The Olympics

I have always loved sports. I always enjoy a good competition whether I am a participant or spectator. I look forward to every even year when I get the opportunity to watch The Olympic Games. It is amazing to watch these athletes, who are the best of the best, compete with so much heart. I even like watching curling - pay attention to the awesome footwork of the sweeper dudes. I think part of my enjoyment of watching the Games stems from my love of timing things, slow motion replays, and speed, but most of all I think it is because I am motivated by the athletes and they make me want to try harder in everything that I do.

Go U.S.A.!!!

Let Them Eat Cake

In a previous post I mentioned that I would like to have a baking business. As soon as I made that decision I began testing new recipes and having my friends test them. I've been getting a lot of good feedback. I've had four or five cake orders, an order of cinnamon rolls, cupcakes, and over the last couple of weeks I've been making lots of sugar cookies and they've become quite popular.


My dream of having a baking business has recently picked up speed. Garrett's manager, Suzie, has a friend that owns a cafe. All of his pastries are store bought and apparently taste terrible. Suzie says that they're like Little Debbie's Brownies. Suzie talked to her friend and they both agreed that I should be making pastries for his cafe every week. I'm so grateful and excited for this opportunity! Everything is moving along so much faster than expected! But this brings me to my next point.....

The owner of the cafe has asked to see business cards and a website, both of which I was eventually planning on doing, just not this soon. In order to have business cards, or even a business for that matter, I need a name! This last week Garrett and I and a few friends have been brainstorming business names. We have come up with a few ideas, but I have to admit that I'm not very creative when it comes to things like this. This is a big decision and I get really nervous trying to decide on the final one. I NEED HELP! So I'm going to list all of the ideas that I have and have everyone vote on the one they like the most, OR if you have a better idea please, PLEASE tell me what it is! I am open to suggestions and constructive criticism. Here is my list:

The Cake House

Baked, Filled, & Frosted

Sweet Things by Jacquie

Sweet Amazings

Sunshine Cakes

Something Sweet

Sugar & Spice

QT Cakes

Crumbs

Sweet Boutique

Jacquie-Cakes (Bakery)

(The) Cake Box

Buttercream Bake Shoppe

.....and anything else you can think of! Please help me! And please be honest! Cast your votes.....NOW! Thanks everyone! And I'll let you all know as soon as I make a decision!

A few things to learn

Five things every professional engineer must know:

1. When commenting on a fellow engineer's novel concept or idea be sure to confuse and complicate everything that is said so that you can resolve the confusion and introduce the original concept as your own.
   
2. Begin all answers/comments with "No" or "Not exactly."
3. You are always right, even if you are wrong! Just blame it on approximations and sensor error.
4. You must have facial hair. At least a mustache, but a beard is more acceptable. Bushy eyebrows are a bonus.
5. Few people understand what you are talking about most of the time.
   

This is sometimes how I feel:


I still have a long way to go...

Washington D.C.

My very first business trip. At the beginning of January I traveled, with my boss, to D.C. to meet with some universities and institutes that are also doing research on vehicle rollovers. We also met with the big cheeses of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and made a proposal. It was a lot of work and a long week but the trip went very well and I learned a lot. I was intimidated at first about the meetings, but I quickly learned that I didn't need to be. I was able to answer questions and clarify things that confused my boss. I guess I know more than I thought.

Anyway, here are the high and low points of the trip:

High points:

First opportunity to wear my new suit!
Got moved up to first class on my return flight!
Collected a lot of business cards!
Networking

Low points:

Weather: What's an Alberta Clipper?
Spilled hot chocolate on my shoes.
Missed Jacquie