I'll cut right to the chase here- I GOT A JOB! After what seems like a million interviews, but was probably more, its such a relief to finally be hired for a permanent position (especially since my current temp job is slowly sucking my soul).  I'll be working at the front end at a local doctor's office, specializing in spinal pain, and there seems to be a few opportunities for me to expand on that position. 

So come Monday morning I'll be pulling up to my new job, in my new CAR! Lance surprised me by getting a car I had test driven and loved in OKC while I was away in California last weekend.  Its a 2009 Pontiac Vibe, aptly named the TARDIS for its lovely blue color.   

I realize it seems like I'm bragging a lot in this post, and I'll be the first to admit that I am- but after a 3 month long unemployment stint in the MiddleofnowhereAmerica, I think I deserve it!

Things hadn't been so bad pre-car and job, I mentioned earlier that I made a trip home to California.  It was great to see my family and friends, I've missed them so much! The highlight of my weekend was just spending time with everyone, but getting some good food was a definite perk.  Between breakfast in Napa, Taco's Jalisco for lunch, In n' Out for dinner, an Irish brunch, and drinks with Megan (not all on the same day!) I was one happy girl. 



After only being gone for 3 days, I felt like such a weenie for missing Lance so much- especially since we've gone a lot longer without seeing eachother! We had a relaxing weekend at home, enjoying the last few weeks where he has a chill academics schedule.  He hits the flight line again next week, and with that comes 4:30 showtimes; I'm definitely glad that I've got a job since he'll be so busy!

Since Lance finished his last part of training early, he had a lot of free time these last 2 weeks, so last weekend we took a trip to Wichita! On the way there we stopped in Pond Creek to try some of their infamously good barbecue; it definitely lived up to the hype, I told Lance I'd make the 45 minute trek just for the potato salad!

Wichita was surprisingly really cool.  Like in Dallas, we did a lot of research on where to stay so that we would be close by to a lot of things to do- in Wichita that meant staying in "Old Town"- which sort of reminded me of Old Town Sacramento, with bricked streets, etc.  There were a lot of neat shops and a particularly cool theater that served a full menu of items and brought them right to our seats as we watched a movie! Saturday was a great highlight of our trip; we visited the Tanganyika Wildlife Park just outside of town.  It was unlike any zoo I've ever been though, we could get SO close to the animals! They even had an island where you could play with lemurs!  My favorite part was meeting Henry, the Indian Rhino:

We went out for dinner Saturday night at a restaurant near a large plaza area where there was live entertainment, they ALSO gave out FREE ice cream! Needless to say that sealed our approval of Wichita!

Wednesday was an exciting day.  Lance has now finished Phases 1 and 2 of UPT and his instructor pilots put together a nice ceremony to announce what planes each student would be flying next.  For some people this is a very stressful occasion and it can drastically alter the trajectory of their careers, it was sad to see some of our friends not getting what they had hoped for.  Thankfully Lance is set on flying heavier aircraft, and that track is less competitive than the fighter/bomber so there were no surprises for us!

There were all sorts of other activities going on that day, I for one had been going on and on for weeks about how excited I was to fly a simulator!  I think Lance was hoping it would be an eye opening experience for me about how difficult it is to fly a plane- but I didn't think it was so hard at all! I got to fly loops, barrel rolls, and 'buzz' the command tower on base- and the instructor pilot said I was awesome.



I'm still looking for a job and have a hard time not getting discouraged every time I get a call back after a great interview saying that I'm not going to be here long enough to be worth hiring.  Happily, though, we'll be on to new places in a few months- knock on wood but it can't be toooo much worse than Enid, America.
Lance's new classes seem to be going well, it helps that he already has the fundamentals down.  We got together at the home of one of his new classmates from Whiting Field last weekend for a class party and had a lot of fun! Its nicer now that I know more people and they know me, despite me arriving so late in the game here at Vance.  Lance's class sure is filled with a lot of characters! 

I'm not sure that "Enoids" is the technical term for residents of Enid, America, but they've come to be affectionately known as that in our household.  For the most part, the Enoid is a friendly and hospitable creature, eager to help and generally easy going; they reside in the flat, humid, and climatically volatile region of Northern Oklahoma. 

Although the Californian is not an enemy to the Enoid- I'm starting to think that its not best that they share a habitat.

There is definitely a difference 'pace of life' here, and it mainly manifests itself in the literal pace at which people choose to walk--actually, its not even a walk, its a mozy.  I don't care how or at what speed people move, just as long as they stay out of my way, but they cannot seem to do that here.  Be it walking down aisles at grocery stores, waiting for them to stop walking right down the middle of the parking lot lane, I feel like I'm always slamming on the brakes (sometimes I actually am- they also drive at least 5 miles UNDER the speed limit at all times!).  I finally laid on the horn at a guy in the Walmart parking lot yesterday- I couldn't handle it anymore.

Earlier I called the Enoid friendly, and truly they are some of the kindest people you'll meet.  I'd have never thought it possible to be rude while being kind- but after waiting in line upwards of 5 minutes while I wait for the cashier to finish a menial conversation with the person in front of me, I'm seeing that its possible. 

My earlier 2 gripes can be considered harmless, and I'm sure I'll acclimate better to them- but I don't think I'll ever get over the way some people speak to me here.  I know that they are well meaning, but being referred to as 'sweetheart' by acquaintances in professional settings is just not ok- especially when they refer to Lance as 'sir'!  I was told to 'stay cute' by a school office worker, and to 'sign my name like a big girl' at a cash register. 

7 months left?

Oklahoma is to Texas like what Canada is to the US--its hat.  But where America is obviously intensely awesomer and, well, better than its northern neighbor, Texas is just plain old scary.  There were several presumptions I had before venturing to Dallas with Lance for the long weekend:

1. they all like football
2. same topic: Dallas Cowboys fans are second only to Raider fans in their level of annoyance and general danger. Avoid them.
3. the food may not be that bad?
4. Big hair, rhinestones, cowboy/girl boots, hats
5. inordinate amount of home pride--I mean, its not California afterall!

Dallas proved to be more cosmopolitan a city than I expected, and therefore didn't prove to be an ideal testing ground for these theories.  Football talk was abundant though, as Cowboy Stadium was home to the Oregon v. LSU game and our hotel was full of Tiger fans.  The crowds made for good people watching as we went out on Friday night. 

Saturday we hit up Six Flags Over Texas, it was a really hot day, but they had some great rides so it was totally worth it.  The biggest ride, pictured below, is the Titan- it has a 26 story drop! We went on it twice.  I actually didn't really like it though- while I'm fine with big drops and going fast, this coaster really had you pulling G's- I even lost color vision =/  I preferred a new wooden coaster there, the Texas Giant.

Sunday, we went to mass and then walked around the historic part of downtown, where they have a pretty big museum about Dallas history that is right around the corner from the site of the Kennedy assassination.  I felt a little morbid going to see the site of such a sad event, but it was interesting to really see the layout of the scene. 

this is the building Oswald fired from

there were white X's on the ground, marking where the car was when the bullets reached it

Sunday night, though, was the supreme highlight of our trip, can you guess why?





It was a really fun trip, and one we may make again before our sentence here is up.  I'd like to get some more authentic Texan food next time- we went to a Hoffbrau steakhouse and a BBQ place called Sonny Bryans and really did not like either of them- and maybe take better advantage of the mainstream stores they have there. 

Things in Enid have cooled off weather wise which is so incredible.  I'm at a weird point in my job search, torn between sticking with the temp/subbing thing until dream job comes, or finally biting the bullet and following up on some of the resumes I've sent out for jobs I don't really want.  Lance is in the final block of T-6 training and should have his last checkride next week, he's looking forward to some time off after that!

Edit: In my last post, I said I accepted a 'public teaching' job.  While my misspell could have been worse, I meant to put 'substitute teaching' job!

And now for something completely different.


I finished up my temp job today, 3 days early.  They fired me.  Just kidding! I finished all my work early and they didn't need me anymore.  Its a little disheartening to be out of work (and the $$ that come with it) for 3 more days, but overall it was a great experience.  At first there was a lot of looking up stuff and data entry, but towards the end I had a few projects that involved analyzing and writing up reports on data for various issues- it was cool that my boss told me the objective and let me figure out the best way to get there.  

My, now former!, boss and I went out to lunch and I clocked out shortly thereafter, and, stupidly, decided to go for a run when I got home.  While I've been working out, now that we don't live on base getting to the gym is a bigger task- and frankly I've dropped the ball!  Truthfully I miss being outside a lot, its been to hot and buggy to really do much out of doors. Today would have been a good day to hit the gym though, because its a whopping 105 degrees outside as I type this.  My computer at work's weather is set to Fayetteville for some mystery reason and I always forget this, like I did today when I thought that Enid could only be 92 degrees--ya right.  After staggering around our neighborhood, crawling home, and plopping on the carpet I stumbled over to the pool (are you getting how dramatic this is? Its really frickin hot!).

Now that I'm all showered and cleaned up I'm about to get ready for a Spouse's Social tonight, the theme of which is "Survivor: Enid"- we're supposed to learn about fun things to do in here, I'm hoping the bug eating is kept to a minimum.  I'm really looking forward to hanging out with and getting to know more of the spouses here!

Lance is still doing formation flying and has late show-times all week, with a possible matinee on Sunday. AKA he's busy and gets home late.  They're trying to push him through the program, which will mean he finishes earlier which will hopefully mean he has some time off- fingers crossed!

get it? Like Ryan the Temp from the Office? Anyway, lack of blog posts can be explained by the fact that I've been 'working'- I have a temp job for 3 weeks in the office of a local food company.  Its a LOT of data entry and not particularly invigorating, but I'm learning a little and I know I'm gaining experience.
 Because I don't have any job lined up afterward, I've also signed on as a substitute teacher for one of the local school districts, figuring I like kids and I like bossing people around, it'd be perfect.  Turns out a lot of the jobs are at the local high school, which would be fine except that when I showed up at the high school for a teacher meeting they thought I was a new student!

Lance and I went into the city with Ralph and Corey this past weekend so the guys could get fitted for tuxes for Ralph's upcoming wedding (SO EXCITED!).  Ralph's a bit taller than both of them though, so the one sample jacket they ordered didn't quite fit!

After that we wandered around Bricktown in downtown Oklahoma City and attempted to go 'wine' tasting.  Nobody seems to believe me when I say there are wineries here, and you're probably right because whatever this was it wasn't wine! It was easy to tell it had been artificially enhanced, and while peach soda tastes great, it doesn't taste like what Chardonnay should taste like!

My favorite part of the weekend was going to an Oklahoma City Redhawks game.  Baseball games are always fun, be here they made an especially good effort to involve the crowd and get everyone excited.  I noticed while we were there that a lot of people had black and white Redhawks hats that it appeared the stadium was giving away.  On our way out I asked a boy working at the gate where everyone got them, and he said they were given out to season ticket holders.  Seeing my disappointment he GAVE me a hat! Wasn't that nice?!?  I wore it the rest of the weekend- its like wearing good karma on your head.

I'm off to pick Lance up from his first formation flight- meaning he flies 3-10 feet away from another plane. HE I know will be great at it, its whoever he flies with that makes me nervous! Check the photostream for a picture of the storm rolling in!

Is a MESS!  I'm still getting the hang of how to cook meals so they're done at the right time and so I have time to prepare stuff to go along with them. Basically I'm a big fan of one-dish entrees, like salads or tacos!  Its fun cooking for two, figuring out what 'works' and doesn't (apparently Mexican food 5 nights a week isn't as popular with Lance as it is with me?) and just trying new things.

In addition to cooking, I've been trying my hand at a few DIY projects around the house; it helps that this week I found a desk at a thrift store that I can now use to work from, because stepping on sewing pins did NOT go over well in a house of people that prefer going barefoot!  The desk really didn't need much actual work, one of the veneers needed some glue, the screws needed tightening, and some new knobs really spruced it up.


On it you can see the  beginning phases of a 'coral' painting I made for our room.  Almost all of our bedding is blue and white, and Lance said he liked a sea theme- but since fish and shells are just so mainstream I went with everyone's favorite polyp (bonus: they're a lot easier to paint than fish or shells).  Today I added some white stripes to give it some dimension, I'll be the first to admit that its no masterpiece, but it'll do for now!

I've got a few other little things in the works, like pillow covers and some more wall art things.  After attenting Spouse's Coffee Night this week I not only met a lot of great girls, but was introduced to "Pinterest"- where I've found a TON of cool craft ideas!  Lance is out of town this weekend for training, so I've spent mine at Hobby Lobby and in front of a sewing machine.  Just kidding- I spent a good chuck of it doing that, but tonight I've been chillin with some pinot and The Tudors on Netflix.

Other than playing house this was an eventful week: I mentioned going to Spouse's Coffee Night which was so fun! I was a big apprehensive walking into a house full of strangers, but everyone was really friendly, and it helped that there were a lot of newcomers =)

Enid isn't exactly a hotbed of career opportunity. I've been looking for a job and met with an adviser at the Family Readiness Center that was really helpful, I'm hoping something regular and career enhancing comes in soon, but in case it doesn't I registered with a local temp agency.  People there sure were weird (a lengthy post on 'Enoids' is in the works!), 2 separate people showed up with Big Gulp sodas going into interviews! Its pretty disheartening to go from framing my diploma one day to finding out I've got a data-entry assignment the next, but I'm thankful to HAVE a job and something to do and am hoping something good comes out of it. 


The national news has talked a lot about the massive heat wave that Oklahoma has felt the brunt of (at least, I hear they've talked about it, we don't have cable) and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight.  The picture at right is of a dust tornado that I'm not actually sure has anything to do with the heat, but it looks like it could be relevant so whatever.  Lance has had some pretty miserable days out on the tarmac in the heat, and I try to make the best of it at home by staying inside or going to the pool and drinking a LOT of water (and sweet tea).