March 2006
MARCH 30, 2006 :: 01:54AM RIP Kenneth Merrell
Jammin' to ... feelin'Four days since my last entry and already, so much has happened. A member of my circle of friends passed away Sunday night. He and I weren't particularly close, but we are a pretty tight-knit group, so what affects some of us affects us all. The most heartbreaking thing about it is that he leaves behind a wife and three young children. Not to say that the other half of us who are single and without offspring are expendable, but to think about this family that is directly affected and deeply hurting makes it so much harder.
My worst fear, even before being strapped down in a mildew-riddled bath tub, is losing someone close to me. Sure, I lost my grandma last year, but she was old and had lived her life. Stuff like that is expected. I'm truly shocked and saddened by his death. His memorial is next week... it will be nice to see my friends; I just wish it was under different circumstances.
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It's fucking almost 2am AGAIN and I haven't even tried to go to bed... AGAIN. I'm going to pay for it tomorrow morning because I can't afford to be late. The insurance adjuster is coming to my office at 9am to inspect the damage on my car. Darn, and I could've come in late too since my boss is on vacation... but my assistant has the day off so I have to play receptionist tomorrow anyway. SO FUN! 5 years later and I'm still answering phones, how pathetic.
I need to do a raw entry soon.
MARCH 26, 2006 :: 11:56PM Neverending Mess
Jammin' to ... feelin'It's starting to feel like I'm NEVER going to be settled in my house! Another weekend has come and gone and there are still boxes in hallways, trash piled up in the garage, and old furniture waiting to be donated. I just made the living room even messier trying to hang these LACK floating shelves I bought from IKEA today. I didn't hang the top shelf on a stud or with anchors so of course it almost collapsed on me while I was hanging the second one. Dumbass Mae. I hate hanging shit, I don't know why I ever attempt to do it. I'll just wait until my brother comes this weekend and have him do it. While he's at it I have a bunch of other shit to hang too. I've been waiting on hanging most of my wall art/decor because I want to have the walls painted, but that won't be for a while. I'll deal with it then.
Tap tap tap, this house is so echoey! The desktop computer that I'm on right now is in the loft, and my keyboarding is resonating throughout the house.
Noooo I don't want to go to work tomorrow. I took an impromptu day off on Friday, simply because I could not drag myself out of bed to save my life. I told boss man I'd be in later in the afternoon, but then on my way to get lunch I fucking got rear ended. UGh! It's not bad and hardly any damage, but it's such a hassle anyway. This time I'm NOT letting the person pay out of pocket and risk getting screwed again. I'm reporting it to insurance, I don't care how small it is.
I'm thirsty. Goodnight.
MARCH 24, 2006 :: 12:58AM La Nuevo Computadora
Jammin' to ... feelin'Holy crap, I'm better at Spanish than I thought. "La" and "nuevo" were easy, but I thought I was being clever and made up "computadora" as a facetious translation of "computer". A quick Google tells me it's correct, and that I am not clever.
As the title kinda states, I got a new computer. After living with a huge 17" laptop as my main computer, I decided it was time to settle down, so to speak. Having a 40% off coupon didn't hurt either. I ended up getting a Dimension E510, complete with sub/speakers and a 20" flat panel. Massive indeed. I am the Queen of frivolous impulse purchases.
I started to burn my files from my laptop onto DVDs so I could transfer them to the new rig. Got the major stuff first; tax forms, my Quicken file, pictures, etc. On the second disc I started to add my porn, and not until I had already started the burn process did I realize, shit, when am I ever gonna watch porn out here?? The computer is in the loft, which shares open air with everything both upstairs and downstairs. Sound carries. Oh well, at least that saves me the hours I would've spent backing up a gig of slease.
My house is a mess, and what bugs me the most is that it's not my mess! It's the ahem, previous owner's mess. We can only park one car in the garage (mine, of course!) because of all the leftover crap. My aunt has the gall to lecture me about unpacking, and keeping my house clean so that it "stays nice". We visited her new condo last weekend and everything was still in boxes! Oy. Freakin' hypocrites.
Yesterday, my boss's brother called me at work and offered me his extra Laker tickets. In the past, he's given me suite tickets whenever he couldn't make it himself. This time, the tickets were two rows up behind the floor seats. It. was. awesome. He has even better seats; right behind the commentators ON the floor. The players look so much taller when you're on the same ground level as them. I was within 15 feet of my husband Kobe. Yep, just as yummy up close and personal. I didn't even want to go at first; driving to the Staples Center is a fucking PITA and you all know how much I just want to go home and rest after work. However, there was no traffic on the 5 south, only a little on the 110, found quick parking and watched an awesome game. Totally worth it.
Again, it's nearing 1am and I'm still up and about, doing random crap, when I should be sleeping! I haven't been able to crawl out of bed before 8am this whole week. Whether I take the bus or drive, I end up getting to work 10-30 minutes late. Eh, my boss doesn't get there till 10ish anyway. Still, must set good example for assistant. Oh, and I lost my bus pass. What kind of idiot am I. At least March is almost over. I'll just drive tomorrow and buy some tokens over the weekend.
Yawwwwn..
MARCH 20, 2006 :: 02:17AM Night Owl.
Jammin' to ... feelin'Almost two decades of waking up to go to work or school, and I still hate it. Maybe going to bed close to 2am has something to do with that. I'm tired and sleepy but I can't shut my brain off.
My aunt came by yesterday to pick up my grandpa's medicine that was left here. She paid no attention to the 5 boxes of her stuff that I've so kindly packed for her since she moved out almost a month ago. She was more interested in teaching me how to keep a refrigerator clean. I don't know either. I'm starting to get really annoyed that she still has a significant amount of stuff here, including three big bags of clothes to be donated sitting pretty in my own bedroom. Among other things are a non-functional black dresser that's kind of blocking my bedroom door, a large mirror that's on standby in the living room, a futon wrapped in saran wrap in the backyard and a TV stand that is literally on its last leg.
Not surprisingly, my sister hasn't unpacked for shit. Her bedroom door is the first one when you get to the top of the stairs, and you have to squeeze your way in between stacked boxes to get anywhere. The best way to describe my relationship with my sister is to compare it to Will & Grace. I am Will, and she is the clingy, dependent, irresponsible and sloppy Grace. Yes, I admit I am a control freak like Will, but shit man, people like my sister and "Grace" bring the worst out of people over time. I can't believe I just compared my life to a sitcom. But whatever.
The episode that explains it all is the one where Grace wants to put her name on the card of the gift Will bought for their friends. He was irritated because Grace was acting too much like a "wife", which is exactly what my sister does! She even calls the dogs our kids, which freaks me out to tell you the truth. She gets upset if I buy food and don't buy her something too. We agreed to open a separate checking account where I would pay utilities and household expenses (repairs) from. She thinks this means groceries too. Fuck that! We don't eat the same shit; I ain't paying for your god damn cookies.
It's really sad that my sister, 8 years my senior, is dependent on me. If I told her I didn't want her to live with me anymore, she'd be screwed. She has horrible credit, and gratuitous high dwelling standards; she would never find an apartment she'd be happy in and get approved for. She would have to go back to living with my aunt, rent free. Because she's always had people helping to support her, she thinks that shit will magically fix itself now too. She acts as if she still lives with mom and dad, but like they are out of the country or something. "I don't have to do shit around here, but the rents are gone so I can run amuck!"
I better stop, because I'm getting all worked up over here.
Anyway, I got two out of three things done this weekend. Painted the dining room and played pool. Here's a before picture, and here are three after pictures. The room isn't done yet; ordered some other furniture and finishing touches. See you at the housewarming!
MARCH 15, 2006 :: 03:52PM The Gong Show
Jammin' to ... feelin'The lighting in my office is bad, and I can hardly see my phone, so I've got this clip-on lamp on my hutch. Occasionally I'll hang up the phone after a conversation and accidentally whack the lamp with the receiver. This causes a loud and annoying GONG noise, which I'm sure the person on the other line hears. They probably think I'm crazy. They're probably right.
You've heard me complain about my nose time and time again, and now I'm gonna complain some more. My nostril skin is extremely sensitive. I get cuts quite often and out of nowhere. I use very soft tissue but apparently not soft enough. It's also very runny, so blowing my nose when it's sore from cuts is a painful task. I don't know what I did to it this time, but it's been hurting for a week straight. Badly hurting! I can't pick my nose without wincing in pain. I can't even scrunch my nose up (habit) without feeling a slight tear (like rip, not like cry) inside. Gross! I hate my nose!!!
In other news, I bought a pool table for my dining room. I also bought a hardwood dining cover to put over it when I need a real table. The walls are being painted dark gray again (like my old living room). It will NOT look like a sports bar, but a classy, way too pricey VIP lounge. The table is only a 7 footer; I didn't want to take a chance with an 8' because the room is not quite the recommended size. I'm not a tournament player anyway, plus I'm short. It's being installed on Saturday. Can't wait!!
I fell asleep on the bus this morning. Good thing the scent of the smelly people woke me up in time for my stop. The smell wasn't as bad as last night though; immediately upon boarding the bus it smelled like a wet rag that had been sitting out. That mixed with the heavy-smoker smell of my neighbor made it hard to breathe. I try to breathe through my mouth, then get grossed out because I feel like I'm eating the smell. But other than that, taking the bus is still a hell of a lot better than driving in traffic growing more and more aggravated. It feels nice not having to rely on my car.
So, big plans for the weekend. 1) Detail the g-ride because it is FILTHY! I don't care if it rains since it's garaged anyway. 2) Prep the dining room, buy paint, paint the dining room. 3) Shoot pool on my new table. Weeee!
MARCH 07, 2006 :: 10:29AM That's Mizz Environmentalist to you.
Jammin' to ... feelin'Every little bit counts, right? I may not be chaining myself to an oil rig, or even hugging any trees. I am, however, doing my part in decongesting traffic, giving up my dependence on oil (like a good American, eh), all while getting some much needed exercise. I'm now a bus rider. As an almost native Californian, I never thought the day would come where I'd regularly use public transportation to get around. Southern Californians are pathetic in that sense. The only walking we do is from the department store to where we parked our car. I sound like I'm making a big deal out of nothing, but really, it's huge. Go alert the media.. NOW!!
If I had known how easy this was, I would've started way back when I first moved here. The Metro Rapid line picks up about a half mile from my house, and then shoots straight down Van Nuys Blvd., hangs a right onto Ventura Blvd. and drops me off across the street from my office. 25 minutes of stress-free travel. It runs every 10-15 minutes too, so I'm not bound to a certain schedule.
The only annoying thing about it is the walk from the bus stop to my house. Halfway through the cement sidewalk becomes a grassy walkway with a dirt path. This is no fun in the rain. Of course it's still "winter", and when brutal summer comes along I probably won't be singing much praise. Maybe I'll finally get a tan.
Viva Metro!
MARCH 01, 2006 :: 09:36AM It's been a rough couple of days.
Jammin' to ... feelin'Moving is never fun, and I will never get used to it even after the 5th time since leaving San Diego. 5 places in 5 years; how pathetic. Oh shit, I'm forgetting about the time I lived in Woodland Hills. 6 times then. Even more pathetic. I better not go anywhere anymore, because my furniture has survived its last move.
As if a move isn't stressful enough, there's a leak in my guest bathroom so we have to turn the hot water on and off whenever we want to use it. This involves climbing on a rickety step stool to reach a knob near the ceiling of the garage. Even when the "hot" water is on, I get warm water at best. Warm water is no good for a shower at 7 in the morning. I might as well rub ice cubes all over myself.
And as if moving, with a plumbing problem, isn't stressful enough, my mother is staying with me for a few days. She was nice enough (as a favor to my aunt, who is responsible for fixing the problem) to take off work to stay at my house and watch the plumbers. My poor mom does not have a car in LA, nor would she be able to drive here anyway (not a freeway driver), so she is stuck alone with the dogs unless my other aunt picks her up to "kick it".
When we were moving on Monday, my sister arrived at the new house first to await the movers while I stayed behind to clean up. My mom had asked my sister to drop her off at my aunt's house before the movers came, so my sister called me and asked how long I thought the movers would take to get there. I was really stressed out so I snapped back and said "YOU WON'T HAVE TIME!!" Later my sister told me that my mom started to cry in frustration, exclaiming that she's only here trying to help us. Hearing this made me feel like a pile of steaming shit. I've never made my mom cry before, and now I know I'd MUCH rather have her yelling at me than this.
Since then I've been making an extra effort to be nice to my mom. It. is. so. hard. She only means well, even though she has a funny way of showing it. Everything is an urgent matter, and she can find fault in every little thing. The other day she freaked out because I didn't scotch guard my new couch. "See! Look! I have to lie down with a pillow so that the oil from my face doesn't get on the couch!!" Geez mom, it's not like you're seeping liquid from every pore.
Yesterday morning she left me two voicemails at work asking to call her back. I don't know WHY I thought it was urgent, but I called back anyway, and she couldn't figure out how to turn the TV on. She was determined to get it to turn on, even if I had to walk her through it for an hour. Every time she calls my name I have to stop and breathe for a moment to relax myself.
But... she's my mom, and I love her. She's just getting old and always needs to be needed, you know? Of course I need my momma, but at a safe distance, like 130 miles away!
I was up until 1:30 last night unpacking. I just can't stand boxes sitting everywhere. I shoved all of my sister's stuff in one corner of the living room. I'm taking bets as to how long that stuff is going to stay there. Anyone?
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