more Parisian posting

Day two:

We woke up about 8:30ish and went across the street to a tea house and patisserie. We each had a marvelous pot of tea, and I had the flakiest, butteriest, yummiest croissant ever. We then met our tour guide for the day (a man named Michael Osmond--I only u his real name because he was the BEST DAMNED TOUR GUIDE EVER!!!). He showed us around the Louvre, the Mairie de Paris, and many places in between. He was so knowledgeable about random little facts and showed Mother and me places we would have never seen on our own (the holocaust museum, original city wall, and even the gay area of town...). He even took us to a great The Salon ("the" being the french word for tea), Mariage Frere. Yes, I bought tea there, and I'm drinking it now. Not only was he super knowledgeable, he was hilariously funny and witty as well. I wish he lived here so I could see him again. During this day of walking, I swear we walked at least 6 miles but probably more. I wasn't too tired by the end of the day (at 4:45pm I thought it was closer to 2:00), but my legs, feet, and back were killing me the next day. I think it had to be the most walking Mother had done at one time in years. Bless her heart!

Now for the important stuff: food that day! Lunch was at a little sidewalk bistro on the Seine that Michael knew. I had a croque monsieur with frites and a green salad. Mother had the same. For dessert, I had a molten chocolate cake. Numnumnumnum!!! Mother had the tarte tatin (apple tart) with a local vanilla ice cream (which was AMAZING). Dinner was at a little place called La Fontaine de Mars (129, rue St-Dominique--a straight walk from our hotel down one street). Mom had something she loved, I think the duck confit. I had the typical green salad (I can't pass up a good salad) followed by steak frites with a fantastic shallot and red wine reduction sauce. There was even a "chunk" of bone marrow on top of my steak. Honestly, I had no clue what it was; I had to ask the waiter. It creeped me out, but, like my daring nature, I tried it. Ya, I don't have to do that again. Yes, I know it's a gastronomique delight, but to me it was the equivalent of eating Crisco. Greasy, not a lot of taste, and kinda icky. Because of that, I don't remember my dessert. Whatever it was, it was good as was the wine.

So that's day two. More to follow. Now I gotta get some sleep. Stupid recycled plane air made me sick with a stupid sinus infection. Do you now how hard it is to sleep when you can't breathe? That and I think I've produced more snot today than is humanly possible. I should call Guinness.

stupid jet lag

Okay, I've been awake since ~4am. I gave up and got up at 5 figuring I can use the extra time to catch up on the Parisian blogging. I'll start at the beginning.

The plane ride: Good Lord, I hate to fly. It's not like I'm afraid of it or anything, it's just so boring. I consider it a necessary evil. Ten hours of uncomfortable recycled air in order to enjoy one's self in a beautiful foreign land. It would be better if I didn't suffer from the affliction of "Unabletosleeponaplaneopathy." My mother got her ticket waaaaaay earlier than mine, so she was lucky enough to use miles to upgrade to business class. I was in steerage in a seat that didn't recline. Oh, and I was right next to the lavatory--occasionally stinky. And my headphones broke rendering my iPod useless. Arrgh! At least I had a super sweet girl sitting next to me. After hours of chatting (she can't sleep on planes either) about her singing and songwriting career, I found out she is one of the daughters of Hank Williams, Jr. True! My brush with fame in an uncomfortable airplane seat.

Then we land. Remember, we left DFW at 5:15pm and arrived at CDG at 9:30am. Where did the night go? We flew through it. This is the worst possible of days--trying to stay awake. Mother and I got our ride to the hotel, freshened up a bit, and head out for lunch. We walked and walked and walked and...well, you get it...until we found the place she had picked out for lunch. It was a place she's been to before and is known for its souffles. She had a fan-freaking-tastic Gorgonzola souffle whereas (in my sleep deprived state) I thought it would be wise to try something different. I ordered the haddock and spinach souffle. It could've been good, but it wasn't. Way too much fish. I decided it would've been better if they'd added a good hard cheese like parmesan or asiago, but they didn't. I couldn't even finish it because it nauseated me. That's when we decided that I was in no state to purchase anything--who knows what I would've bought in that state of mind! We spent a lot of the rest of the afternoon just wandering around the 7th arrondisement trying to stay awake. When we found ourselves back at the hotel, we look a nap and then got up for dinner.

Ah, dinner on the first night. It was so unbelievably magnificent I wanted to marry all 3 courses I ate and have their children. The restaurant is called Le Florimond ("19 Ave de la Matte-Picquet, 75007, Paris Traditional Cuisine, served with passion"). Here's what I had: (A) lobster ravioli in some sorta fantastic sauce, (MC) a leg of lamb stew with fresh basil, carrots, potatoes, and golden raisins, and (D) chocolate profiteroles filled with dark chocolate cream and surrounded with a passion fruit sauce and sorbet. *angels singing heavenly tunes*

Now I'm hungry. My Yunnan tea that I bought at the Mariage Freres tea shop just isn't cutting the hunger. It is, however, making my scorchingly raw and painful throat feel much better. Damn recycled airplane air. I knew I should've gotten that Airborn stuff. At least I have to see Dr. B today for something completely different. I'll make him fix me. ;-)

also sprach zarathustra

I've joined the 21st century. I have successfully connected myself to the internet! Yay for not having to pay the $150 for someone to come do it for me. I realize I've got some serious Parisian posting to do, but I've spent the past couple hours dealing with the hooking up of internetness and checking email. I promise to get to that soon. In the meantime, here's a picture of the City of Lights.

I don't like Mondays

To quote The Boomtown Rats....

There was much difficulty rousing myself this morning. I've been having a devil of a time sleeping lately, so I specifically did not take a nap yesterday afternoon even though I really wanted to. I thought that would help the night time sleepiness (or lack thereof). Nope. At 10:30 I was w-i-d-e awake and watching Jurassic Park for the umpteenth time. I gave up and took a couple benedryl and a couple aleve (pain in the neck) and begged for sleep. While I eventually did fall sound asleep, I had my recurring problem of hitting snooze a lot (1 hour and 20 minutes this morning). Luckily, I had a premonition and set the alarm like 45 minutes early. I still made it to work on time, but I look like someone ran over me with a steamroller. I'm glad the poop can't comment on my looks. The other coworkers, that's another story.

Stanley--my true love

Yes, I've named my ipod. I love my ipod. Where else can I easily switch from Radiohead to Ella Fitzgerald to Portishead to Sarah Harmer? Hmmm, why do two of those groups have "head" in their name? Odd. Anyway, good sleep last night follwed by a freaking huge peppermint mocha and good music at work has placed the naughty mouse in a much better mood today. Even the disturbing dreams of last night are but a faint memory. Even the Mayboy is better today. When he's persnickety, everyone suffers. Maybe Wednesday was just a bad day astrologically. Ya, like I believe that hooey. :-)

Six more days!!!!!

fark

Ya, I said that. Fark on today. And this week. Arrgh!!!

Okay, that being said...I feel better now. Something about this week is just sucking arse. The insomniac girl in me has returned. Little sleep makes me cranky. Adding little sleep to the already present crankiness is not a good thing. Add that to feeling blah, seeing a good (yet somewhat depressing) movie, and reading a supposed humorous book about why it's better to admit that you are a loser than a winner...whoa. Not good for the soul.

Oh, I can't wait for next week. In 7 days and 6 hours, I'll be on a flight to Paris. Good Lord, let it come quickly!!! The wine, the cool rainy weather, the time away from poop, and the time spent with my marvelous mother. Good times are ahead!

tgif?

Wow. I am super cranky. I can't decide if it's due to work, hormones, or the fact that I'm still taking the pred. I hate that I've been jumping down the May boy's throat for no reason for the past couple of days. Oh well, taper started yesterday to my lowest dosage. Only 2 more weeks of prednisone. Thank goodness!

On a happier note, I made an appointment to get a henna tattoo tomorrow after work. FINALLY!!! Since il doctore told me not to get a real one (to my mother's delectation), I figured this was a good thing. The henna lady also thinks the doctor was smart to tell me such. All the danged healthy people in the world....

I had some seriously farky dreams last night. Lots of anguish, dementia, and tornadoes. At least this time I didn't have to save anyone's life. Those dreams are sure tiring. I blame watching too much Law and Order in the past couple of days.

Well, one of the girls up here at work just told me I can go home for the day. If only she were the boss...! ;-)

the walking dead

So I finally gave up on trying to get rid of the tension headache/shoulder ache/pain in the neck I'd had since last Saturday. Last night I succumbed to the pain and took a flexeril (yes, they have been prescribed to me for the stupid tmj thing). I took it at 9pm. I was surprised that I didn't pass out halfway through Top Chef. When I did finally get to sleep about 10:30, I slept like a baby. So much so that when my alarm went off at 6:30am this morning, I heard it and didn't care. It's like it just didn't register. My brain was like "oh, that's the alarm, pay it no mind" and kept sleeping. I finally got out of bed at 8:15--I'm supposed to be at work (which is a 30 minute drive on a good traffic day) at 8:30. Needless to say, I was a tad late. All day long, I've been in a comatose-like state of "walking deadness." My brain is functioning only minimally, and I've made some silly mistakes. The best part though, was slamming my face into the eye pieces on the microscope when I kinda nodded off between slides. Ah, good times! I'm looking forward to going back to bed soon.

just for fun

like we didn't already know this...

weekends rule!

I had one of the best weekends in a looooooooong time. And ya know, I really didn't do much of anything.

Friday night was just a lazy night. I don't think I did anything in particular--I don't remember! Saturday rocked my boat because I went over to the Hbomb's and we watched the first 3 discs of Heroes season 1. A mini-marathon if you will. She is hooked! While there, I ate a ton of cheese, and we finished the night with yummy cow from Outback.

Sunday, I slept in, hit the gym (after all that cheese, I needed it!), and went to lunch and shopping with Mother. Amazingly, the shoes I had in my mind's eye were actually real and in the store ready to be purchased by me! Soooo, I have a new pair of Clark's to wear around Paris in a couple of weeks (much to my mother's chagrin). Then we stopped in Teavana--bad naughty mouse!!! Like I really needed that new teapot and book and tea mugs. Okay, the teapot was kinda in order, but the rest was superfluous. What's really funny about it all was that in my 2 stops, I spent as much as Mother did in one stop buying 2 new blouses. I think that shows that I am a much better shopper than my mother. ;-)

But best of all about Sunday was the Musegasm of the night. MUSE was playing out at the Nokia Theater in Grand Prairie (really, what is "grand" about it?). Oh...my...goodness...! It was a super stupendous sensory overload of lights and sounds and smokey machine goodness! Yes, they still totally rock my world all over the place. Best of all, they played my fave song (Butterflies and Hurricanes) with the killer classical piano interlude in the middle. Sooooo wonderful!!! And I have learned that the best seat possible are on the Southwest Flight Deck. One row on the front of the mezzanine/balcony. No one in front, no one behind. Sometimes I think I'm too old to scream my head off like that, but it was AWESOME!!!!!

Monday was still weekend for me, but it was uber boring. Since I didn't get to sleep until about 2am, I slept late. Met the Hbomb and Mother for lunch, took the Hbomb to Luke's Locker for shoes, then hit the CD stores to sell some stuff back. I got a whopping $11.50. Ya, that's gonna pay a lot of hospital bills. Then I futzed around the rest of the day putting more CDs on my computer and then ipod. I tried to go to sleep at 10:30pm. I was still wide awake at 1:30am. Insomniac Girl rides again!!!

Now I'm tired, and you are caught up on the intricacies of my life. Aren't you thrilled.

miracles abound!

WTF??? I'm so bloody excited!

For the 1% of the world that doesn't know, I'm on killer amounts of prednisone for the next three weeks (being weened slowly). That and I went to the Dairyette for dinner last night. Yet when I got on the scale this morning, I noticed that I'VE LOST 10 POUNDS!!!!!!!!! YAYAYAYAY!!!!

I don't think I can begin to describe my happiness. I'm all about the Spark People now! Things are definitely looking up in my world.

gross nastiness

Okay, Mother. Do not read this one (or at least skip the 1st paragraph).

So I FINALLY got the bloody waxy plug of gunk outta my right ear. It was disgusting, but I can hear well, and my ear doesn't feel all icky anymore. Now I just have to deal with the rest of the healing. My ear canals are sooooooooooo itchy!!!!! All I wanna do is cram q-tips down there and scratch. Yes, I know it's wrong, but it feels so good. Kinda like most good things in the world are somehow wrong. =)

Things are better in the world of the naughty mouse today. And not just the ear. I started off the day by baking cookies and bringing them to work. Let me tell you, everyone up here is happier today! There's not much better than oatmeal chocolate chip cookies to brighten the mood. That and the work load is much less today. I think I may actually make it to the gym tonight before all the classes are finished! And I'm supposed to have dinner with a friend I haven't seen in forever tonight. And there's the Heroes 1/2 marathon on Saturday.

Things are looking up!

annoyed

I think there's something evil in the air.

Everyone I know seems to be cranky, in a bad mood, or in some sort of foul temper the past few days. The May Boy at work has even been (I dare say) PMSy. I can ALWAYS count on him to be chipper! What's up? Is it the change in weather? School back in session? Shorter days? I feel bad for everyone who's unhappy, and it tends to bring me down with them. Of course, I've been uber cranky since Sunday for no apparent reason. Go fig. Granted I do have one friend who is cranky for a very good reason, and I'm not complaining about her (you know who you are--more power to ya!). Even the Thomas has been extra bitey. Now that's really not a good thing!

So for everyone out there in bloggerland...hakuna matata!

long time, no post

In a nutshell, not much is going on with me, and I'm fine with that!

I've gotten a clean bill of health from the doctors. Now I just have to wait and see when/if this happens again. I have faith in my physicians and God, so I'm not too worried.

I leave in 24 days for gay Paris! I'm so excited I could spit!

KMD tried to eat the flip flops again--I've just left the old one out for him. It's sooooo his now. It's amazing the damage he can do with those little needle teeth.

I still love my new vacuum cleaner. It's sucks hard!!! ;-) It does an amazing job on cat hair. Thank you Consumer Reports for your advice!

Stars season is coming up soon...I can't wait! I am a little miffed that I'm going to miss the opening game (which I have tickets for unless my Stars fairy can switch them out for me), but it's okay since I'll be in the aforementioned gay Paris.

That's it. Sorry I've not got more to report. If you want any details about the "illness," just ask. I'm not going to post about it. It's not a big deal, so I don't want to waste time and space on it.

kmd strikes again

That damned cat. The KMD (kitten of mass destruction--Corn) ate a pair of flip flops. Not only did he chew on them so as they cannot be worn at all, he picked the new pair of Tevas I got up in Maine. Arrgh!!!

Other than that, things are going well. Health is improving. I'm working a full day today (needed a microscope break right now). I just wonder if my hearing will ever improve to the way it used to be. I'm sick of my ears feeling "full of cotton." At least I'm not waking up with little bloody spots on my pillow anymore. Ewwwwwwwwwwww!

Later gators!

mousey health

Let me start at the beginning. Last Tuesday I woke up with a stuffy ear. I went to work, didn't worry about it, and then went to Mercury Grill with mother (prior post). As the night progressed, it hurt a little more. When I woke up Wednesday, I thought I had an ear infection. Since I'm a weenie about my ears and was having trouble hearing, I decided to go to the doctor. It's never a good thing when he looks at your "affected area" and can say nothing other than "Oh...hmmm." He thought it might be something called polychondritis, but it was most likely cellulitis. How the poo does someone get cellulitis in their ear? Whatever. He gave me a super duper dose of Augmentin XR, and then he told me if it wasn't markedly better by Friday morning to call him back so we could do IV antibiotics. I went back to work.

By Thursday morning, I was in the hospital. As Wednesday night progressed, the pain became unbearable. Within a few hours of being admitted, I was on IV antibiotics, IV morphine, and some sorta otic drops. As Thurday progressed, I saw my Internist, an ENT, and a Rheumatologist. The ENT caused the most pain EVER when he decided he had to suction some edemic crap out of my ear canal. My father said he was being super gentle, but I felt like he was using a jackhammer and an acetylene torch. He ended up putting a wick in my ear so it would be easier to get the drops down in the canal.

The next few days kinda run together because I was in and out of sleep, pain, and pseudoconsciousness. Simply put, they all together (doctors that is) believe it is not cellulitis. They are going to check the latest blood draws and the MRI from today (in conjunction with a possible biopsy tomorrow) and confer. I'm not the happiest person because if it is what they think it is, I'm in for a long haul. It's nowhere near a death sentence so quit freaking out (you know who you are), but it will be a lifetime of treatment and maintenance. But if there is one thing I have learned in the past 4 days, I HAVE AMAZING FRIENDS AND FAMILY!!!

Thank you all. I love you all! I'll post an update when I know anything new.

mercury grill 8/21/07

Ah the last official night of restaurant week for me! Luckily the immense pain hadn't hit by dinner time on Tuesday. I'll get to that in the next posting.

So mother picked me up and we went to the Mercury Grill. I've listened to her talk about this place for, oh, a couple years now. It always sounded good, so I let her take me there. It definitely lived up to the hype. It was no Craft, but it's a totally different kinda place. For my first course I had the wild mushroom risotto. If it had been a man, I would've married it and had its children! Damn it was good risotto! My main course was a dynamite filet (a perfectly cooked beef filet topped with crab, shrimp, and portobellas in a super spicy aioli). Yummmmm! Mother and I had the same dessert of a chocolate souffle with an amaretto sauce. She topped off her meal with a lot of cream in a little coffee and some port. I had the straight coffee with a bit of kahlua on the side. Such a good meal.

I'm definitely making up for all the good meals in the last couple of weeks with the *fantastic* hospital food now. Thank goodness for contraband!

proof I need a boyfriend 8/17/07

You know it's bad when your excitement for a Friday night is going to three separate stores to buy a vacuum cleaner, getting it home, putting it together, and vacuuming your house. The only thing that made it worse was that I called my mother to brag about my new purchase.

Wow. Someone needs a life!

craft 8/16/07

And then there was Craft. I was a little hesitant to go there at all. It's located in the W Hotel in the Victory Park area of Dallas--totally bougie! I didn't think I could even pretend to look rich enough to darken their door. Luckily Mother let me borrow her car (mine was too filthy for a valet to even deign to park).

I arrived to find Tim had beaten me to the punch. He had already been seated, but he chose to let me have the seat that had a view of the entire restaurant. It can also be said that the boy cleans up well; he looked quite nice in his slate grey shirt and black trousers. I did the simple little black dress with red shoes and red bag. All in all, I think we cleaned up quite well.

Craft had the best restaurant week idea. Most places have a restricted menu from which you choose your 3 courses (one app, one entree, one dessert). While Craft had a restricted menu, all we had to choose was the entree. They then proceeded to bring out small samples of 3 appetizers (romaine with gorgonzola vinaigrette and roasted figs, little shrimps in a lemon aioli, and an heirloom tomato salad with a soy reduction). I think we died a little and saw a glimpse of heaven. After that course, we received our entrees (me: filet of salmon in lemongrass herb broth, Tim: braised beef short rib with shallots and something else) and our selection of sides (braised fingerling potatoes with herb butter, roasted summer vegetables, and an assortment of awesome sauteed mushrooms). As if that wasn't enough to stuff us, they then brought dessert. We had an assortment of fresh ice creams and sorbets (vanilla, pine nut, red currant, and apricot), pannacotta with fresh berries, and a chocolate tort with coffee, brown butter, and white chocolate drizzle...! At that point, we did die and see heaven in that tort.

A fantastic evening of amazing food, good friends, and great conversation.

Kirby's

Last night was the local steak house Kirby's. My parents used to take me there when I was a kid. Mostly, I remember being able to pick a goodie from the goodie basket at the end of the meal (some cheesy little toy that made me behave myself during dinner). Last night, it was all goodies to be had!

The gang and I (for the most part) did well at not choosing all the same meals. There were only 2 choices for the apps so two of us got each. H-Bomb and I had the Lobster Cargot while Lemster and M had the wild boar sausage. Both were quite yummy. For the main course, M and I chose the Australian rack of lamb, H-bomb got the Filet Oscar, and Lemster got the Pepper Steak (my usual if I go now). Once again, yum city! For the last course, M and I once again chose the same thing: the cheesecake drizzled with chocolate ganache. That made for a great little breakfast this morning. H and L got the chocolate spice cake with walnuts and crunchy goodness on top. Damn that was a good meal. However, the best part of it all was the time spent with friends. I think we should all make more time for that in our busy little lives.

Tonight is Craft-Dallas. I'm so excited I could spit.

Hibiscus

Before I talk about the fan-freaking-tastic dinner Mother and I had, I must divulge my afternoon doings.

I started to feel really guilty about NOT exercising in a while. When I finished with all the bloodiness of the afternoon at work, I noticed that the poop pile was very small. I asked my boss if I could leave those samples until morning and leave early (since I'd worked 1.5 hours overtime the day before). He said okay, so I booked it home and did 35 minutes of pilates. Dear Lord, my quads and butt are sore today.

And then there was dinner.

1st course--Dungeoness crab dip with oven roasted crackers
2nd course--
Mother: tenderloin and tomato with Point Reyes blue cheese
me: candied pecan encrusted mahi mahi with pureed sweet potatoes
both: garlic spinach
3rd course: big as your head slice of chocolate goodness cake with ganache, fudgy icing, white chocolate accents and cherry drizzle of some sort (I think I died and went to heaven)

motivation

I lack motivation. I'm only 3 weeks into this new diet/way of life change, and I'm pooped. I haven't "officially" worked out in 6 days (I say officially because I did 2 days of housework during which I built up a sweat). I tried to go this morning, but the alarm clock wasn't far enough away from my "swinging hand of snooze." I'll set it again for the same time tomorrow morning and put it in the next room. Grrr! Why is this so hard? Why is it so easy for other people? At least the blood pressure is still under control. It wouldn't freak me out so much except that this week is restaurant week, and we all know what that means for the naughty mouse. Yummy fattening fantabulous foods from place I could not normally afford to go. Lord, please give me the strength to NOT clean my plate but, rather, to ask for a take away box.

Peace out.

AHA!

Well, I slept like a baby last night. No deconamine before bed must be the trick. Doesn't make sense since all it contains is antihistamine and decongestant. Oh well. Who cares as long as it works when I take it and lets me sleep well when I don't!

As a side note, I did not make it to the gym yesterday (naughty mouse!). However, I did move a crap load of bulky trash out to the curb. I look like I just moved in and pruned the trees--boxes, limbs, and branches all over the edge of my yard. And of course they are all carefully placed as to not block access to the fire hydrant. I think that was a good bit of exercise in its own right. =)

mother of all that is good and holy...!

Yes, yes. Two blogs in one day. But check out this biz-nassss.

Someone here at work was looking at the posted schedules and noticed something interesting about the current night crew schedule. They now have two people doing half of my old job. I had to work 2 benches alone, and now they have two people working one of those benches. Why is it that I was deemed a whiner and troublemaker when I couldn't get everything done as quickly as they wanted? Mind you, there are now 2 people doing in 8 hours what I had to do in as little as 6 hours. Does this mean that I am worth two average people? I'm twice as good?

I'll take that.

hormones, heat, or deconamine?

Long time no blog. Sorry.

I have been uber cranky the past few days. I haven't been sleeping well, so I've been sleepier than normal. Finally Wednesday night/Thursday morning when I woke up at 3:30am, I went out to the thermostat to check it (oh ya, I'd been really hot). Lo and behold, it was all jacked up. I'm guessing that the most recent time the power flickered (or died altogether), the program forgot what the true setting was. My house was 79 degrees in the coolest part. Ugh, no wonder I was hot and cranky. Thanks be to God it wasn't a hot flash. Then comes last night. Again, I awaken at 3am-ish hot and uncomfortable. Did I not reset the thermostat properly? Nope, it was a balmy 72 in the house. WTF??? So now I'm wondering if the deconamine the doc gave me Monday for my plugged up ears could have anything to do with it. I'm not taking that stuff before bed tonight and see if that makes a difference.

Other than that, things are boring and normal here. Still working, still working out, still getting bitten by the evil spawn of Satan cat. Later gators.

what a night!

Wow. I can't belive how much fun the H-bomb and I had shopping last night! At first I was worried because, like I mentioned in a previous post, I am fashion illiterate. I do, however, seem to know what looks good on other people. The best part of the shopping experience was when I told her how her current braziere situation needed to be remedied. After that silly sexual assault kit stint, I always tell people to change out their underthings at least once a year if not more often. And for goodness sakes, if something has a hole in it, throw it away!!! All this led up to a trip to Vickie's (aka: Victoria's Secret). Let me just tell you that their new fancy schmancy "uplift" bra is fan-FREAKIN-tastic! Once you hit the age when things aren't where God intended anymore, this is a must. In the dressing room, it was like "Dang! Look at that! They're back where they belong!" Okay, enough about boobies.


We then hit the local PF Chang's and gorged on dumplings and mu shu and garlic spinach. Unfortunately, we had the worst waiter in the entire universe. Well, maybe he wasn't that bad, but when he refilled my water glass and spilled water all over that corner of the table, the smirked and walked away. I had to ask another waitstaffer to bring me some napkins. Ugh!

On my way to work this morning, I got behind an 18 wheeler with the weirdest thing on it. On the back was painted "Haulin' Liquid Chicken." WTF?!?!?!? I sped up so I could see the side of the truck, but there were no other distinguishing characteristics. If anyone knows what this means, please let me know.

Anywho, my free lab lunch has arrived, and I gotta go chow!

ugh!

Well, I missed my first workout today. I figure in the name of health it may have been necessary though. I fell asleep last night about 10:30pm and woke up today at 9am. And that was only because I set my alarm just in case! I feel tons better than yesterday, but I still can't hear much from my left side. My left ear is all sorts of plugged up and icky. What do you do for that?

Anyway, it's time to go meet the H-bomb for shopping. For some reason, she thinks I can help her pick out clothes. Has she not noticed that I am (almost) completely fashion illiterate? Heck, she's told me as much! :-) Ah well, I use it as an excuse to see a friend.

And back to the gym in the morning!!!

people suck

What is it with people who no matter how sick they are think they should still come into work hacking and coughing and sneezing all over everyone??? Thanks to a super conscientious coworker, three of us at the lab came in this morning feeling like death warmed over. I still can't hear through my right ear--it's all plugged up. Grrrrr! Guess I'll just go home after work and hit the couch. Lucky for me, this is a "non-work-out" day (or as the gym guy called it, a "day of rest"). I hope I feel better in the morning because I'll hit the eliptical trainer no matter what. I can't fall off the wagon this early in the game.

Have a great humpday everyone!

the transformation begins...

First, let me apologize for the serious lack of postings. Claiming busy-ness doesn't seem adequate, but it's all I've got!

Second, here's the update: I gave up and re-joined a gym. I figure if two of my doctors have told me to lower my blood pressure and lose weight, I should take them seriously. Ergo, as of last week, I joined a gym close to my house and began my new workout regimen. It's not too harsh yet, but I want to start slowly (as to not cramp up into a tiny ball and disappear in thin air). Today will be my 3rd official workout. And what's with all the people saying things like "Oh, I feel so great after I workout!" I'm going to have to raise the bullshit flag on that one. All I feel like after working out is hot, sticky, and smelly. Oh, and maybe little painful. Some people are so weird.

Unfortunately, that's all I've got folks. The life of the naughty mouse is seriously lacking in entertainment value these days. I'll work on it for the readers. ;-)

beware the diet dr pepper!

My day in a nutshell:

* wake up 30 minutes late
* still leave early for work
* stop at Sonic for the BIG ICED TEA--wait 10 minutes for aforementioned tea
* get caught in a traffic snarl--10 minutes late to work (damn that tea)
* realize I've got killer cramps (damn being a woman)
* get to a stopping point at work, go to CVS for Aleve, fempro, and diet dr pepper
* get back to work and get back to work
* decide I'm thirsty (being finished with the BIG TEA) and go to open the diet dr pepper
* have diet dr pepper spew all over my labcoat, white tee shirt, and floor
* spend 10 minutes cleaning everything--get new labcoat
* go tell the new pathologist that her day isn't as bad as she thinks it is
* try to leave the path's office and the doorknob comes off in my hand
* decide it's just not my day
* have a super unhealthy lunch of burger and fries--feel much better
* the day is only HALF OVER!!!!!

I hope everyone's day is much better than this. But I'm still smiling!

obvious

The meaning behind this dream was fairly obvious to me. Let's see what y'all think.

All I really remember is being in some sort of collegiate setting and seeing storm clouds racing toward the building. I told everyone to get into the corridors or restrooms for protection. Unlike other dreams of mine like this, everyone actually listened and heeded my warnings. The last thing I saw was at least 6 tornadoes hurtling toward us all. During the hellacious storm, there was an earthquake that tore up everything--buildings, the roads, and landscape. When were finally able to emerge from our safety, there was nothing but disbelief. Because of the upheaval of the land and whirling winds, complete parking lots were devoid of cars, hills were cleared of trees, and buildings were crumbling before our eyes.

Do I think my life is in upheaval--totally changing before me??? Hmmmmmm.... Only time will tell.

whirlwind day

Yes, it's a couple days after the fact, but I've been too busy to post. I blame the work gods since I got called in yesterday on my supposed day off. Oh well.

Let me just mention first off how much trouble I had sleeping Sunday night before the interview. I watched a lot of SVU until almost 1am, then I just laid in bed hoping I wouldn't totally fark things up during the interviews. Yes, I said interviews. I met with at least 8 separate people. I was booked from 8am to 3pm (from 10am to 2:30pm was a different person every 30 minutes!). There was one guy who could only ask me things about my previous job though. He was awed, but I told him it was way more glorious on TV--I never got close to driving a Hummer. Granted, I don't think I'd ever want to. When I saw one at a car show, I walked up and kicked the tire for fun. Oh, but I digress.... Only the first guy made me nervous; he was so technical and wanted to know very detailed things. From then on out, I was just myself and answered all of their questions to the best of my ability. Then I got to drive to the airport in a torrential downpour. I hope my shoes didn't get ruined. Next time--Birkenstocks!

I made it to the airport about 3:30 (everything up there is sooooooo close!), and I couldn't find anyone to take my rental car. As it turns out, I was supposed to park it myself and just take the keys inside. Random. Then I had to check in, check my itsy bitsy bag (so didn't want to carry it), and make it through security. Did they raise the "terror level alert" or whatever it is called while I was up there? It was much more stringent than trying to get through security at DFW--and Portland only has 11 gates. Yes people, ELEVEN! I had to ditch my Purell stuff, toothpaste, and hand lotion out of my purse. Damnation! Then there was tons-o-time to kill so I had a little cup of clam chowder. Even at the airport it was fan-freaking-tastic!

Long rest of the day condensed: my flights were all late because of storms and fog. I didn't get home until after midnight (after being up at 5am same time-zone-wise). I slept like a baby until the next morning when I got called to come in to work. Blech.

Be patient--I will update when I hear anything!

sunday Sunday SUNDAY!!!

Sorry, I felt the need to emulate a bad monster truck rally commercial.

OH MY GOOD HOLY LORD!!! I love this place! Even though it's gross and rainy and muggy, it's still beautiful! Everything is so green, and yet the people I spoke with today were complaining that things were yellowing because of the lack of recent rain. #1. Glad I could bring the rain with me; now if I could only get rid of it. #2. Yellowing? Things are all totally green with maybe a tinge of yellow at the edges. Whatever.

Everyone here seems to ride their bikes to get around. Yes, there are cars on the roads, but there are bikes everywhere. I may have to get mine primed for the journey. And needless to say, it would be beneficial for me to ride a bit more of the bike.

I mapquested the location and directions to St. Luke's before I left this morning. It said to allow 10 minutes; it was approximately 4 miles from my hotel. Since the serice started at 10am, I left the hotel at 9:25--just in case. I'm glad I did. I drove around for ~20 minutes on all sorts of one-way streets looking for a place to park. When I followed a sign for "walkway to parking lot" it took me to a private lot belonging to the hospital across the street. I finally gave up at 10:01 and parked in the circle drive right by the front door hoping it was legal parking. It was, but I was worried the behemoth I was driving was blocking too much space. Oh well, it worked out for the best.

Then I got out of the car. If this isn't a sign, I don't know what is. As I'm walking up to the door, I hear the organ and voices singing Austria: "Glorious things of Thee are spoken...." Yep, the tune of the Sewanee hymn. And it was glorious. The congregation was actually singing without the choir leading them--and not too shabbily either! I sat close to the door by the back behind a couple (who I found out during the passing of the peace was church shopping) who looked as lost as I was. It was a Rite II service, so I actually had to use the prayer book to get the words right. It was so Sewanee-like though. And the church is so pretty! And the chapel--yowza, is it ever gorgeous! It's all wooded inside with panels of Honduran mahagony! Hopefully I can post some pictures soon.

After church, I went to lunch with the music director, his wife, and a few choiristers. They took me to some place they frequent after choir. It was soooooooooooooooooo good!!! I had a pasta dish with sauted lobster and mushrooms in a fan-freaking-tastic marsala sauce. *to die for!!!* And considering it was lobster, it was el cheapo! Then the music man and his wife drove me around some of the local lighthouse parks including Buglight Park. What a name! It was beautiful even with the fog rolling in over the harbor. Yes, I took pictures of that, too.

After lunch (good lord, this is getting to be a long post--I'll abbreviate), I came back to the hotel and waited for the realtor. He came and got me about 3:45 and took me on an hour and a half tour of Portland, South Portland, and Cape Elizabeth. I hate to repeat myself, but everything is so beautiful. The realtor was really helpful, nice, and just all around swell. When he dropped me off a little after 5:15, I took it upon myself to go to the LL Bean store up in Freeport. It was such a quick trip. Everything is so close! And yes, H-Bomb, I got you a tee shirt. Then I just drove around until almost 8:30, all the while taking pictures until it got too dark. Then I picked up dinner and came back to the hotel.

Now I've got about 11 hours until I meet my first interview. Time to freak out and get nervous! Think happy thoughts people!!!

I made it to Maine!

Yep, I'm here. The farthest East I've been in over 15 years (in the US of course). Why oh why did the rain follow me?!?!?

As soon as we started to come down out of the clouds, I could see the rain. I could also see numerous wooded islands, beautiful houses with docks at the water, sailboats on the water, and a beautiful steeple over the tops of the businesses in Portland.

And THANK THE LORD ALMIGHTY I finally feel like eating again. In fact, I can't wait to ditch this fantastic hotel and find a place to grab some dinner. Then again, room service wouldn't be too bad. I'll be out all day tomorrow. I bet another night of relaxing wouldn't be a bad idea. I did already hit the complimentary happy hour in the lobby (tonic water, no gin, and lots of celery).

I will post more as things happen.

apologies all around

I would like to apologize to all my friends who I've irked in the past week or so. It seems like I'm being extra cantankerous of late. I think I may have come up with a reason why. Well, not a reason or excuse but a kinda subconscious sorta thinking. Maybe I'm trying to piss people off so they won't mind so much when I leave. The more I think about it, the better Maine looks. Not necessarily for my personal life but for my career. Maybe I have it in my head that I will be moving in the next couple of months. I know that I've been extra bitchy with Richie, but I don't think he can really tell the difference. And poor H-bomb! I really need to keep my thoughts and feelings out of her personal life. She is an adult capable of making her own decisions. Then anyone who was playing board games with me yesterday--I had to consciously try to make myself not be so bloody competitive.

So if I have said or done anything to ruffle your feathers in the past week or so, I am truly sorry. If I haven't said or done anything to offend you, give it time. I'm sure I will. ;-)

when will I learn?

Ugh.

Every time. I feel all drained so I hit the Starschmucks before work (Foamy would not be proud). I get the uber big and scrumptious venti mocha. At least I quit getting it with extra espresso shots. I'm thinking maybe I should just go down to the tall (aka: small), because every bloody time I get the venti (aka: large) I get a humongous headache. I blame it on too much caffeine in too short a time. I mean, it's not like I sip this thing; I slam it.
Again, I say ugh.

today's 'scope

"You are starting to feel much more confident about your position in life right now. It is time to build on this confidence to create a stronger air of authority around yourself. The good news is that this will not be very difficult, since all the people around you are eager to see you get the respect and responsibilities you so richly deserve. Ask for the cooperation you need today, and you will get it -- even when it comes to matters of the heart."

Hmmmmm, I wonder....

weather

The difference in the weather I left in Texas this morning and what I found up here in Wisconsin is amazing. I left this sticky, damp, hot mess of low pressure nastiness this morning. Now I'm in the middle of mid-60s, pleasant, beautifulness. I hope I can take this home with me.

And now for the traveling musings:

I drove through Harvard, IL which is the home of Milk Days, a celebration of the dairy goodness known throughout the world as moo juice. I even had my picture taken by the cow statue.

I passed through another town that was home of the Corn Festival of Illinois (or was it Wisconsin by that point?). Too funny!

The one person I met at the airport before I left had a boarding ticket 2 numbers off of mine, had my first name, and her husband is in a local band and looking for a female vocalist. Okay, when I say band, I mean they play at weddings and festivals and the like and play all the oldies (KLUV stuff). She got my number and wants to see me soon at her place for a rehearsal! Of all the things....

I met a woman tonight who sounds either like she came straight from Fargo or belongs on Prairie Home Companion.

One of the guys I met says that everyone has such a nasal voice because they are always cold. Does that make sense to you? After that, the group of Wisconsineers-Wisconsinites-Wisconsonions all decided I sounded British. Whatev! All because I pronounce the "con" of Wisconsin with an "aw" sound instead of an "ah" sound. I love going different places!

And of course I had my picture taken next to the "Welcome to Wisconsin" sign. I felt like I had dork written all over me, but I didn't care in the slightest!

Okay, it's getting late. Well, not really, but I'm super freaking tired after leaving my house 959 miles and 15.5 hours ago. It's bed time for the naughty mouse. Later gators.

random musings

I saw a car this morning on the way to work with a license plate that said "covert." Um, not so covert when you announce it.

Why did my doctor give me a new blood pressure RX with the same side effect as the withdrawal from drug he just took me off of? Total uber dizziness abounds, and that's not fun when looking through the microscope.

Basic boring rice noodles with frozen veggies can taste sooooooooooooo good when you've worked for the last 6.5 hours with no break.

My new supervisor told me I don't work fast enough so I need to quit talking while I work. The national head of my department said I was working too fast. Who do we believe: the man with no parasite experince or the woman with LOADS of it? (and "loads" was not intended to be a pun on the amount of crap I work with)

The barometer is inching more and more toward Maine today....

I can't believe I was lucky enough to have a friend offer me a ticket to the Police concert next week. Love me some T$!

Oh, and I found out why the cats have not been using the litterbox for the past few days. Turns out, they hate the best litter in the entire world. Now I gotta go buy some of that cheap dusty crap for them. The things I do for them with no thanks.

phew, what a weekend!

The whirlwind started Thursday night. I had the handbell rehearsal from hell before I headed over the H & B's for the barbeque.

Friday was early work, stoopid doctor's appt (yes, the blood pressure is officially high), rushed to the wedding rehearsal, and then had a scrumptious feast at the rehearsal dinner. Of course there was the requisite "sex book" buying session at Barnes and Noble for the happy couple to take on the honeymoon. It was HI-LAR-EE-YUS!

Saturday morning was way too early to try to look nice, and the rain ruined my hair before I even got to the church. Meh! Rehearsed the bells again, had the wedding (with my uber fantastic solo--thank you very much), and went to the reception. SWANK-A-LILCIOUS!!! I've not been to a reception that was so planned for carnivores in my life. (and those who know me know I love meat) When I finally left the swanky party, I got home for a quick nap (okay, 3 hours might not be quick in some books...), and went back to hell in fluorescent lighting (the lab). It wasn't too bad--I was able to leave by 1:30am! I think that's a record.

Sunday I slept until about 10am (which considering I didn't go to sleep until a little after 4am wasn't nearly enough), got up, got clean, and went to church. It was nice to not have to vest or sing. Then there was lunch and shopping with ma madre. Mmmmmmm, Mexican food. Then it was time to head to Denton with Rico Suave for dinner with friends. Once again, serious yumminess! The drive home was less than swell as he and I were both exhausted.

And now it's Monday. There's your update, friends!

Portland, here I come!

Yes, folks, you read it right. I'm headed up to Portland in a few weeks. Granted, this is just a visit to see the lab and have the official interviews that are necesssary for the possible job opportunity. I'm uber excited! In fact, I have already checked with weather.com, and it's not supposed to be warmer that 76 degrees in the next ten days. Hmmm, I think it's supposed to be like 94 today here. What's even better is that I asked if they would fly me up on Saturday instead of Sunday so I could have all day Sunday to see the town. The answer: "absolutely!" And they are hooking me up with a rental car. Wow, I don't think I could be much more excited!

it's the bachelor(ette) life for me

You know it's bad when you have to go to Target to buy new underwear because you haven't done laundry in three weeks. That's right folks--three weeks! I feel like a bachelor. You always hear about how they only use paper plates and plastic-ware so they don't have to do dishes. Along those lines, they only get take out so they don't have to cook. If they don't want to do laundry, they go buy more underwear and undershirts and such. Yes, I know this is all stereotypical stuff, but stereotypes have their basis in reality. Heck, the last guy I dated was the stereotype! I've turned into a bachelor. Ugh!

Of course, if you know me, you know I tout buying new under things at least every six months. Given where I last worked, I never leave the house in anything that I would be embarassed to see sprawled out in a court of law. With that in mind, I proceeded to spend $60 on underwear. Damn. How can I do these things? I did, however, find some new stuff that I am thrilled with! And JCC, you'll be happy to know that the low-rise hipsters are perfectomundo! You gotta get some!

Ahhhh. I love me some Target.

12 items or fewer

What a crazy excursion I made to the Half Foods Market yesterday evening. I'd worked for 9.5 hours (but, really folks, that long during daylight hours is a cakewalk compared to overnight) and had dinner with AA first (mmmmm, chop suey a go go!). When I walked into the place, I was so full that looking at the food started to make me feel ill. Then I partake of the mini-cart (ergo, I can't buy too much--which ended up not being a problem) and begin to shop. I had to make this pasta salad thing for pot-luck lunch at work today, but nothing sounded good. I wandered around the produce section for, I kid you not, 20 minutes picking things up and putting them back. Finally I called my mother (the culinary genius and delightful woman) and drove her nuts. Me: What would be good in this? Mom: (lists a ton of things) Me: Nah, that doesn't sound good. What kind of pasta should I use? Mom: Fusilli. Me: I hate fusilli! (I then proceed to tell her why.) Bless her heart, I thought she was gonna come through the phone and strangle me. I sure would've! Once I finally picked out all my stuff and hit the check out lane, it was finally time to get out of that horrible food filled place. (note to readers: best time to go shopping--straight after stuffing your face with chop suey) I wandered out into the parking lot, saw a cute little terrier in a car and mentally applauded the owner for leaving the a/c on for the dog. Then I started thinking about the emissions and greenhouse gases and got all combobulated. When I looked up, I couldn't find my car to save my life. I started to freak out a little (I so vividly remember the time I saw my car drive away without me in it). Anyone want to guess where it was? Ya, right in front of me. Wow, not a good night for the naughty mouse!

the good, the bad, and the heartbreaking

Wow. I can't believe the last two weeks. Feels more like two months. It's now June 3rd (barely), so that means I haven't posted anything in almost exactly the time life has gotten bizarro. Let's see, shall I list the events in chronological order or group them according to good v. bad? I'll go in order:

1. I find out from my supervisor that I am switching to day shift at the start of the next pay period (tomorrow now). Hallelujah!
2. I find out the H-bomb's health is crappier than expected. Besides her almost constant pain, she now has even more stuff to deal with. How can you walk if your foot is numb? Hmmmm.... If anyone can handle it though, she can. She amazes me. I wish I had half of her fortitude and temerity!
3. I get the damning phone call telling me one of my dearest friends has been diagnosed with stage IV esophageal cancer. I later learn it has invaded her liver and lymph system. Damn, fuck, and shit.
4. Literally within the hour of hearing the aforementioned heartbreaking news, I get an email from the main dude in Maine saying to go to the listed link and apply for the position he created for me. I couldn't even deal with it that night.
5. YAY!!! Giggles got a job at one of the best private schools in the area. I'm thrilled for her and the good news!
6. After seven months of breaking my back trying to fulfill my duties as section leader in my choir while working the bloody night shift, I get axed from the upcoming England trip. I was supposed to leave in less than two months. Goes to show you what fourteen years of dedication and loyalty gets you. A heaping pile of nothing.
7. And finally, I get another email from Maine. This one is from some VP's assistant asking me when in June looks good for me to get up there to visit the lab, have the official interview, and meet the team. Good Lord, at this point, I don't know what to do about that job opportunity.

That's it in a nutshell.

I'm heartbroken about the fact that I may be losing a fan-freaking-tastic friend sooner than planned (I mean, truth be told, everyone is terminal). This friend has been there through thick, thin, and thicker. I can even remember the times she was troubled and would call me uber late at night for consolation and advice. I could never repay her for all she's done for me. A person can't dream of a better person to have on her side in this crazy world. I'll talk to her soon, but I have to get her advice about the plan of my life at this point. I think I know what she'll say, but I still have to ask. OMG, and the way she is so composed! I mean to say, "ya, I'm terminal so let's eat more ice cream" and mean it. For someone who professes no belief in God (or any god for that matter), she is the most Christian person I've come across in a long time. I can't imagine life without her. I thank God for bringing her into my life. Now I pray daily that He won't take her away just yet.

How can I follow that? Ya, I don't think I can. If you want any more details about the crap above, let me know and I'll set to updating. I promise to type before another two weeks passes. Thank goodness for Cafe Brazil and their free wifi and kick ass omelets (wish they were free)!

tonight tonight

I made it through my first ever dinner theater. Luckily I only had one solo and one duet. I don't think I could've handled much more with the piddly amount of sleep I got today. I was so antsy: What am I going to wear? What if I forget the words? What if people laugh at me? What if I trip and fall on my face? What if? What if??? As a matter of fact, the duet was the best we'd ever done it. KC rocks my socks off! I did miss one note in the solo (was thinking about the last page instead of the first), but I'm sure no one could tell because JH covered so beautifully. Always pay your accompanist well. They are soooooooo worth it. Everyone else was great, too. I even got a little paperwork for the lab done during other acts! I wish we hadn't cut the program short though. I really wanted to hear one of the other acts (a duet from Wicked). Ah well, such is life.

Well, the Atlas is now finished. "Analyzer completing test cycle." Time to hit the microscope for another night of urine fun!

yippee skippee!

Okay, I don't remember if I actually blogged or just talked to people about my last doctor visit. She told me to lose weight and get the blood pressure down or no more HRT. It's been approximately one month. I'm down 7 pounds and the BP is at a happy 122/80. YAY!!! Oh, and this was after the huge Mother's Day dinner and a large burger and fries lunch the day before the weighing. Tee-hee!

For those who want to know about the freaky-ass dreams, I decided not to post anything detailed about them. Very violent, gory, evil and bloody. I blame the Chinese food and Law and Order right before bed. Simply put, a mother put the idea into her kids' heads that they should all murder each other in variously disgusting ways. I was on the investigating team. It was icky.

I got an email from Portland today. The main dude is getting together with HR later this week to get the ball rolling on "my" position. He said he'll keep me posted. Let's have another YAY!!!

All in all, a good beginning to the week. Of course, now I'm back at work doing 2 benches. *grumblemumblesnort*

nuevo blogo per request

Yes, life continues to evade me. I still work hellacious hours. I have no/very minimal social life. I must get a new job. The boss called me last night to "chat" about working situations. Not the evil (pinky at corner of mouth) supervisor, but the big boss. Of course, I've seen in the past his tendency to blow hot air. I'll believe it when I see it. Still waiting to hear about Portland. It'll be awhile yet.

I've got this dinner theater thing to do this weekend. That means I've got to get on iTunes and download that danged song I've got to learn. Really helps to hear someone else sing it when you can't have the score in front of you 24/7. I hope I don't blow it. I've also got to learn the lieder I'm singing. At least I get to use music for that one. Stupid Schubert and his German language. So hard sometimes (like when I'm uber tod mude).

Getting ready to get picked up for lunch. Then I can finish laundry and sleep. Ohh, beautiful sleep. Please let this coming time of sleep be dream free. If I get time to blog later, I'll fill you in on the craziness that has been the dream life of the naughty mouse. No more spicy chinese food before sleep!!!

some nerve!

Today was not the best day in the life of the naughty mouse. It wasn't the worst either, by far. Let me fill you in on some of the yummy details.

1) First off, I worked a lovely 10.5 hours last night. Ugh! I thought it was supposed to be over, but it seems that since the boss is away ... someone has to pull up the slack. Someone = naughty mouse.
2) Anyway, as I was leaving the lab, I called the garage. See, I'd taken the baby car in Monday to FINALLY have the speedometer thingamajiggy fixed. Well, it wasn't fixed yesterday, but they swore it'd be ready this morning. No biggie. So when I called, the nice as pie lady answered, put me on hold, then came back to tell me that it was going to be a little longer because they had to order a part. "What part?" I ask. The driver's side inner door handle. Um, why? Well, when Jose (I kid you not, really his name, not trying to be racist or anything) was bringing my baby around to the front to get it outta the way, the door handle fell off in his hand. They broke my car!!! Enough said. Since that took longer than expected, I hardly got any sleep today. When they called to say it was ready, I asked how late they were open. I'd planned on getting it tomorrow so I could sleep. Well, when my phone rang at 4pm and I heard thunder and rain, I figured I'd rather drive my own car than the hoopdy-mobile I was loaned (that's for later). I drag my ass outta bed, go get my car, and go back home (to the tune of about $430 lighter in the wallet). That killed a whopping almost hour and a half. How? Who the poo knows.
3) It was time for choir! Yippee-skippee. I'd called the choir junior to see if I could skip for some rejuvenating sleep. Ya, I should've not bothered. "Oh, well, we need you here." Pshaw. I did get there about an hour late though. I'll take the extra sleep for $400 please Alex!
4) After the hellaciousness (?) that was choir--stupid hard contemporary music--my darling friend KC and I went out for dinner. I was in serious need of a burger after the whopping 4 hours sleep I got. Nourishment before parasites! When I was finally able to pry myself away from the table and get the gumption to go to the lab, I had trouble getting my car out of the parking lot. Why, you ask? Because some numbnuts were hanging around some jacked up crazy truck. The guys had these shirts with "special enforcement bureau" on the back. Whatever. Never-you-mind that these guys were scrawny toothpicky men. I could've broken them over my knee with little effort. They had parked all crookwards, and they wouldn't move from the back end of the truck (meaning the 4 people stood around not getting out of my, a paying customer's, way). They just watched me try to back out trying desperately not to hit them. Arrgh! I was finally able to get the scrawniest dude's eye and wave him off like a shoo fly. Only then was I able to back out and around the crazy corner. Grrr! Some people have some nerve!

Oh, and the hoopdy-mobile. Not that there is anything wrong with older model American cars.... However, I was driving this late 80s burgundy Buick that sounded like a lawnmower. It also felt like driving a marshmallow down the road. I think it must've needed new struts or something. When I hit the accelerator, the fuel gauge would go up; when I hit the break, it would go down. Who knows how much gas was really in that tank. When I was sitting in a drive through (mmmm, super large iced tea!) and put the car in neutral, the engine started heating up fast. When I put it back in drive it was fine. What the poo??? When I was on the highway, I couldn't hear the radio--not because of the road noise, but because of the "lack of muffler" sound.

Okay, I'm tired of typing now. There is much more to say, but I'm not gonna.

Oh except for this: if you make brownies, be sure you add the eggs. If you don't, they still taste fine, but the texture is rotten. Probably because with no binder, you are frying the chocolate mixture in all that oil. Ugh! Don't ask how I know.

I was right! I was right!

Everybody listen up! You must go see Hot Fuzz! Okay, granted it's no Shaun of the Dead, but it's still filled with ridiculous moments of hilarity. When I left the theater after Shaun of the Dead, my stomach was aching from laughing so hard. Not so after Hot Fuzz, but I did laugh out loud numerous times. Maybe it's just because the new movie isn't quite as out there as the original. I'd definitely see it again though. They make so many references to old bad cop type movies (for example Bad Boys II and Point Break--neither of which I've seen), and then they act out the references in different ways. Too funny. I do think I may have to rent the aforementioned movies though.

Anyway, to the point I was right about.

Okay, so I'm watching this movie with a small group of friends (sans the H-bomb because she broke her toe (!) at a crazy hour of the morning). Anyway, after the main character moves to this village of Stanford, I notice something familiar. Granted I've been to England numerous times, and most of these little small towns look alike, but there was something eerie about this town. And it wasn't because of all the "accidents." It was like a serious case of deja vu all over again. Finally at one point in the movie it hit me. This was filmed in Wells. The square with the fountain--the post office and village court building with square columns--the National Trust store right next to the passageway that leads to the cathedral. It was Wells!!! I turned to the person on each side of me and was like "That's Wells! I've been there before!" Poor guys; I made them stay with me until the very end of the credits to prove it to them (and myself). Who cares about the gaffers. Great, they had caterers. Enough with the boom operators!!! Gimme the location dammit! The very last line of type before the itsy bitty print that no one in their right eyes can read read "Filmed in Wells, Somerset." Yay! I was right! Too bad no one took me up on that "lots of money" bet I was trying to make.

I love being right.

bollocks

Who else is tired of stupid people still acting like they are of high school maturity when they should be waaaaaaaaaaay past it? Why can't some people ever grow up? Blargh!

On an interesting note, from today's horrorscope:
Motivation can come in many forms. For some people, it comes when they realize that they've become too much of a doormat -- and things have got to change as soon as possible. For others, it comes when they see that a goal is so close that they only have to reach out and grab it! No mater what motivates you today, you need to recognize that where you go from here is totally within your control. You can make things happen.

I think I'm the doormat.

tee-hee!

And I quote:

"The hiring manager ... will be contacting you within the next few days to schedule a time for the two of you to talk .... I’ll be in touch again after you have had a chance to speak."

Me worried? Nah!

antsy

Why am I so antsy about the possibility of a job that might happen in no less than 4 months time?

Everytime I go to sleep or have nothing else on my mind, I think about so many things! I still haven't told my father. I'd have to get rid of a lot of furniture, clothes, and stuff. I'd have to pack up a 1300 sqft house and move into a maybe 700 sqft apartment. It's almost 2000 miles from the only home I've ever known. What about the cats? What about my parents? Would I have to get a new car/vehicle that has 4 wheel drive for the winters? What if they don't like me? What are the allergies like up there? Could I make new friends? Would I be able to keep in touch with the old ones? Arrggghhhh!!!

And yet, I still can't wait to go.

post interview

Oh, so much to say, but too brain dead to remember it all. I will do my best....

The interview went fairly well considering. Considering what? Well, I guess I didn't think it was gonna be an honest to goodness "interview," but with the stuff she was asking me, it so totally was. I got to explain for the umpteenth time why I left (had to leave) my last real job. Ugh. I swear, no matter how I actually say it, it sounds like I'm some sorta paranoid psycho loser freak. I swear I'm not! It's just those darned voices.... Still, I don't think I scared her off. She called when I was about a mile from home, so when I got my driveway, I just sat there in the car probably looking like a stalker at my own house while we talked. She was having the worst time with all sorts of tuberculin hacking. The first time I was on hold, I got out of the car and moved some fallen branches out to the curb. The second time I was on hold, I pulled a few weeds. Finally I suggested (at about the same time she mentioned) that she should take a couple of minutes, get a drink, and call me back. She did, and she did. All in all, it went well. I got an email from her saying that she would be in contact with me in a few days to let me know the "next steps." Yes, that was a quotation. Her words. Sounds positive to me.

Other random musings in the world of the naughty mouse:

1) I got stuck in this hideous traffic the other day while going to Sprinkles to get cupcakes for my mother and bestest friend. Funny thing, the car that was broken down causing the backup was a cute little 2 seater Mercedes with a license plate that translated "Oh to be me." Hahahahahaha! Guess she didn't plan on being the broken down car that morning!

2) Why is it that things that taste oh-so-good can smell oh-so-awful? By this I'm referring to blue cheese. I had some really tasty Stilton the other morning in a salad before bed (remember kids--this is my dinner; ergo, usually no breakfast food in the a.m.). I was just a tad revolted by the smell. Then I licked the fork with which I was scraping it into little chunks for the aforementioned salad--sublime yumminess.

3) Why oh why did my ob-gyn feel the need to use the words "purulent discharge" during my examination??? She wasn't referring to me or any part of me, but I still found this word exchange highly disturbing. Definitely NOT what you want to hear with your feet in the stirrups. Granted, is there anything you do want to hear then?

Okay kiddos. Brain dead time has taken over my body. I must retire to the den to snooze on the couch between laundry loads. A bientot!

update

Well, I found out that Southwest gets to within 93 miles of Portland (or there abouts) by flying into Manchester, New Hampshire. Also, I didn't realize Boston was sooooooooooo close!

Here is the funny part of the update. When I got to work Friday night, before I could even get my lab coat on, the eeee-vil supervisor called me into his office. I felt like I was going to see the principal or something. Anyway, turns out HR called him to ask him about me and tell him about the aforementioned interview. Oops. I was very good at playing the blonde and telling him that no, in fact I had not applied for another job. This is in fact true. I have not applied for anything--we've just been talking and planning for a possible change in the not too distant future. Ergo, I felt no need to tell him about it. Sometimes I really can tweak things just right.

As for last night--Stars win!!!! Game seven, here we come! I ended up calling in sick last night because of it all. I had hockey fever. However, I am dutifully at work today doing what I should have done last night. All in all, it works out fine. It's quite nice actually: empty lab, classical music playing on the computer, no one using the centrifuge and making my wet mount slides shake under the microscope. I should try to get them to let me do this more often!

Well, the timer is about to go off. Gotta go check my giardia elisa.

TTFN!

INTERVIEW!!!

Well, there you have it. The subject line says it all. I have an interview. Tee-hee!!!

As it so happens, I have to wait until next Wednesday morning (at 8:30am--thank you very much) before I can talk to the woman. Okay, here's the part most of you don't know. The job is very far away. I'd have to move approximately 1864 miles (that's just from city center to city center according to google maps). It would be a super big promotion for me. I can't decide how I feel about it yet. I really want the job, but it's far away from everything I know: my family, my friends, the only home I've ever known. On the other hand, it's far away from everything I know! Everything new! Not to mention a much prettier state with a coast 40 miles from the possible new home, mountains 100 miles away, and lots of old friends who moved away close(r) again. I wouldn't leave until August (because of that free England choir trip this summer), but I'd be moving from 100+ temperatures to the 80s, four seasons, and beautiful fall colors. I guess I should see how close Southwest flies to Portland....

the Tuesday after

Well, it's hard to post something funny the day after the Virginia Tech massacre. I have a friend here in town that is the local alumni president. She's been barraged with calls from the press asking things about what classes she took and what it was like when she was there. At this point, who cares about what classes she took so many years ago. That won't bring the kids back to their parents. It's all just so sucky. So as I sit here on my "lunch" break eating my leftover pasta, I send all my thoughts and prayers to the victims, their families, and their friends. May God be with you in this tragic time.

Now, all seriousness aside. I will share some good news in my small corner of the world. My bestest friend FINALLY got a new car. She won't have to drive around in the cold with no heat, in the heat with no a/c, and through the ghetto and barrio holding the door closed. It's almost a miracle that this finally happened. And I am thrilled to say she got a Honda. *angels singing* Her past 2-3 modes of transportation have been less than reliable. Because of her scary but necessary job, I'm glad she won't have to be worried about breaking down in aforementioned ghettos.

If you are lucky enough to live anywhere near one of the venues for the Body Worlds exhibit (and you're not the eensiest bit squeemish), you've gotta go see this thing! Especially if you are a smoker. You won't be by the time you leave. It's wicked cool. Being a biologist by study, I knew most of what I saw before I went in, but being able to see it in true form at so close a viewing was amazing. I recommend it to everyone.

One closing serious thought: does anyone else wonder why it seems that the US is the only place that seems to have these mass tragedies? You never hear of some angry person walking into a school/university/fast food franchise/etc in Spain, India, or Australia and killing so many people. Something to think about.

I almost forgot

Happy Friday the 13th!

Mwaa-hah-hah

yes, I suck

Sorry for the serious lack in posting (postage?). Luckily for the mighty "Stubby Fingers" (yes, someone used to call me that), there isn't much to report. I'll see if I can fill in the blanks of the past 2 weeks.

First of all, there was Holy Week. Well, let's just say that Holy Week made this one weak. Between rehearsal Monday and Thursday, concerts Tuesday and Friday, and services Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and of course Easter Sunday (when I had to be at church at 6:30am!) all while working the stupid night shift, I didn't think I'd ever recover. Still haven't to some point. It was great singing for RAH again though. Forgot how musical that little bugger could be. I also really enjoyed singing with some of the old pals who've since left the church for one reason or another. Ah, memories!

The job is still a chore. At least I know I do my job well. Heck, part of it I'm the only one at night that can do it. Of course, that may be why I work so many 6-day weeks. I know, think about the overtime. I've since realized that the overtime reaches a point where Uncle Sam takes a larger percentage so it doesn't really matter. Also, I'd much rather have a little free time to clean my farking house (aka: the pit).

Took Cornelius to the vet ... um, some time in the last 2 weeks. His heart and blood pressure are doing great! I will continue to call him Benazepril Man for quite some time it seems. (go here for info: http://druginfosite.com/a692011.html) In fact, his murmur seems to have lessened a touch. I'll still have to fork over some fundage for an EKG at some point, but at least I don't need to start with the sonogram like I thought we would. Poor baby kitten!

Still no news on the "relationship" front, but I figure that will be the case until I quit working the crazy ass night shift. Heck, I don't have the time or energy to try to meet anyone anyway.

I'm super psyched because I'm going to the Stars game this Sunday night. Go Stars! Of course, I'm not psyched about the day. Let's see: leave work at ~3-4am, go home and nap, go to church and sing forever and a day (3 service day), kill an hour or so with Ang before we go to the AAC, and then watch the game. I can't decide if I hope for the quadruple overtime like last night or not. It'd be uber fun, but I don't know if either of us can stay awake that long!

Well, that's a start. I hope all is going well with everyone I know. I miss you all (especially my movie night people and trivia gang). Someday I will see you guys again. Heck, there are some people I haven't seen or spoken to other than email since New Year's Eve. Gosh, what a loser.

Nope, not a loser--just in the wrong time schedule from the rest of the CIVILIZED world.

derision, anguish, and throes of tribulation

I love words.

The title basically sums up my work life lately. But it's okay. I'll come out on top. Heck, it's Lent. Things are supposed to be tough right now, right? I will prevail.

Guess I should go home and get showered for church. I hate going straight from work. I'd really like to get some sleep before I have to sing a French mass. *shakes head in wonderment of the ways of the world*

A bientot and Godspeed.

not for the squeemish

Okay, since I mentioned the bacontarian website in my prior post, I had to go see what was new since the last time I visited. OMG!!! Check this out.

http://warehouse.carlh.com/article_108/

Maybe it's the biologist in me, but I found it totally cool!

on my night off...

So I finally get a night off from work and what do I do? I spend an hour and 15 minutes driving to a Requiem rehearsal for a choir other than my own. A friend who directs at a church waaaaaay far north asked if I could help them out. Of course it was such a boost to my ego I had to say yes. It always feels good to be honored and flattered! It was kinda fun. The first part of the rehearsal was all of their Holy Week and Easter stuff. I used that time to practice my sightsinging. Dang! I'm better than I thought. Either that or the music was really easy. Afterward, a small group of us (the people I actually knew from up there in the Wild North) went to dinner. It was super yummy! I had a shrimp and fettuccine dish with a white wine sauce (no cream!) and a small ceasar salad. That filled me up quite sufficiently, but since it was my night off, I knew I'd be up for quite a while. I got a piece of lemon chess pie to take home. Normally, I would make yummy comments, but there was something really wrong with this pie. It tasted like it had been cooked with bacon. Yes, bacon. Now I'm all for a good slab of applewood smoked uncured bacon every once in a while, but I'm not too fond of it with my pie. (an aside: if you like bacon, go to www.bacontarian.com for fun) I can't wait for the place to open so I can call and complain. It was seriously icky!

But before I could eat said crappy-ass pie, I had to drive home. You hear about the weather that's been hounding the midsection of the country this week? Well, last night it hit home. It wasn't bad except for the bloody wind. I kept thinking I was hydroplaning, but my tires are brand new. I figured it was the wind when the road shifted direction. I was supposed to stop by my mother's for a dermatological consultation, but I just wanted to go home after spending so much time being jittery and on edge as my car got blown all over the wet roads (along with the other cars getting blown around). Yes, I was too freaky to drive the extra 1.5 miles. Much better today though. Now I just have to deal with it again tonight on my drive to work. Yay.

OMG!

How is it possible to psyche myself out so much over one silly little phone call? Maybe when it's calling to the complete other side of the continent to inquire about a job, I just get a little nervous. Eeek! Now I have to wait for the return call. Wish me luck!

grr...boo...hiss

I have a new nemesis. I thought it was my friend, but I was mistaken. It is Claritin-D. I've taken plain ole Claritin in the past and had no problems. Haha! Obviously when you put the "D" after it, it changes everything. Last night I actually bonked the bridge of my nose not once but twice into the oculars of the microscope (the thingies that stick out that you look through). This will not dissuade me from taking said Clatitin in the future; however, I will not take it while at work. Makes for a very bad night. All I wanted to do was sleep. Now, at 10:45am the next day, I'm so freaking wired because of my caffeine consumption. Maybe I'll stop and get lunch/breakfast/whatever on the way home. At least I don't have to be back here for 7 hours. Woo-hoo!

has it really been a week?

Whoa, time flies. Not that I've been having fun, mind you. I've just been uber busy. I shall try to be brief with witty amusements and updates.

Hypoplastic Frontal Sinuses

Yes, this is a new thing to me, too. I went to il doctore a couple of days ago because I was being Pre-emptive Strike Girl. I was worried I was getting a sinus infection, and with the new and exciting thing called health insurance *angels singing* I decided I didn't have time to be sick. Well, what I didn't have time for was sitting around the bloody office for almost 3 hours. Dude sent me to the downstairs lab for an x-ray of my sinuses. WTF? Guess he wanted to see if my head really was empty or not. No infection (supposedly from what you can tell from a stupid x-ray--but I do feel better--nothing like a good old decongestant, but I digress), but he comes in the room and says "You have hypoplastic frontal sinuses." Uh-huh. And to me that means...? I told him my watch was made of plastic, but I wasn't so sure about my sinuses. He snickered. He then went on to describe how my frontal sinuses are smaller than normal and can lead to chronic infection, blah, blah, blah, rubarb. Whatever. It was my maxillaries that were sore--not my frontals. Screw that hypothesis Dr. Man!

Blood Pressure + Coffee = Bad Combination

So while I was there, Dr. Man said he wanted to put me on blood pressure medication. I said no. Just like that, too. "No." I'm turning into my mother. I hate medication, and if there is another way to remedy the situation, I'd like to try that first. Anywho, I told him that I'd use ma madre's cool little contraption to measure my blood pressure at home and prove to him it wasn't high. HAHAHAHA!!! What made me think that taking my blood pressure after a record setting night at the lab, a Starbucks venti drip, and two doughnuts would be a good idea? Oh ya, lack of sleep. Ya, it was 160/110. It's never been that high even at the ob/gyn (and every woman knows that's when your bp is at its highest). I'll try again later. Stupid body.

Randomness Abounds

Fava beans. Yes, I said fava beans. They are haunting me, taunting me, keeping watch over my shoulder. Really! They are in the calendar here in Mother's office. For some reason they are making me nervous. Maybe it's the big old coffee I just finished.

Thomas is turning into a serious lard-butt. How can you get a cat to diet when he has to eat "super special and expensive" food? You don't. I try to exercise him by teasing him with one of his toys. When he gets tired, he just lays on the floor and bats at it. What a goon.

If anyone out there has an extra car, let me know. The H-bomb is having some serious bad carma again. We gotta get her a cheap, let me rephrase, inexpensive yet reliable new ride.

Why is it that I really crave meat on Fridays in Lent? Is God punishing me for being an omnivore? Guess I'll go eat some salad.

Have a great Friday!

*rassafrassinmotherof...*

Ever had one of those days? My work life is turning into a continuous "one of those." Take last night for example. I was rockin' and rollin' and thought I'd get out pretty close to on time for the first time in a looooooong time. No such luck. As it happened, there was a blackout in this area. We think it was a whole section of the grid because we looked out the windows and all was dark as pitch save the lights of passing cars. It's hard to look through a microscope when there is no light. A flashlight just won't cut it. I also realized how much I really depend on the fume hood in here. I set up my giardia samples in the dark (with the help of the flashlight), and WHOA did they stink up the place. I couldn't wait to close all the tubes and hurl them back into the storage room fridge. When the power finally came back on (about 45 minutes later), I'd just gotten comfortable with a book and my ipod. I got back up, started reading slides, and the power went off again. Noooooooooooooo! It was only out about 5 minutes this time, but the idea that it might go out again was everpresent. No wonder. It did. It only flashed in and out a couple of times, but it was nerve wracking nevertheless. Everytime it went out, the whole lab could hear me yell out "Noooooooooooooooooo!" Anyway, it did finally come back on and stay that way. Needless to say, I did not leave early. I left no where near on time. Another 3 days, another 30.25 hours.

As an aside, the 30 hours of overtime was soooooo not worth it paycheck wise. I swear the gubmint took most of it. At least my shift diff counted in the overtime calculations. In the future, I'd rather just have the time off. Comp time anyone???

Proof

I now have proof that you should always look at least presentable when you leave your house, even if it is to run to Sonic or your mother's or the bathroom.

I left my place to run by ma madre's to see if I'd heard from one particular person who I think I royally pissed off (so completely unintentionally, I'm just a big idiot sometimes). I wasn't even a full block from my house when I passed an old friend I hadn't seen in ages riding her bike with a friend through my neighborhood looking at houses. It was a shock for both of us. She had a reason to be icky--she'd been riding her bike over an hour. I'm just lazy and hadn't showered yet because I hadn't planned on seeing anyone. So there I am, on the side of the road, blocking a lane of traffic (side street--no biggie) meeting her new "friend" while wearing athletic shorts, a Carter Bloodcare shirt laden with cat hair, no bra, and my hair all whacked out from not even being brushed yet today. I'm sooooooooo embarrassed. I hope she does move close to me so I can see the new friend and make a better impression by looking at least acceptable.

And no, I haven't heard from the possibly ex-friend yet.

catch up time

Okay, this has the potential to be long, but I'll try not to be long winded (long-fingered if typing?). It's catch up on the naughty mouse time!!! I have no idea where I left off in the life (guess I should've looked at my own blog first) so things may be repeated and/or out of chronological order.

1) I was wrong. True love is NOT the Krispy Kreme whole wheat doughnut. True love (or "t'wooo wahve" for Princess Bride fans) is an iPod. I no longer have to listen to the "pingy pingy" music while at work. YIPEE!!! My mother is the greatest mother ever! Or she just felt sorry for me and was tired of my constant bitching about Gujarati-ville where I work. Not that there's anything wrong with that....

2) If you want an update on my working situation, just know that I accumulated 33 hours of overtime last pay period. Ergo, little time to blog.

3) The "Latino Laundromat" saga continues. I remembered today why I only go to the laundromat by my house once a year or so. It's because it's a farking freak show filled with unruly children and incessant funny looks from other customers (hey, what's that white girl doing here?). I mean, really. How hard is it to keep your child from running at full speed through the business screaming its head off? How am I supposed to read and comprehend with that going on? Ya, I'm not. Then once the kids settled down (prolly got beaten with an empty Ariel jug), the teenagers came in. Since when did a laundry place become a teen hangout? With my stuff in the last few minutes of its drying cycle, some kids started with the "You wanna fight? You wanna fight me, punk?" Arrgh! Then there was the couple of guys just standing by the door chatting. One said to the other "when you gonna swing by my crib, homie?" OMG! Do people really speak like that??? When it ran out of time in the dryer, my stuff was not completely dry. What did I do, you ask? Loaded it back into the laundry basket and brought it here, to my mother's house. I still saved a ton of time on the process, but I had to get outta that place before my IQ fell another 10 points. No more lavanderia for me until I happily forget this incident.

4) Because of work being so crazy and the time change this past weekend (March Forward!), I found the best way to not sleep too long and miss a service or just be late to choir. How? I call it staying awake. Haha! Yes, in the last few nights at work, we've set new records for samples received in the O&P department (aka: my dept). Friday night, I woke up at 9:30pm to go to work. Saturday I got home and was able to sleep for 3.5 hours before I had to go back to work. Since there was the time change and I had to be at church by 8:30am Sunday morning, I just stayed awake. I didn't even leave work until 6:30am, so I had just enough time to drive home, get showered, go to *bucks for mega caffeine injection, and make it to church on time. Because of that, people in the choir got to see what I was like sleep deprived and hyped up on caffeine. If I do say so myself, it was rather hilarious. I'll take comments on this one!

5) Just in from the weird dreams department: the strangeness continues. So recently I've been back in contact with someone I worked with many moons ago. Happiness!!! Anywho, I don't know if it is the recent reforged contact or just random memory time, but I had a super scary dream about someone else I used to work with. See, we worked in a research lab and the main dude in our room (mind you, not the smartest or the best, just the most senior) was a guy named Yuri. Tall, broad Russian who sounded like the count from Sesame Street when he spoke (one chocolate chip cookie, two chocolate chip cookie--haw...haw...haw). Well, I had this dream that he was trying to kill me. It was uber realistic. In the beginning, he was just beating the snot outta me, but then he was following me everywhere and trying to find where I was hiding so he could off me. WTF? The next day, strange scary dreams continued. Once I woke myself up screaming because I thought someone was coming after me to kill me (see a theme here?). After I calmed down and got back to sleep, I woke myself up yelling "get out" because I thought there was someone in my house.

I'm happy to report that since then, the sleep deprivation has proved well enough for me to sleep dream free. Just give it time.... I'm sure the crumbling teeth will make an encore appearance.

6) Did I forget anything? Probably, but I'm ready for a nap, and the dryer just dinged. Yay! Clean clothes in a place where if a sock falls on the floor, I'm not gonna want to burn it.

and there it went

Glad I got to post about how things at work were better.

Now it's back to 11 hours nights and 5 hours of sleep. Work work work. Wrko? Sorry I've been extremely lax in getting in touch with you folks. Things are sooooooo uber busy. Hmmm, that transfer idea is looking better and better.

Okay, gotta eat my soup so I can go back into hell with fluorescent lighting.

squeaky wheel gets the grease

Those of you that know me well know that I despise causing trouble or causing any sort of confrontation (especially in work situations). Well, this past Saturday, I did just that. I'd finally had my fill of 10-11 hour workdays. Besides being overworked and under-slept, it was also my birthday week (always a bad time for me), and I was hormonal. Taking all that into account, it was no wonder I almost blew a gasket at 4am Sunday when I was just finishing up at work. I'd been all ready and geared up to talk with my immediate supervisor about what we could do about the schedule, but he left before I could get with him. Arrgh! When I had fumed internally for a couple of hours and then cursed about the lab (I was alone so no one heard any of it) for a while, I sat at the computer and wrote out an email to the boss. It was very nice and polite (which I really wasn't feeling) but got my point across: I'm tired, I can't keep working at this pace, please fix it. Well, let me tell you what happened. When I got to work Monday night, I had a reply from the big boss-man saying how sorry he was that we are so short staffed, and it was never his intent to work me so hard. He also said what a valuable employee I am and how he will do whatever he can to try to remedy the situation asap. On top of that, the schedule had been changed, and I am no longer working so much stuff. YAY!

Lesson learned: the adage is true--the squeaky wheel indeed does get the grease.