Category: Uncategorized

…and getting caught in dusty apartments with rock bands  

Last night I had a very strange dream. I was sitting in a cramped, slightly run down second floor apartment somewhere and was having a conversation with Matchbox 20’s Rob Thomas. Weird. turns out it was his place. Who knows when THIS was, I’m sure, some kind of joke. I really could not imagine this. I was hanging around and the band was hanging around and could see me and we were having some discussion. This particular nite I had been asked to come over and so I did. One of the band members had come over later than the rest and he was really bummy looking. I could not identify him, for some reason his likeness was blurry. He had asked Rob if he knew where the fuck his case of Corona went, ’cause apparently he had left it there previously. no one said anything. Then I woke up.

Care to analyze that one ???

By the way, since I didn’t know what the hell I was doing, I accidentally deleted my entry for Monday, so I located it in the archives. Unfortunately, this throws off my archives flow. Oh well. Thanks for being human and understanding.

Same day, different year..

Other posts on this day:

Have dinner, I suppose!

Boy, being on The Food Shelf Diet is Mmm-mmm good! Mushy mac & cheese. Tonight I learned you should never overcook macaroni noodles. What a way to top off a non-eventful, ho-hum weekend. I’m sitting here searching the web for PT work for the millionth time. I need to make more money ’cause I’m debt. who isn’t?

Just got done listening to Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” and was thinking alot about life…

In addition to PT work, I am also changing full time jobs. I had two interviews while I was on vacation but that’s not enough. I need to go on more and hopefully land something, and soon.

I told the people at my job about my decision to find something that’s a ‘better fit’ and I all but gave them my leave notice. Luckily, they took it well and they’re even cool with me taking time off for interviews, if I need it.

Strange. I was taking a big risk in doing that. Most places might say ‘okay then, see ya around’ and then give ya the pink slip.  I guess I should be glad but I’m not ’cause now I am still working there but everyone knows it is a joke that I do, ’cause I don’t wanna be there.

I think I’m addicted to SuperMario3 because I find myself playing it on my NES emulator at least every other night. I also have some cute little Mario figurines sitting atop my monitor, that I salvaged from my parent’s basement, before they had the garage sale this summer.

My nephew thinks he’s the shit, now that he’s in kindergarten. It’s all I ever hear about. School this, school that. Well, good for him. I never liked school. Hopefully he’ll keep that attitude up for another 12 years. He’s gonna be a Mighty Morphin Power Ranger for halloween. Ten bucks for cheap fabric and a flimsy plastic mask. Could make that at home for about $4.00. Sheesh.

Other than all that, not much newsworthy going on around here. Back to the job search.

Same day, different year..

Other posts on this day:

• Everything is Dunky Hory. – 2003

Back off of vacation but feeling a bit windblown and blistered, not to mention anxious and weary at the same time. It’s late so I know I need to go to bed but I am not all that tired. Let’s see if I can post this dang thing correctly.  Manila weblogs.com has gotten me a bit cornfused. 

I’ve finally gotten all this xml and homepage flipping down pat.  Sheesh.  The things you have to learn just to be able to post your thoughts nowadays. Haha.

Well it’s even later now than it was before and I really really really have to go to bed soon. Have another job interview tomorrow (damn…today), at a printing place in Minneapolis. Will blab incessently about it later.

Niteynite

\n\n

Today I made $20.00 without barely batting an eyelash.

I owed someone $10.00 from this weekend and had no cash on me, so last night I went to the mini mart on my walk home from the bus to get some cash out of the ATM. I forgot to get change for the bus the next morning so today as I am leaving, I go to see if Bill (my neighbor) could break my ten spot for me. 

No sir. 

I decide to just start walking and perhaps go up to the gas station and try there, even though it was more than a few blocks out of my way, I was just going to have to be late today.  On the other hand, I could just risk it and hop on the bus hoping someone has change.  Drivers never make change, and usually when people get on the bus and ask other passengers for change people all act like they’re asleep or deaf.

As I am leaving the building, I hear some movement in one of the first floor apartments. I don’t hesitate to knock on the door (yes, it’s 7 a.m., but they are up, aren’t they?)

A young man sporting a wet head and a towel around his waist answers the door, and although he barely looks awake, I ask him if he has change for a $10.

“No, but if you gimme a sec, I’ll check around, my roommate might.”
door shuts.

I stand and wait, tapping my foot. “The bus is coming, the bus is coming,” I think over and over in my head.

Should I wait?
…or should I bolt, ’cause he probably won’t have the change anyway??

Naw. Stay here.

can’t hurt.

I hear him waking his poor roomate, Greg or something like that.

I wait some more. Door opens. sleepy young man looks at me and says “No change here, how much you need?”

“No, that’s alright, nevermind…” says I.

“No, really, it’s no big deal, how much?” So I think about it for a second and then I tell him it’s two bucks for the bus.

“O.K. Stay right there, I’ll be right back.” says he. wait some more.

fidget.

Once again breifly contemplate dashing out the door. It’s right THERE.”bus is coming….”
door opens. sleepy wet head hands me two bills and four quarters, which I shove into my pocket and then I silently thank my lucky stars ’cause now I’ll only be a few minutes late as opposed to my earlier expectations, and then I gush at him, “Thanks alot man, I really appreciate it, I live up in 6E and when I get home tonight I’ll pay you back and…”

He cuts me off to say that it’s not a problem, he’s been there before and then he wishes me a good day.

I return the pleasantry and all but run out the door, down the street, and two blocks to the bus stop, just in time for the early one.

I thank goodness for good neighbors and then I get on the bus and bitch under my breath how hot the bus is because of the fact that the driver has the radiator at about 95 degrees again today. I put one of the dollar bills and two quarters into the bus meter and get to work just in time.

I later notice that the other bill the guy handed me is a twenty.

Now, being that I’m flat broke right now, I could’ve been a dirty little brat and kept that money. it is still sitting on my dining room table right now but I had been downstairs knocking on their door at almost hourly intervals since I got home tonight, so I could give it back to the guy and yeah, I’m an honest person.

I wake up at about ten today to find that my body aches and my head hurts. I was good all week! what did I do to deserve such pain? and on a Saturday!!!??  Such an unkind reward, since I’m always looking forward to this day of the week. After some breakfast and coffee I feel somewhat better. ran some errands, got the mail, had lunch and now here I am, kind of pondering what to tackle first, of the many things on my ‘to do’ list.

Whatever happened to music on MTV? Today I actually sat and watched an hour of it (’course you know that on an hour show, for every seven or eight minutes of content there is a ten minute commercial break) but I saw that there was like, almost no music or references to it and I find that’s the most annoying. I also see that most of the content is geared to those aged 20+ but yet the audience participants and groupies and whatnot are all between 13 and 19.

Go figure.

Well, hey, this is kinda short, I know but I have LOTS to do and I promise to be back later.  Buh-bye for now

ohmygosh how right that is:
“Success always occurs in private, and failure in full view.”

\n\n

Bad Toys?
a National News article at NYPOST.COM talks about a Brooklyn NYC cop and local congressman who are urging parents to boycott stores who sell toys that they deem to be too violent.

In related news, last night I saw that Fox News had broadcasted a consumer report about violent toys this Christmas, wherein they mentioned that The Lion & Lamb Project has put together a “dirty dozen list” of toys that they see as violent “entertainment” products. This is part of their mission to stop the merchandising of violence to children.

The Lion & Lamb have a reputation for preaching anti-violence and are famous for having had youth bring violent toys together and burn them as a sign of some sort. Isn’t burning stuff kinda violent? Makes me think back to book-burning (does that still go on somewhere in Bible-belt America?) Their slogan this year? “Violence is not child’s play”. Indeed it is not. However, haven’t violent toys and violent ‘pretend’ play been a part of American children’s lives since the beginning of time? My young newphew, now 7 was a four-year old playing with kids 6 and up, and would find a ‘weapon’ in every inanimate object including forks at the dinner table, Lego pieces, loose tree branches outside in the yard. His parents and adult relatives (myself, his grandma), would encourage him to play in an otherwise less objectionable manner by playing games with him. Tiddlywinks, Memory, Chutes & Ladders, riding bikes together, baseball, etc., and found ourselves exhausted because all that we did was unsuccessful and we just shrugged it off as ‘kids will be kids’ and do what they want. My sister and I did the same sorts of things during play. My mother and her brother had cap guns and fake weapons they used when playing ‘cowboys and indians’ back in the 50’s and I’m sure most other parents and kids could agree that what kids play with nowadays isn’t much different.

What do you think? Post your responses in the squawk box.

Same day, different year..

Other posts on this day:

• Partially Unemployed, Day 1 – 2000

Know what’s wonderful? unit inspections are tomorrow and my landlord w/be here checking things out while I’m at work. My apartment is a dump. there are letters and pieces of junk mail and bank statements and literature all over my dining room table, laundry that needs to be ironed in a pile on the floor of my bedroom, two days’ worth of dishes in my sink and I have no time to pick up. 

Went to a web seminar today and the topic was websites for government.  Let me just tell you that I was pretty overwhelmed with the information on regulation of the internet. plus now I have come away with 360 pages on the topic. I’ll probably punch holes in it, file it and read it later. I also have about a dozen of those MS Powerpoint presentation dealies where they print out the presentation for you. let’s just say I’ve seen enough of those for a while…I just want to get a t-shire that reads, “No handouts for me thanks.”.  Dude, I took notes AND paid attention during the presentation, which was merely lots of screen transition effects and cute little noises added to mouse clicks.

I went home and looked at my careerobjectively for awhile.  Today a big decision was made by me, after some deep thought on it these last few days. I’m gonna be going into consulting, on my own.

I am just starting out but I plan to at least have fun while doing it. I just need to get out of the corporate american firm mousetrap and still keep my head above water. my reasons for doing this? mostly, because I’m soooo done w/the rat race! the other reason? I need to quench this urge to make a living doing something I like, for once.

It’s late now and I think I just may clean up this hazard of a place in the morning, so I am gonna go to bed now.

Nitey nite.

The weather’s even been pleasant, what with the high temps only in the 70’s everyday. Haven’t been up to anything exciting, of course *gasp* are you shocked?

Last night I babysat for my darling nephew, who still kicks my ass at video games and is increasing his word power every day. I’m impressed, it’s as if he’s been checking out the Reader’s Digest section on vocabulary.

I’m planning on taking him around downtown sometime next week, to ride the big bus like the cityfolk do and maybe grab some lunch. I want us to go scout out all the Snoopy sculptures they started putting up around town in June for the ‘Peanuts on Parade’ dealie. Yeah, I think he’ll like that. We can get a map of where they all are and go get our pictures taken with Snoopy, too. I’m all revved up. I’ve even got my pose all picked out.

You know, I nearly forgot to show you that sunset from the other night:

This was the sunset from just a day after the Aurora Borealis

that was viewable around midnight in some areas

As promised, here are the pics I took from when I went out to the bar with Sandy, Tony, Chris and Donna after the Booya earlier this month.

 ”Fuckin’ Chris”

 ”Fuckin’ Tony”

 Sandy’s mad at Tony “He’s not even TRYING and winning!”

 Fuckin’ Chris and Fuckin’ Tony

  Chris getting warmed up…or mebbe he has the ‘bends’

  ”Crazy” Donna

  Sandy aka “Queen Belcher” lets out a big one…

  Tony “Winning unfairly” according to Sandy. Look @ that arm!

 Our beeramid. Yes that’s my elbow on the left. I took the pix!

Yes, we’re a bunch of rednecks! 

Gosh, it’s damned late. Yikes.

I better get to bed.

…here’s how to take a shower.

Ladies:

Take off clothing and place it in sectioned laundry hamper according to lights and darks.

Walk to bathroom wearing long dressing gown. If you see husband/boyfriend along the way, cover up any exposed areas.

Look at your womanly physique in the mirror – make mental note to do more sit-ups/leg-lifts, etc.

Get in the shower. Use face cloth, arm cloth, leg cloth, long loofah, wide loofah and pumice stone.

Wash your hair once with cucumber and sage shampoo with 43 added vitamins.

Wash your hair again to make sure it’s clean.

Condition your hair with enhanced grapefruit mint conditioner.

Wash your face with crushed apricot facial scrub for 10 minutes until red.

Wash entire rest of body with ginger nut and jaffa cake body wash.

Rinse conditioner off hair.

Shave armpits and legs.

Turn off shower.

Squeegee off all wet surfaces in shower. Spray mold spots with Tilex.

Get out of shower. Dry with towel the size of a small country.

Wrap hair in super absorbent towel.

Check entire body for zits, tweeze hairs.

Return to bedroom wearing long dressing gown and towel on head.

If you see husband/boyfriend along the way, cover up any exposed areas.

Men:

Take off clothes while sitting on the edge of the bed and leave them in a pile.

Walk naked to the bathroom.

If you see wife/girlfriend along the way, shake wiener at her making the ‘woo-woo’ sound.

Look at your manly physique in the mirror.

Admire the size of your wiener and scratch your behind.

Get in the shower. Wash your face. Wash your armpits.

Blow your nose in your hands and let the water rinse them off.

Fart. Laugh at how loud it sounds in the shower.

Spend majority of time washing privates and surrounding area.

Wash your butt, leaving those coarse butt hairs stuck on the soap.

Wash your hair. Make a shampoo mohawk.

Pee.

Rinse off and get out of shower.

Partially dry off.

Fail to notice water on floor because curtain was hanging out of tub the

whole time.

Admire wiener size in mirror again.

Leave shower curtain open, wet mat on floor, light and fan on.

Return to bedroom with towel around waist. If you pass wife/girlfriend along the way, pull off towel, shake wiener at her and make the ‘woo-woo’ sound again.

Throw wet towel on bed.

OK the title’s not meant to poke fun.

NOT AT ALL.

I just wanted to grab your attention and just say my 2 cents on this whole thing going down in West Virginia.

Now, I don’t watch a lot of TV nor do I pay that much attention to news lately.

If any TV is on, it’s either the local cable music channel stuff or else I switch back and forth between TBS and FOX news and it’s on in the background while I work (from home).

So like I said, I don’t *watch* it. But I do listen a bit here and there.

Last night, I had the TV on almost all night. Who knows why. Every now and again I heard things here and there that perked up my ears.

The first thing that perked up my ears first was Geraldo (aka Jerry Rivers) bawling as his live video feed from WV was being broadcast from the church yard. Everyone was singing hymns and hollering, as the media person at the time was talking to Geraldo and reporting an apparent miracle that these guys had survived. I thought, “Well that’s a relief!” and went pretty much back to work.

About 3 hours later Donna Fiduca comes on the TV and says “What a rollercoaster this has been. [ ]…12 miners are now considered dead and there was only 1 survivor…” or something to that effect.

I did a double-take and thought, “Crikey, that chick’s on crack!”

Because that was all I heard and thought she needs her rest because that is not what everyone else has been reporting for the last 3 hours!

Then it occured to me to pay attention because I heard someone on the scene at the church who was interviewing a WV citizen who was crying and upset and that’s when I knew there was something really wrong.

I felt a twang in my stomach and I was a bit upset to hear all this bad news after having put up with Geraldo’s joyous fit some time earlier, along with all the smiley news reporters grinning and guffawing, the other happy dappy journalists interviewing people left and right. CNN was showing that same stuff too. I thought, “Hey people–give it a rest.”. Wait ’til the press conference.

But there wasn’t one. At least not until 3am. Not good, media people!

About 2 hours or so before the bad news hit the TV stations, I was watching intently on CNN (I do switch back and forth and make up my own mind) where they had split the screen, and in one half, was some sort of industry professional talking and in the other, I saw people yelling at cameras and shooshing them away with their arms waving.

I thought that was *weird*. Hours before, it seemed like everyone left and right at the scene by the church was more than happy to get on camera and have their say. I wondered if it was just people hating on CNN or what.

Now I feel as though that was a foreshadowing to me, that perhaps some of the people were hearing bad news before all the news people gobbled it up and puked it all over the TV.

I don’t know. I just think sometimes, we all need to shut up and pay attention to what’s going on before we shout to the hilltops, and other such nonsense.

The media knows better than that, to wait for the spokesperson or official connected with ACTUAL word on what’s going on. And in my opinion, the governor’s office certainly should have had one of his flunkies rush right over to the church scene and say “WAIT people, we ARE NOT SURE of this information. It’s not been confirmed just yet.”

See, people like to play telephone, and get shit cornfused but good. Some damned fool was probably standing around listening at the rescue scene and not minding his own beeswax, then took “We found them” to mean “They’re alive, and one’s dead…go tell everyone on your Nokia now, you dumb redneck!” Not to offend. I meant that in a funny Jeff Foxworthy tone.

And that’s all she wrote. For now.

Funny about Geraldo’s real name eh? Take such an American Cheese name and spice it up a bit, and viola, Instant Ethnicity!

Sort of like, if Kraft decided to change the name of their popular “Kraft Singles” to ” Rebanadas Queso Americano”.

Hee.