Author: Autumn
•2/25/2009 03:42:00 PM
Everyone's been involved in some way, whether it be as the irritated captive of the car next to you or as the blasting offender. As warmer weather creeps our way and the windows start rolling down we know it's coming: Those people who feel the need to have whatever they're listening to in their cars heard within a nine-block radius.

And why does it always seem to be the obnoxious music that's blasted the loudest. Or my favorite is when they have so much bass in their car it vibrates the entire parking lot. LOVE IT. Short of throwing rocks at their cars, I have come up with a plan that falls into the "If you can't beat them join them" category.

Back story: Over the past few years my music tastes have gradually expanded to include more classical and opera. I am really starting to enjoy that kind of music, most especially when I am driving. And the first preset radio station in my car is now the classical station in Omaha. I was driving home today for instance listening to a CD soundtrack that had a few beautiful opera excerpts from the likes of La Traviata and La Boheme.

Now, today has been a beautiful day. I exited the house in short sleeves and flip flops, and I am loving it. And so I found myself driving around Omaha with the windows down, listening to the aforementioned CD at a nice, comfortable volume. That is when it hit me.

This summer I am going to be that girl. The odd one who is blaring opera from her car all summer as a counter measure to all the rap and heavy metal. I'll be pitting Puccini against Lil' (insert name here). And me thinks Puccini and friends are going to win. Well, at least in my little world.
Author: Autumn
•2/21/2009 11:59:00 AM
So my restaurant officially closes Wednesday, February 25 at 2 p.m. My last shift there will be Tuesday night. After it closes a small portion of the staff will spend the next day stripping the restaurant down and getting rid of anything brand related.

However, I do have good news in the form of a transfer to the Chili's in La Vista. I didn't even know where it was but I drove past it and it's probably five minutes or so closer to my house than the one I work at now. A couple of my favorite co-workers and one of the managers I like are transferring there as well. I start Thursday.

So I will continue to be a part-time Chili-head, which is just fine with me for now. I still have to get one or two more jobs lined up beside this, but at least I have the one. And on the plus side, I will get a $250 stay-on bonus when I get my last paycheck for staying on through the close as an employee in good standing.

This is a year and a half old, but it's one of the only pictures I have of me at work:

Author: Autumn
•2/11/2009 12:35:00 PM
1. I am obsessed with alphabetizing things. Give me a list, a pile of books or CDs or whatever and I will gleefully go to town.
2. I really do love the Twilight series and greatly admire Stephenie Meyer, but if I hadn't started reading them before they became such a cult phenomenon, I doubt I would ever read them.
3. I am a copycat shopper. I have to see things on other people to like them, especially with shoes and purses. I can walk right past a purse on a rack that I will LOVE when I see it on someone's shoulder.
4. I've loved potatoes since I was a kid, and my dad always told me I should marry an Idaho potato farmer when I grew up. Then I ended up going to college in Idaho.
5. Ever since I took a Children's Literature class in college, I've read just as much YA literature as adult, if not more.
6. I love grammar and editing and all that. And while I know what's right and wrong, I can't explain the rules at all. I know when to use who and when to use whom, but couldn't give you the technical jargon behind it to save my life. By technical jargon I mean an explanation involving words like subject and object.
7. I have not been paying attention to my grammar as I have written this, so nobody else is allowed to either.
8. I always say I like guys who are a bit bigger, but when it comes to immediate attraction, I always tend to like bean poles. Why is that?
9. I am the biggest klutz ever, and lack grace in any form. I can't go an hour without bumping into something or knocking something over.
1o. I am currently hooked on crab rangoon. I still enjoy the rest of my Chinese food, but it's now my favorite part.
11. I sing all the time. But I HATE performing. And the one place I never sing is in the shower.
12. I am completely obsessed with Broadway musicals. I love discovering new ones. And my personal idea of heaven is night after night of Broadway shows, with the original cast members of course.
13. I often feel I was born in the wrong decade because all my favorite movies and actors are from the '40s and '50s. Most of my leading men are now dead.
14. I love laughter and I never feel better than when I've made someone else laugh.
15. I don't know if I will ever get married, but if I do I plan on keeping my own name. I love it and have no desire to ever part with it.
16. The fact that people my age are having kids, plural, really freaks me out because I am at such a different place in my life.
17. I have never worn make-up and doubt I ever will. People always pull out crap like I don't need it, but there's no way I'm the only "natural beauty" out there. Honestly, I'm just lazy and past the point where I'm willing to learn.
18. I have no desire to ever have kids of my own. I wish my nieces and nephews lived closer so I could get to know them and be a decent aunt, but that's it.
19. I love it when old people are still in love with each other. It melts me like nothing else. I either want to get married in my 30s or wait until I'm a senior citizen.
20. I truly hate PDA. Anything beyond hand holding and quick pecks in public really irks me.
21. When I watch TV or movies, I yell at guys who are crying to suck it up. It bugs me.
22. I don't chew gum and am turned off by anyone who does; it grosses me out. I especially hate when people chew it likes cows or when receptionists and servers, etc. chew it while working.
23. I tend to be either loud bordering on obnoxious or really really quiet. There isn't really a middle ground.
24. I love books and anything related to them. I think they are beautiful, and have to admit that I often do pick out books based on their covers.
25. I have two people I consider my best friends. One is on the east coast, one is on the west coast. I am stuck in the middle.
Author: Autumn
•2/06/2009 03:45:00 PM
So last week I got some bad news: My restaurant is closing.

I had heard rumors for a few days, but having it confirmed still hit me a lot harder than I was expecting it to. I am pretty upset about this.

I have been working for Chili's for nearly two years now. I started at a franchise location in Idaho Falls, Idaho, in April 2007. Then when I moved to Omaha that December I got hired on at a Brinker (the main company) location here in Omaha. Then I moved to Pennsylvania this past summer and transferred to the one in Hanover. Then I transferred back to the same Omaha one in December.

I've had quite a history there. And I know it's just Chili's, they are one among many in their genre, but I have truly enjoyed working there. And Brinker really is a decent company that makes a real effort to give back. (Oh and the one in the photo is actually the location in Idaho Falls where I started.)

Now I guess I should clarify that the company itself isn't going under; Brinker is just closing about 30 of its locations nation wide. Nobody can fully escape the current economic situation. There is one other location in Omaha and one in La Vista that is fairly close too. Right now our managers are trying to get as many of us transferred as they can, but a lot of people want to and each store can only take on so many.

So I am still in limbo waiting to hear my fate. I have a few ideas about what I will do if I can't get a transfer, but I still feel sad. I haven't worked at another restaurant in so long. I know nearly all there is to know about Chili's and its menu. I know all the answers. I don't want to have to start over.

I guess I just have to wait and see whether or not my days as a Chili-head have come to an end.