opening my eyes to the wonderful and tragic world of dog rescue

this is a picture of patsy smiling and showing off how clean and white her teeth are.  she is a small american staffordshire terrier, who is very sweet, well behaved.....with all the love in the world to give. this picture doesn't do this girl justice, as she is an absolute beauty.

since adopting gus, much of my free time has been spent at the barking lot, the rescue that saved him.  owner, stacy, nursed gus through parvo, and a handful of other ailments.  the love i feel for gus has made me totally and completely indebted to stacy and her mission.  even though i am just a core volunteer and spend up to 25 hours a week there, i have an official title.  i am the barking fee supervisor. i think that translates into accounts supervisor in normal business speak.  given that it has been a long time since a real job, excluding internships, this stability and work like environment is beneficial.  ofcourse i could go back to serving at bars and restaurants, but that wouldn't help me on my path to the kind of career that i want, and it would certainly not be as fun or fulfilling as saving dogs.

sometimes at the barking lot i feel like a superhero.  when a normally balanced dog acts out, even just once.  he becomes food aggressive and bites his friend over a treat or bowl of kibble.  i insert myself into the situation, pull the dogs apart, clean up their injuries, and tell them that it is okay. that they won't be put to sleep because of one mistake, because of one bite, because they are part pitbull.  i give them a kiss, a bath, and good scratch.  sure enough, they are over the situation.  anyone who has broken up a dog fight, (and who doesn't become hysterical) will notice that the moment the fight is over, a calm comes over the dogs as they realize 1. fighting really sucks, 2. ouch now i have an owie, 3. what was i fighting for.....  dogs live in the moment, as soon as someone stops the fight and demands calm submissive behavior from the dogs, the frantic energy of the fight is gone.  it is pretty amazing, and i have seen stacy do it several times.  despite my lack of experience with dogs growing up, i think i am learning these techniques quickly.

i used to be afraid of large dogs.  i think i was bit through a fence when i was little, near my abuelita's house.  it wasn't hard, but it gave me a scare and became a lasting memory.  it has been so beneficial to work at the barking lot because i am aware of changes in my perceptions of our big dogs.  some dogs we have had since i started volunteering up to a year ago and i used to think they were so big.  just like when you return to your old elementary school, a place that once seemed so big, and is now miniature.  the fear of the big dogs has shrunk in my mind and now it takes an impressively large dog for me to notice their size. 

gus would really like a friend.  i can tell. next time pickle and i are considering getting a bigger dog.  we love labs and golden, but are also considering pittie breeds.  i would love to have a calm, sweet, pittie, that could serve as a ambassador for the breed and illustrate how good they could be with the right family.  ultimately, we will decide as a family, and gus will get his say too.  of the many great things about working at the barking lot, i love the ability to watch the dogs and see their behaviors, whose alpha, dominate, submissive, who is calm, energetic, who listens, who is distracted, who is food motivated....exc.  essentially, i get the pick of the liter. (hahha pun)

well that is all for now, have a dog gone good day!

"The other day a woman wouldn't let me hold her baby because she said I was too drunk...."

"First of all, don't bring your baby into a bar.  Second of all, if I'm drinking malt liquor at a playground, I'm calling it a bar."  -tosh

Two beers and a drop of 600 points in the market later!

If you haven't seen Inside Job yet, go rent it, pay 5 bucks for it on demand....see it immediately.
  
http://www.hulu.com/watch/174282/movie-trailers-inside-job---trailer


Basically the point of this blog is to bring up how rating agencies, specifically standard and poor's, dropped the *&^%ing ball when it came to the banks on the verge of clapse and the buying up of junk mortgages.  All those banks that went bankrupt, were bought out, or received a ridiculous amount of government bailout money had AAA ratings just days or hours before they filed chapter 11.  How did our rating agencies screw up that badly?  They suck that is how.

Why didn't our government prosecute our rating agencies for....i don't know...accurately rating our banks.  you know ....their jobs.   And now Standard and Poors downgraded the US GOV to a AA+ rating, sending our stockmarket into the dumps again.  As big a drop as in 2008.... once again you screwed us standard and poor.  Thank you very little.

saturday thoughts

i just clapped for a band on tv.  it felt right, and then weird.

i wish i could make a career doing what i am best at.  unfortunately i don't think i can be a professional avocado picker.

 why do all baseball players look like douches?

isn't whistle blowing just the adult version of tattle telling?

how did the tenacious d movie happen without me noticing, i am making up for lost time now!

procrastination reaches seriously combustable levels

nearly done with my first year of my mba.  i am currently, one finance final, one econ final, one group ids paper, and one econ term paper away from the amazing half way mark in my masters.   i really need to be working on my econ term paper right now, which i am writing on pita chips, (i know how to pick some interesting topics, huh).  i just can't focus.  econ really is the most awful subjects i will ever have to study.  it is a shame too, because it is so applicable in everything you do, that it is just stupid.  it is always about this point in the semester, when crunch time turns into distraction time.  blogs, facebook, and a new smart phone do not help.

but worst of all, knitting.  it seems i only love knitting when it is keeping me from something really unpleasant like econ.  last semester during finals, i knit the beer koozie necklaces, this time i want to make monsters, a lot of monsters. 

here is my inspiration.

i am going to start with some monster chunks...

these look way more fun than econ, huh?

say cheese!

 

www.rescuedcards.com

lil' gus got his photo taken by professional, inspiring, and all-around awesome person, monica hoover.  he was a little camera shy, but she captured his goofy, lovableness, don't you think?  she is working to get her "rescue cards" picked up by a large retailer.  they are beautiful greeting cards that feature rescue doggies, a portion of proceeds from sales will go to the rescues that saved the dogs photographed.  even in her state of extreme hunger and exhaustion she was wonderful.  it is no easy feet to photograph 30 puppies and abut 50 dogs in one day.

if you also love her photos, you can like her on facebook here.

doesn't play well with others

i recall the occasional phrase, "doesn't play well with others" on elementary report cards.  i was always exceedingly bright but would get knocked down to a "satisfactory" on report cards due to this.  i was also the youngest in my grade, started kindergarten at age four, went to college at age 17, will finish grade school at 24. so i am accustomed to being the youngest around but interestingly instead of being complacent and agreeable, i still to this day, get worked up over the stupidity of group projects.  lets just say, mba=a million group projects.  luckily i have formed amazing friendships with easily the smartest gals in my program, but still we wind up with some hangers on in our groups that, don't do shit, and just drive me bonkers.  i tend to get much more upset about these boogers then other people do.  don't get me wrong i am not a type a, perfectionist, will accept nothing but the best....... i am human, i will fall apart, or slack occasionally, or even procrastinate to dangerous levels.... but never, do i not complete my portion on time, when others are counting on me.  be it the magnitude of team sports i played growing up, or learning the worst thing you can do is let your peers down, or perhaps i just like to feel superior.  maybe it is a little of all of it, but i don't let me team down.  i finish my part with due diligence and am ready to get everyone else parts and see them fit together like a puzzle that creates a project that REALLY represents the magnitude of combined brain power of our group.  insightful, witty, creative, thorough, and most importantly complete.  but dummies that are in my group always seem to make this a near impossible task.

i once had a teacher who, during class one day, asked, "who here likes group work?"  about 1/5 of the class raise their hand, "the teacher says, now everyone take a look at these people, remember who they are."  ....."all of those that didn't raise their hand, hate group work more than anything, it is because of you few, with your hands raised, that they hate it."  quickly hands went down. but i felt so great in that moment, that a teacher understood and was empathetic of the struggles to carry the dead weight that is your lazy classmates.

but riddle me this.  why, if teacher know how horrible a struggle it is, do they still assign so much group work?

i know, because in the real world, you will have to deal with lazy, unmotivated, or just bad colleagues.

i maybe optimistic, or naive, but i hope to work in an atmosphere someday with people who care about the quality of their work, that can meet a deadline, that have a sense of time urgency, and are intelligent and decent people.  (oh, and team-players too!)

of all the lies that one could put on a resume....to lie and put you are a team player, when you actually are not, just because it is one of the BUZZ phrases that managers like to see, has got to put you in one of the deepest rings of dante's hell.

and that is why ladies and gents, i don't play well with others.

traffic from interesting sources

so as anyone who blogs would know, you can see where traffic to you your blog comes from.  the stats page tells you various cool information like keyword searches that brought your blog up in google, among other things.  interestingly i saw more than usual traffic coming from certain keyword searches, that were, surprising, and well ummmmm....disturbing. 

now think of what someone might search, that would accidentally bring up a blog called amateur's corner.  if you were thinking along the lines of pornography, you would be correct.  i can't believe, that it took me two years to realize that my title had a dirty innuendo.  i am usually so good with clever innuendo, i guess this one just slipped by. 

anyway, for the internet community that stumble upon my amateurs corner by uhmm...accident, i apologize for the mix up.  let me just say,  it is pretty unlikely that any risque photos will be posted here.

how hilarious that i received way more traffic to my blog than i would've under a less ambiguous title.  as a marketing professional in training, i wonder how useful a tactic that is for seo.  give links or web pages potentially dirty names, in order to get more keyword hits.  one unconfirmed stat that i always hear is that the web is 70% porn, so someone could strategically use that to their advantage......right?

:)

Goodwill Pub Crawl

pub crawls are pretty frequent happenings in  pacific beach area of san diego, so the need to distinguish themselves through t-shirts, mustaches, and common themes is needed.  pickle and i have been on a hand full of them, and they are always fun.  for some reason, walking with a group of friends, or soon to be friends, down by the beach, drunk, leaving one bar before it gets old or stale, only to stumble to the next new place, it's just so exciting.

last weekend, we were lucky enough to join a group for a dual birthday fiesta.  we didn't know more than a few people, but we liked the theme and like meeting new people so, we went.  the theme was "dress to embarrass."  the idea was that everyone met a bar, wearing clothes they planned to donate to goodwill, they names are pulled, and the name that you pull, is the person you will be dressing at goodwill.  at goodwill, it is a free for all-  the craziest items that anyone can find, are put on and then starts the pub crawl.

i must stop to mention, how this idea also supports goodwill, we may have left the store looking a little bit like a tornado hit it, but i bet the group spent about 300 + dollars there.   plus we donated our clothes. ....well, most of us did.   i decided to wear leggings that were jeans, or jeggings as they are commonly referred to.  when it came to drop them in the donate bin, something in me didn't want to part with the jeggings.  they made it back to the trunk of my car, and they will be worn again, probably as another joke.

anyway, here is a photo of me and pickle in the glorious outfits that were chosen for us. pickles was a women's- set and very tight on him, he looked like he was going to bust out of it, like the incredible hulk. 

random pics and movie reviews

 since when is this jimi hendrix song called "Voodoo Chile".....i dunno, but i think i like it.

dyl pickle schooled me in "apple" scrabble today w/ "roved"  i challenged it too, what an idiot.  worst part is he gave me a decent definition that turned out to be right.  i will think twice before i question dyls knowledge of the english language.

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movie reviews;

the social network,

well i certainly don't understand what all the hoopla was about.  i found the story interesting, but i felt like i could've edited 45 minuted out.  but those winkelman twins, that were rowing the whole time, ....babes.  45 minutes of lawyering up should get cut, and 45 more minutes of the crew team should be added.  just a suggestion.



the fighter;
excellent.  can't believe mark wahlberg was pretty much the sole person not nominated for an academy award in that cast.  well, what does the academy know?  so he plays pretty much the same character every movie he is in... so what!  you can't help it if you have been type-casted as a bad-ass, with an amazing six pack.  loved this movie, and amy adams, and christian bale too.


that is all for now, unless you want to watch this snl short "mark wahlberg talks to animals"

Salman Khan: Let's use video to reinvent education | Video on TED.com

Salman Khan: Let's use video to reinvent education | Video on TED.com

The ethical side of business

my accounting instructors have mentioned everything from fudging numbers, to creative accounting, and keeping things off the balance sheet.  no wonder so many execs have been caught participating in unethical business practices.  maybe we should take a closer look at how we are teaching accounting and financial practices to mba students.  it seems to me that damn good accounting and illegal activities can  look very similar.

but this post isn't to talk about the sarbanes-oxley act, it is to shine the light on some companies doing the right thing, just because.  few have realized that there is money to be made if you stay true to values. here are some of my favorite.

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http://www.outofprintclothing.com/

t-shirts that feature the original book art on classic novels.

"For each shirt we sell, one book is donated to a community in need through our partner Books For Africa." 

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another is the shoes adopted by the so anti-trendy, that is has become trendy, pseudo-sub-culture, the hipsters. and it goes so well with their flannel and chunky boots.  tom's shoes donated a pair of shoes for every purchase to a child in need, all over the world.


http://www.toms.com/

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the greater good website (specifically the shopping part)

The GreaterGood Network is a family of websites that provide simple, effective, feel-good ways to directly help people, animals, and the planet. Thank you for your caring online actions.


I am a fan of this website because when you choose rescue animals, then each product for sale, tells you how many bowls of food that it will buy.  

https://www.theanimalrescuesite.com

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Randomness--Quick Update on This Year's Success and Failures

can you believe that it is february already?  my aztec basketball team is rated number 6 in the nation, amazing! i hope to get tix to a game coming up, but students are camping out at night in order to get their hands on the student section tix.  i just don't know if i have that kind of school spirit in me....  we will see.

i have been failing at getting motivated and we are four weeks into the semester, i really need to get my shit together before my midterms sneak up on me....  please adhd, give me a freakin' break.

surf class has been occupying my thursday afternoons and this week, (our first week in the ocean) i stood up twice, for a long duration of time.  the same day, my older sister was kind enough to text me that a "small" great white SHARK was spotted just 15 minutes from where i was surfing, 500 yards form the shore.....  awesome....  it will be difficult to surf next week without playing scenes of jaws in my head. dun nah............. dun nah...........dun nah...dun.nah..dunnah!

 

i would poop my wetsuit if i saw this!

http://www.kpbs.org/news/2011/feb/10/small-great-white-spotted-coast-la-jolla-cove/

funny, because i saw lots of dolphins yesterday while in the water, but next week i hope i can tell the difference between this.....;

and this;

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KNIT FAIL:
i have also failed to finish all my beer koozies... i promised more than i could deliver.  i need to get on these, many are mostly completed just waiting to be stitched up.

BROWNIE FAIL:
tried this recipe, and i messed it up fo sho, because (pickle can vouch for this) mine tasted like garbage. 

READING SUCCESS:
well not anything school related, MBA FAIL, but i have finished three books in just a few weeks.  i feel good about it, since i really love reading but my add has often kept me from completing books, even if i was very interested in them. (okay i didn't finish the last 10 pages of MJF's book, and not the last 50 of redemption)  i am not a perfect person, alright!

back to school, back to school

last night i started class again. i couldn't help but think about the contrast of this first day versus my first day last semester.  last semester (my very first semester of the mba program, i was so nervous i felt like i would throw up at any minute.)  i felt like i didn't belong, that people would make fun of my art degree (i was right, they did) and i would not be able to compete against these business undergrads and older professionals in class, ultimately (on my first day of class) i thought i would flunk out and it was just a matter of time.

last night however, i was happy, excited to see some friends i hadn't seen in a while, prepared (with all course materials, i brought two calculators, gross huh?) i had the confidence that comes with an amazing 3.5 gpa the semester before, and ringing in my ears was my little cheerleader inside (it's a metaphor, i was never or never will be a cheerleader), saying "kim you got this!"

here is the description of this class, so you can read how scary it sounds.




financial management-- the uglier sister to the financial reporting class i suffered through last year. a little bird told me the professor wasn't that great either!  this is what is said about the professor on ratemyprofessor.com ;

so as you can see i was a little hesitant.  but honestly, it isn't like he can flunk all of his graduate students, right? plus there were a couple little idiosyncrasies that i think i can focus on that will at least keep me entertained.  one....how he writes on the chalk boards.  (i know there are chalk boards, what are we in a 19 cent. school house with kids of all ages) sidebar:  i am very upset that this class is not in the fancy grad. rooms, shaped like a U (for the socratic method i suppose) with huge professional tables (looks like congress, but miniature) and we have pink comfy swivel chairs.  i love the chairs in that room. oh EBA 339 i miss you......okay back to my story, this classroom has chalk boards and those awful chairs that are connected to your desk set up in rows.  gross huh?  okay well, sterk tends to bang on the chalk board very loudly each time he writes.  cracks me the F up.  i love it. secondly i also love when he is a little rude and ends conversations abruptly and awkwardly with students.  so awesome to watch.

so here is the rest of my line up.....looks fun huh?  not.

the cheese nightmare

my first ever guest post!  isn't it exciting.  the author, alex, is a friend of mine whose gourmet cooking would impress even the greatest chefs, critics and institutions on par with le cordon bleu.  i asked him to create a recipe for his creation that he named the cheese nightmare. enjoy!
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The Cheese Nightmare

Ingredients

18 slices bread
18 plastic cheese squares
Extra cheese rectangles (to taste)
Directions

1. First things first.  You are going to want to pick the right cheese which sounds easy but beware.  There are many logical pitfalls to mind whilst attempting to tame the fickle beast that is:  The Cheese Nightmare.  Many people think that Velveeta would be a tasty ingredient however, while Velveeta is excellent for making dips it is simply too runny.  You don’t want to buy generic cheese squares because they taste grossly offensive.  You also don’t want to buy the thicker cheese squares that are separated by wax paper as their heartiness often leads to an inexplicable phenomenon known as “cheese sweat”.  If you don’t believe me go ahead and whip up some ‘mares’ on a first date and see if you get a second.  While the taste is similar the thicker cheese lacks the chemical properties that gives regular plastic cheese its warm inviting glow when presented on a tasty piece of bread.  Kraft American Cheese Slices have time and again proven themselves in the microwave as the go-to cheese for every culinary situation.  I find them to have a nice, piquant after dinner flavor.  Heavy, but with just a touch of mellow smoothness.
2. Step 2 is to choose your bread and here you can really go in any direction.  Picking a unique type of bread will undoubtedly give your cheese nightmare that little something that separates it from all the others.  Keep in mind however, that the heartier bread the more the flavor of the cheese singlet will be masked.  On the other end of the spectrum if you decide to go with thin bread like Wonder, for instance, you risk sogginess which will surely ruin any dinner party.  Indeed choosing the right bread is the most challenging quandary in which one must overcome to make the perfect cheese nightmare.
3. Put the cheese on the bread.  Sounds simple right? Incorrect.  Some breads are oddly shaped and create yet another sticky wicket for you, the gourmet chef, to best.  I have found that when unwrapping the plastic cheese it is best to stop after the first plastic unfurling step and to tear the thin rectangle of exposed cheese away from the main body.  You are left now with a small rectangle and the larger cheese “square”.  You can now use this cheese rectangle to customize your nightmare by placing it where needed to create an equal cheese distribution across the face of the bread.
4. Lay two pieces of paper towels in your microwave (this is to absorb moisture)
5. Put assembled cheese nightmare on paper towel and microwave for 20-30 seconds depending on wattage of microwave
6. Let cool for 30 seconds to 1 minute
7. Consume.  Many words and phrases have been used to describe the feeling after eating a cheese nightmare: sublime; scrumtrulescent, self-actualization.  Whatever type of religious experience you have after eating a cheese nightmare for the first time just remember that the cheese nightmare were created to be shared.  Make them for your friends, family and loved ones so you can all enjoy the experience together. 

friends look good in polaroids

trade my spinach for your fusilli

this is a vegetarian pasta recipe that i threw together tonight.  and it was good!

sidebar:  this is not a professional food blog!  it is called amateur's corner, because i am just that, an amateur.  i really just recently (last couple years) began eating vegetables and cooking for myself, so i feel that some context is needed when viewing posts like these that detail (what i think are) great cooking successes. mostly, i post anything and everything i don't want my ADHD mind to forget.  so without further ado, trade my spinach for your fusilli.

i used;
half box of spinach fusilli
8 basil leaves
quarter large onion
two small zucchini
two roma tomatoes
3 stalks celery
one clove garlic (minced)
trader joes marinara sauce
salt, pepper
oregano
olive oil
fresh bread

boil water for pasta

add garlic, onions, olive oil and celery to sauce pan for 5 or so minutes, til onions start getting clearish

add diced tomato, and zucchinis, salt, pepper, oregano to sauce pan for 5 or so minutes

add pasta to boiling water

add marinara sauce to pan, and fresh basil cut up for few more minutes

drain pasta, cover with sauce


serve with cut pieces of bread (drizzled with EVOO) and tomato, mozzarella, and basil.

yummy (serves two hungry people) takes about 25  min.


dude, my blog features many pasta dishes...  it's almost as if i lived in florence, italy for a year and ate nothing but pasta.

my sister got an awesome camera, canon rebel.  and here are some pictures, the two of the ornaments i took, and the one of gus i just thought was too cute to not include.  it was a great holiday season and my family completed a 1000 piece puzzle together, aren't we cool!

barbie isn't the only slut who gets a dreamhome!

some may know, as of the 1st of jan.  hgtv started their new dreamhome sweepstakes. you can enter once on hgtv and once on front door.com each day til feb. 18th.  this year's home in stowe, vermont is gorgeous and even though i know i would have to sell it, property taxes and such would be too expensive, i love the look of everything.

HGTV and FrontDoor

i will be entering dyl pickle and i everyday, mostly because the winners every year say they did it religiously.  you should all enter as much as possible.

here are some pictures of my favorite things in the house.