The Goods

Oh hey there! Long time no blog... sorry, things have been pretty dang busy around the Chelsea household... a lot has been happening!

So I've been working at the Call Center at the kind of job I never want long term but always thought would be fun to, you know, try out... my headset, cubicle, computer and I are becoming fast friends! Except when I work the 6am shift. Then we throw punches. I've actually been working 6am shifts a lot lately and began a stretch of 7 consecutive days of 6am shifts, some being 5 hours and some being 8 hours. It's the only way I could get a few days off to spend the 4th with the family at the lake cabin, so I was happy to concede and struggle through it. Should be interesting... Anyway, I could talk forever about the funny calls I've gotten, every day is such a treat! I love talking to people and the intelligence of some is amazing, but it just lights another fire under me as to the importance of educating people... everything can relate back to a calling to teach :) I've had several Southern men declare undying love and affection for my phone skills and self (awkward to get them off the phone, by the by), this morning I was asked to settle a dispute between someone and where they were that involved the guy providing his card for guarantee, paying with cash and ending up being charged on the card anyway. I was confused because I couldn't find his reservation and was searching on our database for a good few minutes... come to find out he was referring to his tab at the bar inside the hotel which he never had reservations in... not really my job to settle your beer tab, sir. And this morning, my coworker got a phone call from a woman who accused her of sleeping with her husband while he was staying in Florida on business. This is when we quickly say "I'm at a corporate office in Spokane, Washington ma'am, it ain't possible". We've gotten people asking if there are nude beaches close to the hotel and how "nude" they truly are, had people calling to ask square footage of rooms and asking if it would be possible to fit three adults and 7 kids in one room, tons of stuff. The job can be unbelievably stressful, but I'm enjoying it for the most part! If it weren't for the early morning hours and the computer headaches, I would say the hours, pay and variety make it the perfect summer job. I am blessed :)

So a few weekends ago I brought my Zaki kids over to my place to share American and Sudanese recipes and play outside... oh the exhaustion, they're hard to please! Especially when you're cooking and cleaning for 6 straight hours... but thankfully I was saved by Richard (more to come on that :) ) and took them home after 8 hours of crazy fun times. I have a few pictures of my kiddos, I'm so proud of them! Asis, the oldest, graduated elementary school a week or two ago. Sara, the 10 year old daughter, amazes me. She's such an incredible little lady, she wants so badly to do good in the world and to help people... I've been learning so much from her heart! She wants to start a school club that spreads awareness about the dangers of leaving kids home alone without supervision, targeting more towards those from non-American backgrounds. She and her siblings are frequently left home alone for hours on end, and with an eight-month-old even, and she wants to educate people of other cultures about how dangerous that could be. She's a great kid :) Asim, the five-year-old, is getting to that age. Yes, THAT age. He knows all and is always right, so it's a good thing he's cute :) He actually lost his first tooth not too long ago and is excelling in his numbers and letters. Also, his garden is blooming! His radishes and carrots are doing pretty good, but I think we killed the tomatoes and flowers... oh well, at least something is growing.

Asil, the eight-month-old, is growing so quickly it's insane! And he's beautiful... he's starting to use his legs and crawl around a bit. Here's a picture of my little man :)

Last Wednesday, I actually had a two-day stretch off work on Thursday and Friday so I left after work and went down to Portland to see my baby niece and beautiful sister! It was so wonderful to see them, and I haven't seen Payton since she was a month old (I know, weird...) except for on Skype which doesn't count. I love living in Spokane right now, but I truly do miss my family so this trip was exactly what I needed. On Thursday mid-afternoon, my mom joined us to make the group complete! An awesome, chill time with family... another blessing :)

It's true... don't argue with me...

Grandma and baby girl Payton :) I like this one!

The girls all together, first time since March :)

So this probably won't interest you, but the drive to and from Portland from Spokane is absolutely b-e-a-UTiful! I wanted to share a picture of the scenary at the time, made the 7-8 hour drive bearable :)

But there's another picture I took on the way back that I want to share...

Look closely in the back of this Volvo hatchback... very closely... yes, you see correctly. When I was passing through Lind, WA (literally a one-horse town) I passed this car with a goat in the back seat. It was just hanging out, nibbling on some hay, ya know, being goaty. Maybe it's a one goat town... all hail the Lind goat!

And I'm assuming this next piece of news is largely the reason why people will be reading the blog this time around... yes, it is true. Chelsea has a boyfriend. And here he is! Sorry about the picture quality and dorkiness, it's honestly the only picture we have together after having dated for a month :)

This is Richard Falk! We met under hilarious circumstances in a diner, started talking, and went on a few dates within a short amount of time (each date being unintentionally 8-10 hours a piece haha) and entered a relationship shortly after that. It's funny who God puts in your life when you least expect it :) He's 23 and currently working in retail to save up money to go to school in the Fall. We have a ton in common so spending time with him is the easiest it has ever been for me to spend time with a guy I've dated. I don't really know what else to say except he is the kindest, gentlest, funniest, smartest and youthful guy I have ever met and he makes me incredibly happy. It's been a fun time! The picture above was actually taken last Saturday, we went to a fancy dinner and then to a Comedy Club... probably why we thought we were funny in the picture haha. So there you go, everyone can breathe easy, I'm being well taken care of!

Starting in the next few days, I'll be packing up and peacing out of my current domicile. Joy! I'm ecstatic (not for the move... I'll actually be moving three people instead of just myself... true joy!) to go to a new place with cheaper rent, nicer spaces and better people (actually, most of the same people just weeding out a few :) ) Actually, funny story. A week or two ago, my computer rebelled and decided to be moody, so while I was computerless (tear) I milked the school of it's Internet by going to the library on campus. When I walked in I saw my landlord being helped at the front desk so I said hi and started talking to him about how thankful we were and how great it looked and how Kelsey (one of my housemates who was able to move in early, rent free, because her other lease was up in June) had moved in great. He was looking at me like, "what the heck are you talking about?!" but smiled and nodded his head. It took me until 20 minutes later when I was texting Kels that I wasn't talking to Jim our landlord, I was talking to Thom Caraway, my Core 150 discussion group leader. So embarrassed, only made better by yelling out loudly in the middle of the library... good thing it's not the school year. So yeah, the English department thinks I'm insane (that's his department) but it's made for a good joke. My housemate Katie is an English major and she messaged me saying, "hey I think it would be cool if we painted our rooms for next year... I'll ask Thom when I see him in class in the Fall". Haha everyone, haha. Just kidding, it really is pretty funny, but in my defense they look extremely similar! I only realized it when considering the differences in voice octaves and the slight differences in very similar beards. Anyway, I'm stoked to get over there and build another home for the year!

In all, life has been wonderful! The sun has finally come out and looks like it'll be around for a while *knocks on wood* so summer is here :) I hope life is treating you all well and that you are living and loving life well. Hope to see y'all soon!

Love,

Chels

Reservation Specialist

Magnuson Hotels- World's largest independent hotel group

:)