Barney Bag

"Well I looked into my Barney Bag and I found a lot of things. Gizmos, gadgets, odd and ends, even some old string."

ok... i really mean Mommy Bag.

when i was little, i remember always wondering why my moms bag was FILLED with so much stuff. everytime i brought my own little purse around i always tried to stuff it with anything (notebooks, pens, candy, coins) just so it would be filled like my moms bag.

well waddaya know... im a mom! hah

this is what was in my bag.
-coin wallet
-check book
-card wallet
-2 sets of keys (car and work keys)
-2 pens
-1 permanent marker
-3 USB flash drives
-Playing Cards
-aleynas socks
-aleynas star glasses
-aleynas kazoo
-a couple of old receipts
-gum
-a clutch
-mail
-camera
-camera charger
-phone charger
-pantiliner/tampon
-cookie crumbs
-napkin
-hair ties and bobby pins
-body spray
-lotion

now i know why my moms bag was filled.
its not because she had to bring things with her everyday... but because, as a mom/parent, you get so preoccupied with your kids, work, school, household chores, errands, and so on that the last thing on your mind is cleaning out your bag. and at the same time, as a mom you automatically have back up items for emergencies (ex: hairties, pens, napkin/wipes, lotion, toys.. im sure any mom can add to this)

i hate carrying my bag around and thats why i have a clutch bag inside my regular bag. when i go places, i take only whats needed at the time and leave the regular bag in the car or at home.

Tip. Heres one.

Legend has it, the word "tip" itself came years ago from a pub owner who used the acronym on a box "To Insure Promptness." In that spirit, tipping should be thought of first and foremost as a reward for prompt and attentive service. (http://hotels.about.com/od/hotelsecrets/a/tipping.htm)

I went to the restaurant ISLANDS with Aleyna to grab a quick dinner before heading to work. I walked in and noticed another lady sitting down so i thought "hmm busy perhaps". no, the lady just had a situation with her bill, thats all.

I stood there patiently waiting for the Host to settle the ladys bill thinking that she would come to me next to seat me. Nope, she passed right by me. Ok fine, i work in customer service i'll let it slide. She walks pass me again! hmmmm? ok? then AGAIN she walks pass me. Not a word was said to me.

Then i see the bus boy come to the kiosk to wipe it down and i ask "is anyone working?". so he kindly asks if i need to be seated and finally seats me. The waitress comes to the table, and as i look up.... its the Host that ignored me.. not "once... twice... three times!!! a lady" (haha. i just had to quote that song).

After working in the Hotel Business for a little over 2 1/2 years i have learned the importance of TIPPING. Tipping for GOOD customer service that is. Sad that she had to be my waitress too cuz i did not leave a penny for her tip. what i did leave was..... a Zero with an arrow through it that also said TURN OVER.... see picture below.

Tip: When you see someone standing there waiting to be seated, its Ok to say "have you been helped already?"... Upsetting that you were my waitress too.

easter

i honestly havent been to church since mothers day of last year so it felt good to actually make it to a service on easter sunday. Pastor Phoebe said something today that simplified a topic my cousin and i had couple days ago about being a "christian".

"Religion is mans way to God. Relationship is Gods way to man."

people live their lives saying im this religion, i go to church, etc... but saying those things really doesnt matter if you dont have a personal relationship with God.

find your religion to find God. and when you find God make sure you have the relationship. if the relationship isnt there, then you're just giving yourself a title with no meaning to it.

another thing that many mistakenly do.
they think people that go to church or quote verses or claim theyre a certain religion should be this oh so angelic/godly person. the thing is.. God didnt make ANYONE perfect. so remember, the next time you get bothered by someones imperfections... youre also not perfect yourself.

"1 "Stop judging so that you will not be judged. 2 Otherwise, you will be judged by the same standard you use to judge others. The standards you use for others will be applied to you. 3 So why do you see the piece of sawdust in another believer's eye and not notice the wooden beam in your own eye? 4 How can you say to another believer, 'Let me take the piece of sawdust out of your eye,' when you have a beam in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye. Then you will see clearly to remove the piece of sawdust from another believer's eye." Matthew 7:1-5

and because im blogging this... i admit that i, myself, is imperfect as well.

i hope every one had a safe and happy easter!
and for the record.. 7.2 earthquake. san diego is shakin things up. haha

is it 7am yet?

work is dragging right now.
(-.-)zzzZZZZz

if you work overnight or use to work overnight then im sure you know where im coming from. if you havent, you honestly wont know until youve worked the shift. some people might say "oh please i can do that". but its easier said than done.

ive been working the overnight shift for 2 and half years now. crrrazy. imagine... getting off at 7:30am-- sleeping--waking up when aleyna wakes up at 10:30am--take a nap at 5pm with aleyna--then wake up two hours later when aleyna wakes up... almost 5 days a week for two and half years? thats pretty much 3hr and 2hr naps... no sleep. coworkers always tell me "mahra. i dont know how you do it" because i was the only working mom during our shift. i think i just got immune to the sleep deprivation. it sucks... But you gotta do what you gotta do.

good news is...
im about to start working day shifts.
its about time!
i can finally sleep during normal hours.
i can finally spend time with aleyna with the right energy.

no more making aleyna nap when i nap.
no more worrying if i'll fall asleep on the road.
no more "MUST HAVE COFFEE" moments.

ive been patiently waiting for this, and now that its coming up... i cant wait.

to anybody thats looking into working the graveyard shift. i dont recommend it. but if its your only option, then i guess you have to. it'll be a good experience. but dont do it for too long... it might eat you up.

-mahrZombie

communication is key.

its hard to communicate with someone that wont communicate like an adult.

i love Pho

i went to The Village Walk at Eastlake with Aleyna for the first time. We went to Pho Hiep Grill to eat. If you know me, i LOVE pho. Cold weather, Hot weather, Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (seriously). This place wasn't your typical Noodle House, National City or Pho Ca Dao, El Cajon. It was more on the nice side if you know what i mean. nicer than the ones you see in clairmont as well. You can probably come in all dressed up and not look out of place. haha.I never sit outside but i decided to do so this time because it was right next to the fish pond. The patio wasnt too big so i was still able to watch aleynas whereabouts when she wanted to look at the fish swimming. As far as the food.... the pho was good. i like Tendon and their tendon was probably the best ive tasted. it wasnt hard and chewy like most places. they even had a Kids menu! that was probably the best part of the menu. i dont think ive been to any pho place with a kids menu. I would always have to ask hesitantly for a small bowl of noodles and maybe just a little bit of chicken.. yeah? maybe? haha. but this Pho Hiep already had that all set. they even had an option for chicken and rice. awwwesome! Bad news... pricing is a bit more than what you would usually pay. Other pho places have pho for $5 while this place is $7. yeah pricey maybe?? but like they say, you get what you pay for.

rosa.

a coworker was telling me about her being in law school and she said this...

"its crazy because we think we know and learned some things. then when we get to know more. and we realize that we didnt really know what we thought we knew after all."