Love, Life and Appreciation: August 2017

Yes, with the arms outstretched, this is the next installment of 30 Things.

7. What is your dream job, and why?

My dream job isn't really a specific job, it's more of the qualities I'd want for the role. I'll be 31 in next year and my first ever job was delivering newspapers with my mom. Since then I've had an array of different roles from dietary aide in a nursing home, receptionist at an alcohol distributing company (I met Dan Akyroyd there), graduate student researcher at Howard University, Buyer III at environmental sanitary commission, policy manager at a Fortune 500 company (AOL, now part of Oath), among many others. Soon I will an Informatics Specialist at Mosaic Community Services. I think that having so many different roles has helped me more to figure out what I like, and though I am still young, I am still learning as well.

With that being said, many of the roles I mentioned were temporary jobs and in actuality, everything is pretty much temporary, some of those jobs only went for a month and I remember one job I had was one day. The people were so nice there though and two things I have truly learned to like is having a more stable role and being around people who are kind and friendly. I have been very fortunate to have been around many friendly people during the course of my many positions. I have also learned that continued learning is essential as well as adaptability and jobs that train and offer ways to learn is something I really like. Being able to volunteer is also a superb quality for me for a job and I love to volunteer and help others. I also like smaller companies, though larger companies are OK as well. I like working by myself but I also can work in a team setting.

My dream job is not a million dollar job, more on that I can utilize my skills and my voice and that offers great benefits for myself and the family and salary that is not at poverty level. I would more relate my dream job to the atmosphere I experienced at AOL. I was there for a year and actually started as a contractor and then I was converted to a full-time employee. Even as a contractor, I got to experience non-micro management and that I could be on my phone and even work from home. Oh, working from home is definitely a quality for my dream job. I loved the option of working from home at AOL and I was online and available and focused. It was great for lunch too. Even an office with windows and not insanely cold would be a dream of mine. One not too far from the house too, an hour is more tops.

A job quality I also would say would be up to date with current technologies and work actually to be available. I would love a job with not as much stress but in all, I can't really complain too much. My dream job would have me employed. So to summarize:

Stable, not a temp job and one that I can work in for many years
Friendly co-workers
Volunteer opportunities
Training and career advancement opportunities, flexibility
Able to utilize skills and voice
Great benefits for myself and the family
Non-micro management, freedom
Work from home option, or nice looking office with windows and temperature control
Up to do with current technologies or at least moving toward them
Not too stressful, I can outstretch my arms and breathe 😀

On August 21, the United States experienced the first total solar eclipse, that was visible from the West Coast to the East Coast in 99 years! A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon blocks the Sun. In this eclipse, the Moon appears black as it passes across the Sun and at totality the Moon completely covers the Sun and only the aura of the Sun can be seen. In the areas of totality, when the Moon completely blocks the Sun, the day turns to night as soon as the Moon blocks the Sun. When the Moon passes directly behind the Earth and the Sun is in alignment with this pattern, the result is a lunar eclipse. The moon appears to be red and is often called a "blood moon."

Here is Maryland, we were not in the path of totality for the solar eclipse but we were in the 80 to 83% range for a partial total eclipse. I dropped the kids off at the daycare and completed a couple of errands, earlier that day. The time for the eclipse to start in the area was 1:18 PM. I didn't have work because my orientation for my role at Mosaic Community Services is tomorrow. Yay! I did get to see the online stream of the eclipse and many of my friends actually went to areas of the totality like Tennessee and South Carolina. I was keeping up with their postings on social media and around 10 AM Eastern Time, the eclipse started in Oregon. Many people had the special eclipse glasses and I didn't have the glasses. I was unaware of the eclipse and it kind of caught me off guard. I love science and space too! I saw some of the people on the TV that were interviewed that said they had been waiting for this eclipse for 20 years.

I thought of where I wanted to view the eclipse and I was going to go to Rocky Point Beach Park or Miami Beach Park or a just a nearby park. It was very cool seeing the stream of the eclipse because when the eclipse went to totality in Oregon, it got completely dark! Right on live TV. It was amazing!!! The totality was for about 2 minutes and in other places in closer to the East Coast, it was for longer. It was so neat seeing the different areas around the US get dark as the eclipse swept across the United States. So then it came to about 1:20 PM and I decided to stay home, which was actually a better idea than I could have really known. I went out in the backyard and looked up but not for long. I looked at the sun through my smartphone, I know not that technical yet and I should have really had the glasses, or at least made a pinhole projector. I looked at my picture and got the start of the eclipse:

Yes, that is the Sun being covered by the Moon. The Sun wasn't blue though and that was more because of my camera on the smartphone. I went back in and waited, watching more of the live stream and chatting with friends on social media. The peak of the eclipse for the area was to be at 2:43 PM and something just told me to go out and snap a few pictures before the peak. I did and saw it was starting to get cloudy. Scattered thunderstorms were in the forecast for the area, and I had seen in other areas of the United States for there were clouds and showers, but during totality, the sky opened up and the eclipse could be seen. I knew that the area I was in was not going to get totality but I thought that 80% partial might break the clouds a bit. I was very wrong. It started thundering and getting more cloudy and by the time of peak it was lightning and raining, heavy.

Here's a picture I got before the thunderstorms:

I was like, "Really?" It continued to thunderstorm and when I opened the back door to see if maybe I could catch another glimpse and if some of the clouds broke around the eclipse, but I saw a flash of lightning and heard a crackle and I quickly closed the door. It didn't stop raining until well over 3 hours after the peak and the eclipse was to end for the area at 4:01 PM. My dad and Kate in New Jersey got pictures of the eclipse with his phone and they got clouds. The area in NJ they are in was around the same for visibility. I was a little upset that I couldn't see the eclipse at peak for the Baltimore region but I was very happy to have gotten the pictures I got and see the eclipse and the areas of totality through the live stream. I thought even with 80% the area might get a little dark but it did get dark with the thunderstorm.

The area of totality is absolutely amazing. I really think for the next solar eclipse to sweep the US in 7 years, on April 8, 2024, I might try to go to a location of totality. I'm thinking Erie, PA. I saw many of my friends went to various areas of the US in the path of totality for this eclipse and I really might try to plan with some of my friends for the upcoming one. There will be so much better planning, even if I decide to stay where I am at that time. Gosh, the last eclipse I can think of was the Christmas Eclipse of 2000. I had glasses then. :-)

Here are a couple of pictures from this magnificent event from other eclipse viewers:

In the middle of totality. I could see the solar flares with my naked eye. Amazing detail for a handheld shot. #NatGeoEclipse #eclipse2017 pic.twitter.com/mMPzgkakYu

— Terry Virts (@AstroTerry) August 22, 2017

#GOES16 (preliminary, non-op & way cool) western hemisphere view of #Eclipse2017! (credit: Kaba Bah + the entire CIMSS/SSEC team) pic.twitter.com/VSakaiFWsM

— UW-Madison CIMSS (@UWCIMSS) August 21, 2017

Spectacular views of the solar eclipse from Kennedy! #Eclipse2017 pic.twitter.com/W2oqLHdzUz
— NASA Kennedy / KSC (@NASAKennedy) August 21, 2017

Someone got the Best View of #SolarEclipse2017...
From a Plane! #Eclipse2017 #MustSee 😎 pic.twitter.com/kBv4IUYuh2
— KevinNoel (@KevinNoel) August 21, 2017

Yesterday, Rex and the kiddos and I went to the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair and Carnival. The Montgomery County Fair is the first fair that we've been to, since living in Maryland. It was very fun and yesterday was actually the last day of the fair. The fair was Rex's idea as he has been working on a building in Gaithersburg, MD for his line of work. He kept seeing the rides from the building he is working on and he suggested we go and check it out. I did research online the previous day about the fair and found that the fairgrounds is very large and that there were many exhibits and rides at the fair.

Gaithersburg is over 45 minutes from the house, but the ride down that way went pretty smooth. Parking was easy and I was happy that I bought the tickets for general admission online so we could bypass the long line to get in. We got to the fair a little after 11:30 am and it was already so hot. It was nice though that it wasn't raining. We got a map of the fairgrounds when we first got in. It was seriously like entering an amusement park! We waited for a couple of minutes to purchase tickets for the carnival part of the fairgrounds and those tickets granted access to the rides. We bought one all-day pass for May and for Nia we bought another for me because she had to go with an adult.

Our first stop was buying water and cold drinks. I wasn't sure if we could bring in drinks but we did carry a bag with pull-ups for Nia and wipes and we certainly we brought cash. After that, we went on the rides. May has become so fearless of rides and slides in recent months. I remember when she was frightened to jump up and down but she's been jumping around and running and going down slides for some time now. May was the good height for many of the rides but she also wanted me to go on with her. Rex went down the fun slide with her. Nia wasn't really enjoying the rides for the ones she was a good height for and with an adult.

Here's May, Nia and I on the first ride:

Nia wasn't happy on the ride.

Rex's view, he stood by while we were on many of the rides.

View of part of the Fair.

Rex!

May and Rex had a good time on the Fun Slide:

Down the Fun Slide!

I really liked how the rides were placed when you first walked into the fair. It seemed that more of the rides were suitable for smaller children and as we walked around to the other section of the fairgrounds the rides were for much taller children and adults. May really did well on the Kite Flyer. I was worried and Rex and I shouted for her to hold on tight before the ride started. She did hold on and really enjoyed it!

May did that!!! On the Kite Flyer!

The rides above were too big for Nia, so we went to the farm area to see the barnyard animals. There were pigs and goats and horses and chickens. Nia was very interested in the animals, but May really didn't like the smell. We also stopped by the fire trucks to learn about fire safety and May and Nia got to see a few fire trucks up close.

Pigs

Hello, Goat!

Petting a rabbit!

Inside the fire truck.

Hi, chicken!

Hello, chickens!

We also stopped by the Kids Zone and we saw a Barnyard magic show and May and Nia played with life-size chess pieces and other toys, with other children. May and Nia also had fun in the corn pit.

The children of the corn. Hehe.

Later on, we stopped by the honey bees and purchased local Creamline milk from grass-fed cows.

May by the honey bee.

Really good milk!

We ended the day going on a few more rides. We went on the carousel, which Nia could actually go on, with an adult. She seemed to like the carousel.

Lastly, I thought Nia could go on the Teacup ride but she was too small for the height requirement. May went on the ride all by herself and had fun.

Overall, we really had a good time at the fair. Rex and I think we might try to go next year or at least within the next two years if they have it. In two years, Nia will be taller and May and Nia might possibly go on more rides together. The fair also had a scavenger hunt as well and other contests. We might try to do the scavenger hunt when we go again. Great suggestion Rex!

Today I decided to take the kiddos to the Rocky Point Beach and Park in Essex, MD. I've been hearing a lot about the beach from our daycare provider and even when I searched Rocky Point online, I did see a what looked to be a beach and people on the beach but I was still a little skeptic. Rocky Point Beach and Park is about 12 minutes from the home and I was bewildered that a beach was so close. The beach we normally go to is Ocean City, MD and I am from New Jersey so I went to Atlantic City and Seaside Heights.

The daycare was actually closed this week for our daycare provider's vacation, which was actually good too, because I was able to watch the kids this week, while Rex was working. I've gotten much of the documents in and my orientation is August 24th. Rex will be starting school the second week of September and summer is really winding down. We hadn't taken the kids to the beach and Rex and I had gone to the beach earlier this month for a get together in New Jersey in Asbury Park, NJ. We were meeting with friends from the Kean University meteorology department and we left the kids with my father, who was more than happy to take them. It was so windy that day and it must have been at least 15 to 20 mile an hour winds. There was no rain though.

There were no winds that strong at Rocky Point today and though rain was in the forecast, I figured I could take the kids earlier and try to avoid the rain. It did rain and it was actually in the evening but during our time there it was more cloudy. It was actually nice being cloudy because as we were leaving the clouds broke and it got sunnier and hotter. The cost for entering Rocky Point was $7, which I believe is per car. Swimming is only allowed when lifeguards are available which is Memorial Day to Labor Day. Labor Day is right around the corner. The park is big and there were many boats both on land and in the water. There were two playgrounds and a long trail which we didn't even follow it to see where it went but perhaps one day. There was plenty of parking, as many people just we're there as well. Some people were barbequing and it seemed very peaceful. We parked the car and walked across the street from the parking lot. We went past the restrooms and there was the beach. It was a smaller beach and it looked small from the pictures online but it was also more intimate and there were other kids playing in the water when we got there. It was not crowded and more started to crowd by the time we left.

The kids really had a blast. May used to be so scared to even step in the water and she was putting her feet in the water. Nia did the same. The water was cold at first, but by staying in the water it got warmer. The scenery was very pleasant. There were many boats but they were further away. The water was dark and there was a plethora of seaweed, rocks, and shells. Nia had a great time collecting them and throwing them back into the water while May wanted to build sandcastles and bury her legs. The sand was a little wet from previous rains, but it really felt like sand. There didn't appear to be a boardwalk or strip of stores for novelties but there were resting areas and places to sit and eat. I found it so relaxing sitting there and hearing the waves and just trying to calm myself from all the hurt of the world. It was nice just to relax. I didn't get to relax for long though because I still was watching the kids and I didn't want Nia to get too close to the water without me present and for May just to be throwing sand and digging like a wild animal. May told me later that she was digging for treasure.

Overall, we really had a nice time and I definitely hope to go back to Rocky Point for the park area and the beach area and just experience the scenery. I believe that the park is free after Labor Day so we might be going back very soon. Even if there is a cost, we can still go back, especially with Rex because I think he would enjoy the tranquility and scenes. It's so close to our home! Tomorrow, we are planning to go to the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair and Carnival. Rex has been seeing the Farris Wheel and rides they have set up all week during his travel down that way for work. He actually mentioned it and I think it will be a great time for the kids.

Here are a few pictures from our visit to Rocky Point: