Jobs: Nine to Five's vs Non Conventional

When it comes to jobs, I have covered my bases over the years. Banana stand girl, hostess at Crab Cooker, receptionist for boat rentals, Squaw Valley lift operator, uniform clerk, supplement sales person, Oakley customer care whipping boy, dog portrait artist, retail, retail, retail, and now finally a receptionist at a proper online advertising agency in Irvine. Coming from snowboard land and Surfside, it has been an interesting transition in to the office world and I have been looking back on my life in action sports (and whatever the hell else I’ve been doing), reflecting on my jobs and lifestyles, and going over the pros and cons of conventional hours and jobs vs those of freelancers and non nine to fivers.

These pro's and con's are based more upon my own experiences. The reason I mention this is just because plenty of my non conventional and freelancing friends are successful and probably make the money I never did in retail or other random ventures.

 

What I think I look like...

 ...What I actually look like

Office Job Pros and Cons

Pros

• Money-it’s consistent and I might actually have some after the next few paychecks 
• Hours-counting the days until Friday and hearing hump day jokes seems daunting, but when you’re off at 5:30 every day, you can still make most happy hours 
• Weekends-they actually exist!!!! Champagne brunch forever and ever and ever 
• PTO-“paid time off” whaaaaat? This is totally foreign to a lot of us, but it sounds pretty sweet 
• Health care-also foreign to plenty of us, now I can break myself snowboarding and not be in the hole $10,000 
• Work environment-at least the office I’m at now is beautiful, it’s close to my house, I don’t get written up if I’m a few minutes late, and there’s parking and amenities (oh yeah, and free food!!!!) 
• Business casual-an excuse to shop for new blouses and shoes

Cons

• Money-finally might have some, but I won’t have a discount at Surfside or all the free time to go on trips to spend it 
• Hours-sometimes I want to go to breakfast on a weekday
•  Weekends?-some of us get so accustomed to not having them, we don’t even know what to do with them. Plus, does this make me a snowboarding weekend warrior now? 
• Lack of flexibility-my favorite bartender works Thursday nights, but I know I have to get up Friday morning…forever. It also might be a bit harder to take sporadic mid week Mammoth trips.
• Work environment- showing up hungover/drunk is generally frowned upon in the professional world, where it is completely accepted and somewhat encouraged in snowboarding and retail 
• Business casual-I guess that means my staple jeans and stained crew neck aren’t an option (but I do intend on instating Aloha Fridays)  

Consensus: I miss the mountains and wild life of snowboarding jobs, but I am still in the honeymoon phase of this new office job, so right now I'm going to sell out and say it wins mainly due to money and my dire need for health care (and that I am currently blogging at work), but get back to me in a few months and let's see if I still agree. 

Featured Brand: L Space!

It might not be a snowboard brand, but spring is here and hot tub season is all year long, so this featured brand is all about my favorite swim line, L Space! Although, my main fashion passion is all about snow gear, I have worked off and on in a swim wear boutique (The Persimmon Tree) for 10 years or so and I might have just a bit of an obsession with bathing suits. (Kerry Bannon might be the only person who has a bigger addiction than I do!) Volcom, Vix, Rip Curl, Maaji, Ralph Lauren, I love them all, but L Space is the cream of the crop.

Their quality, prints, cuts, and styles are just unbeatable. L Space is as innovative in swim wear as Mervin Manufacturing is in snow. Fringe suits were brought back and done best by L Space and last year they blew up the scene with laser cut suits and flowy tops.

One of the other nicest things about L Space is that they have tops and bottoms for numerous body types. In the bottoms there is everything from the tiny Brazilian to a nice coverage full. And in the tops they make all the way up to a D cup. For my big busted friends and myself, the L Space D is the way to go. It actually fits, you still get the cute styles and prints that smaller chested girls get, and best of all, no side boob!!!

So before you head to the beach or the hot tub, hit up Persimmon Tree, Surfside Sports, or your other favorite and local shops and try on your next suit!

My Favorite Suit: 

Top-Strap Back in the Cozumel Print. This is my absolute favorite top ever! It has three fixed straps in the back, comes in awesome prints and colors, looks perfect while laying out, but is still totally functional!

Bottoms-Lacey Bottom Classic in Black: New this year, I love this bottom! I usually wear the Estrella bottom as well, but the cut outs on the side of this one are super cute and totally forgiving to my not quite toned lower half. 

Active and Adorable: This season was also the release of L Space's new active styles. I about lost it when I saw these suits. Good for swimming laps, jumping in the lake, playing volley ball, surfing, or anything else for the athletic girl. The color ways are killing it as always and now we can have high quality, cute, fun, and super functional suits!

Top- Savasana Top in grey

Bottoms-Estella Bottom in Daffodil

Honorable Mention: One of the cutest suits I have seen in a long time! New, different, classy, and fun, so L Space!

Top- Wild Child top in black

Bottoms- Boho Bottom Classic in black 

 All photos from LSpace.com

Protect Your Dome: Wear a Helmet!

After cracking my head open 3 or 4 times and having at least a couple concussions, I should probably wear a helmet just to walk outside. Even though that idea might not be realistic, the least I could do is wear one when I’m snowboarding…and you should too! 

 

Kerry and I...all helmets all the time

The nicest thing about purchasing helmets is that the companies don’t seem to compete with each other the way they do with all other hard goods and accessories. Most brands helmets are compatible with just about any goggle. When it comes to purchasing a helmet, it’s not a bad idea to bring your goggles with you to try them on as a set. If you get up to the hill and you’re getting a wind gap, try putting the goggle strap under your helmet instead of over. From personal experience with Oakley goggles and a Smith helmet, A Frames need to be worn with the strap under the helmet, vs a larger goggle like the Airbrake or Crowbar, where the strap is fine being on the outside of the helmet.  What it really comes down to with helmets is that it’s all about just finding something that fits and feels good, so you will actually wear it.

The difference between men's and women's helmets you ask? Not much. Generally the actually sizing is the same. The biggest differences are usually just the colorways and the ear pads in women's helmets are softer. Depending on the company and the helmet, sometimes the forehead coverage on a women's helmet is a bit more shallow. I have always worn a "men's" helmet and I've got no complaints!

My Favorite Helmet: Smith Maze

It’s the lightest and most comfortable helmet I have ever worn. It’s low profile, has nice ventilation, removable ear pads, and only retails for about $80. I wore a Smith Holt for a long time(because it only costs $60) and it’s a great helmet, but it feels bulkier and heavier, which usually led to me not wearing it very often.

The Maze in matte black

Killin' it in colorways: Anon Griffon
Anon "released" helmets this past season, but they are actually just rebranded from the RED company (nothing wrong with that). Burton owns Anon and RED and converted them over for marketing and goggle purposes, which actually makes a lot of sense. I am a Smith girl for sure, but they did a very nice job this year with colors and designs. The Griffon women's specific helmet, amongst others, have been looking good. Nice feminine touches in the colors and graphics, but still using matte finishes and not making them look too girly.

 The Griffon in the Sprae Colorway

Useful thinking: Bern
Bern helmets are cool for two reasons. One-they're straight out of Compton or at least the closest where house to me is (they even have a model called the Watts). Two-they make multiple removable liners, so you can use your helmet all year round! You purchase your helmet for whatever season you're going for, then just go online and check out the rest of the liners you might want as well!

The Bern Lennox

According to Wikipedia.com, out of 188 skiing/snowboarding deaths in the last 10 years, 108 have been related to head injuries! Yikes!

Featured Brand: POLER!

As spring approaches, the snow begins to melt and we get ready to pack up our snowboards, shed our winter clothes, bronze our pasty skin, and search for new adventures. Most of us who snowboard have an undying love for the mountains whether there is snow or not, so come spring and summer, we find ourselves drifting back into the woods for some camping. Enter in the featured brand, Poler.

Poler two man tent

You might have seen Poler before with its numerous collaborations with companies like Smith and Nike, but they have a lot to offer all on their own. They have flagship stores in Portland and New York, but can also be located at numerous outdoor clothing and accessory dealers all over the country. From tents to coffee makers to hoodies to the napsack, Poler covers all your outdoor needs, be them beach or mountains. The products are mostly unisex.

Check out: http://www.polerstuff.com/

One of the coolest products: The Napsack
Somewhat of a hipper and higher quality Snuggie, the Napsack is a sleeping bag/pancho, ideal for camping, lounging, post surf sessions, and hangovers. Or maybe you are like me and just don't feel like putting pants on.

Don't make it home? No problem!

Chillin with the Potato? No problem!

My favorite product: The Tracker Anorak Down Jacket

We all know, I am a sucker for a pull over and this thing basically just looks like a jacket version of the Napsack. It comes in black, blue, and a rust color.

Lots of guy models, but it's all unisex

Notable mention: The Poler x Granted Sweater Vest

I mean come on. 

All images from polerstuff.com