake Forest, Miss St. and UConn. Miss St. takes all against Gonzaga.

If I don't like bball, why do I bother? Well, it makes me like bball temporarily. Everywhere I go, there is a game on; when I become personally concerned with the outcome, suddenly it's that much more exciting.