What Happened This Week

Well, I haven’t posted a real, substantive entry all week, and I’m quite backlogged with ideas. So, here I go.

Just today I got my pictures from Signature Color. Yeah, the ones from Halloween? Over a month later, I finally got the prints. I swear, when I ever get a digital camera, Signature Color is so out of my life.

I had a fucked-up dream a couple nights ago. I was on-campus at a grad school, looking for Dan Clouse (I marched drumcorps with him in the mid-90’s, and we’ve kept in touch ever since). I wasn’t attending classes there, but the campus had a dorm/hotel where I had a temporary room. Anyway, I finally managed to locate where Dan was living β€” he had a small, tentlike abode on a hill behind the dorm. Once I found him, he didn’t really want to hang out much, despite the fact that our old corps-mate, Jessie Fleming, was joining me directly so we could all hang out together. He seemed to be kind of in hermit-mode.

So, Jessie arrived, and for whatever reason, we went to the Ben Franklin craft store. Except it wasn’t just crafts, but included thrifty junk-store stuff like used space heaters. And who should I find in the space heaters but Amy! You know, my college roomie? I didn’t even know she was at the school, so I was understandably surprized. I ran up to talk to her, with Jessie in tow, and Amy told me where in the dorm she lived (top floor, far corner). So, I’m catching up with Amy, who’s itching to take her space heater up to her dorm room, and meanwhile Jessie is bent on going clubbing, and her nagging is really harshing my Amy mellow. I finally asked her where she wanted to go, and she named some place that I knew was in Toledo, not even in BG (where we apparently were in my dream at this point). So, Jessie bailed, kind of pissing me off, and I woke up.

Why can’t I have normal dreams like Aaron, where he got a promotional cat from Lenny Kravitz, or where REM was playing in his kitchen and his cats were requesting songs?

Oh, I suppose I should give an update on my new job, eh? First, though, let me tell you how fubar Lockbox is now. Now, before I left, this was the hierarchy:

  1. Loni
  2. Me
  3. Rama (temp used-to-be-processor but didn’t like the hours)
  4. Angie (temp & processor)
  5. Dawn (temp)
  6. Brett (newest temp, at about two months)

In the short span since I left Lockbox β€” mainly in the past week β€” several changes have been made to the old hierarchy. First, I posted out. In my stead, Angie got hired in and Dawn got moved up into Angie’s temp-processor spot. They didn’t get a new temp for a few days. Then, at the beginning of this week, Rama gave her two weeks’ notice. Dawn also complained to the bosses about the change in her hours, since she’d been promised she could keep her 8-to-5 and it was changed to 9-to-6. Dawn was subsequently “cancelled,” which is what you call it when you fire a temp. Two new temps were brought in after that. So, despite the fact that
Brett has never even watched the processors run work, he was moved up to processor today, and the three brand-new temps were left to prep all the work after Rama left for her doctor’s appointment at noon. Oh, boy. So, the new hierarchy, in another week, will be:

  1. Loni
  2. Angie
  3. Brett (temp & new processor)
  4. One-and-a-half week temp
  5. Few-days temp #1
  6. Few-days temp #2

Remember now, Loni is actively attempting to post out, and has a good chance of getting out soon. She may not even be required to give two weeks before she transfers. Poor, poor Angie. πŸ™‚

On to my job. It’s a little tedious now, but we don’t even have several of the reports we’ll eventually be going through. Right now, the job could easily be done by one person, but once everything pans out, it sounds like it really will be a job for two. Yeah, it’s still a relatively tedious data entry job, but at least it’s less stressful. I know I come in at 8am every day, I get to take two guilt-free breaks and a full hour lunch, and I leave at 5:00. The end. Rinse and repeat. This compared to working in Lockbox, where I would come in at 8:30am on Monday and leave God-knows-when, probably around 9:00pm or after; in on Tuesday at 9:30am and out probably around 3:30pm; and in around 9:30am and out between 4:00pm and 6:30pm for the rest of the week, all with half-hour lunches (if any at all) and no breaks (except for potty breaks). I like my new gig a lot better on that front.

Though… I should still be looking for something in my field, anyway. Those other two or three leads didn’t end up panning out β€” I never heard from HCR Manorcare or World-whatever-it-was.

3oz rootbeer candle in mini-mug - poured 12/10/03I’m insanely into soy candles now. I just bought another bag of soy wax, three more fragrances, and one dye. β€”Hey, I was down to two small candles’ worth of wax, and while I was ordering that, I mean, what’s ten more bucks? Right? πŸ™‚ So, I found a fragrance oil that’ll be perfect for a candle for Mom (just in case she reads my website before Christmas, I won’t put which one it is), and I bought some Drakkar-type (ah, reminding me of the days when I sold PartyLite Candles with Mel) and some Hershey’s Chocolate scent.

I don’t know what the fuck I’m going to do with all these candles. Burn some, obviously. Give some away for Christmas presents. After that… I really didn’t intend to sell them, but I guess if my friends know people who’d like some… *shrug* That’s how Aaron’s mom got into doing crazy crafty shit, but after hearing all about craft shows and the lingering scent of essential oils, I don’t think I’m too keen on making it a big business or anything. Although I did always say I want to work out of my home after I have kids… I don’t know, though. If I ended up trying this online, I’d have some crazy insane inventorying to do, since I love to thrift unique and unusual candle containers for now.

Curious about my current candle inventory? Outside of wicks, wax and dyes, I have:

Candles:
+ one 4oz Eggnog
+ two 4oz Amaretto
(in sundae cups)
+ two 3oz Rootbeer
(in mini-mugs, above)
Fragrance Oils:
+ Eggnog (3.5 fl.oz.)
+ Amaretto (.5 fl.oz.)
+ Rootbeer
+ Hazelnut (1 fl.oz.)
+ Patchouli (1 fl.oz.)
+ Very Vanilla (1 fl.oz.)
+ Cola (1 fl.oz.)

After this next shipment, I’m going to lay off of the new fragrances and just try out the ones I have. So far, the eggnog is ‘ehh’ (I didn’t put enough fragrance in the candles), the amaretto is actually pretty good, and the rootbeer is weird. Smells good cold, but the hot scent throw smells… well, not like rootbeer. It’s just weird. Anyway, I still have to master the finer aspects of soy candlemaking, which should be obvious from the discolored rootbeer candle. I think it’s mainly a pouring-temperature issue. I get too anxious to make the candles, and I don’t wait for the wax to cool enough before pouring, so it doesn’t stick to the container right. I think.

Oh, no… now I’m going to have to make a web page just for my candles… πŸ™‚

Typical New Job Day

I’d love to say that today was the best day ever, and that my
new job sounds like a joy… but, in fact, it sounds like I’m kind of everybody’s
flunky and general floater for now. I’m doing stuff that I don’t really know
how to do, like filling out peperwork to have the Federal Reserve Bank compensate
us for mis-encoded checks; and I’m doing stuff anyone could do, like highlighting
the account numbers on one report that were already highlighted on yesterday’s
report.

However, I did get out of work at 5:00 today, which was nice,
despite having to clock in bright and early at 8am.

My right eye has been insanely dry and bloodshot all day, and
I’m hoping it gets better overnight. I don’t do the eyedrop thing, even if
we had any. It’s not overly painful, just distracting.

Called my credit card company and changed the name on my card,
finally. I’ll get a new one shipped to me next week. Slowly but surely, I’m
getting things changed from my maiden name to my married name.

I wouldn’t have even done that yet, but the Bitter
Creek Candle Company
said that my credit card was having trouble clearing,
so I figured that had to be it β€” I put the wrong name. Then I checked
my balance online, and I was also a touch low. πŸ™‚ So, I also paid some more
on my credit card, to help fuel my soy candle obsession (and pay for Christmas
presents).

Oh, and I scanned in the photos of Loni’s family I took on Friday.
Just in case you were wondering what kind of insanity I had to endure. FYI,
Loni is sitting on the far right, holding the boy in the gray vest.

later…
I dislike being so tired when I come home from work.
It makes me look forward to going to bed β€” but then the next thing I
know, I’ll be going to work again, and I hate feeling like work is all I
live for. Hopefully after a week or so of this early stuff, my body will
be used to it, and I won’t be this tired after work.

I’m also remembering what it was like to dread going
in to work every day. Not that I dread this job yet, not after one day, but
I can’t say I have a positive attitude about the unknown. Especially knowing
that I’m going to mess something up eventually, that it’s inevitable, and
wondering what day I’m going to come into work and be faced with fixing some
mistake I’ve made… which is usually twice as time-consuming.

Maybe while I’m getting used to getting up early
and having a new job, I’ll intensify my external job search. It sounds like
I’m general Deposit Support help right now, and they don’t even know if I’ll
really be doing the job I was hired in for, and they’ve already lost one
person in this position to another offer, so what can it hurt? *shrug*

More Random Bloggage

Lots of randomness to post today. I spent too long making a neato surprize to be posted on the page in a couple weeks… so I’d better get started.

[Again. After my computer locked up and lost half my entry while trying to download some damn fool midi on a webpage. Sheryl, why is my computer being wonky and freezing during startup and at weird random times lately? I scanned for viruses, and I should be clean. Arrgh.]

I ran into two people today who work in the department I’m moving to on December 1st. They’re both people who I’ve worked with/under before, so they know me and are glad I’ll be joining them. It seems, though, that my identifying characteristic is my frequent wearing of headbands. One of the ladies said someone was trying to explain who I was, and called me "the lady who works down in that corner in Lockbox who wears headbands all the time." Heh… I have now sworn not to wear any more headbands to work. Hopefully in a few months, I’ll be "that lady who lost all that weight," instead.

Speaking of losing weight, I figured out today that during the first three weeks of this diet, I lost an average of seven pounds a week. In contrast, during the past month, I’ve averaged one pound per week. But I’m OK with that. If my weight loss is slow and steady, I have a better chance of keeping it off, or so I hear. And, hell, I’m already down 26 pounds. I’m a third of the way to my ultimate goal, which is being on the way-upper end of the healthy range.

Segueing with the food bit: Next time you go to Chi-Chi’s, watch out for the tainted green onions.

Also in the news: If you’re walking down the street, and a guy flashes you, don’t be afraid to kick him in the jimmy.

One more, one more… Every college student worth his or her salt knows you have to pace yourself if you plan to drink a liter and a half of vodka. "Gibby…? Gibby! Oh my God, Gibby, you’re passed out in the hallway in your own vomit!"

My quotable for today β€” and this one nearly made Loni squirt pop out of her nose: While processing a large batch of health insurance payments from a local convent, I declared, "Stupid Sisters of St. Francis! Why do you need health care? You’ve got God to take care of you!"

One day this week, I came in to work and sat my purse on top of my desk, instead of plopping it right in the drawer as usual. And someone happened to notice my Totoro zipper pull. And, of course, I then had to explain what Totoro is: kind of a part cat / part raccoon / part owl / God of the Forest. That really confused them. The one newer temp asked, "Is that Pokemon?" NO. "Digimon?" No, it’s just a Japanese cartoon. "You know the square brown guy? Yeah. I like him." Sigh.

And, the wrap-up for today… *drumroll* Written on a BGSU Foundation donation coupon were the words: "I am an alumni of the Men’s Track Team. Your fund can kiss my ass."

Friday Night

Just a brief catch-up post… I’ll write more later in the weekend.

Went to see Matrix Revolutions tonight. While I enjoyed it, I was also a little underwhelmed. The pacing seemed a little different to me in places, and it was more action-oriented than cerebral. I mean, sure, it’s the Matrix, so I liked it… but not as much as the other two.

Went to Steve Yoder’s funeral service yesterday afternoon. I knew about five people out of five hundred in attendance. I wore my Northern Aurora jacket, though, so my connection with Steve would be more obvious. I sat with Kristen used-to-be-Rebbeck, a former corpsmate of mine who actually marched in one of Steve’s winterguards. Made friends afterward with some Central Michigan students at the luncheon following, and met some of the Northcoast Academy members and staff. More on that later.

I’d already planned to take off of work on Friday and Monday, and Tuesday is Veteran’s Day. Five-day weekend for me… then I took off half a day on Thursday to drive out to freakin’ Wauseon β€” an hour’s drive out of BG by the Turnpike. But Loni called today and said she has a funeral to attend in Michigan on Monday afternoon, and asked if I could come in Monday afternoon so the rest of the department isn’t slammed too bad. So, I agreed. Only a half-day break in my five-day siesta. I can deal with that.

The Saginaires / Northern Aurora Alumni Yahoo! Group is taking off by leaps and bounds. Alumni are not only posting, but resolving their own issues, which makes me happy as Owner and Moderator. I hate having to step in and play peacemaker. You never know when it’s actually going to work, or if you’ll just piss off one or both parties involved. But that hasn’t been necessary, and the stories have been fun to read (for the most part). I’m glad that something I’ve done for the alumni is being recognized and appreciated so much.

Cast of Characters

Just spent all evening napping. Yeah, all evening. From the time the national news went off (7:00pm β€” no, wait, I watched some History Channel, so 7:30pm) to just a little while ago (11:30pm). My eyes have that weird, sleepish feeling, like they’re all dry and buggy, and I thought for a while I’d just go straight to bed from the recliner, but now I’m feeling a little better. That, plus the upstairs neighbors are having a little hoopdie (sp?), complete with booming bass. But at least his taste in music doesn’t suck too much. If I heard the whole song instead of just the bassline, I wouldn’t be completely opposed to his mixes. Anyway, I’ve got my normalradio cranked here at the ‘puter, so I’m good to go.

(Hey, Ellie’s playing my Depeche Mode request! Whee!)

Speaking of Ellie, I got an interesting idea from her website tonight. She posted a Cast of Characters from the year 2000 and the year 1999, and commented that of the eleven people who were central to her life back then, there are seven she’s no longer in touch with. Interesting, but typical for the college years. If I thought about it, my "Cast of Characters" would be completely and totally different from 1995 to 1996 and again in 1997, to a degree, where things stabilized a little. (At least, my roommate stayed the same from there on.)

So, just for shits and giggles (pbbt… heehee!), here’s my Cast of Characters for October 2003:

Aaron
is my newlywed husband and my best friend. I’m so lucky to be married to someone with such depth to his personality. He’s always, consistently and irrefutably (and sometimes against his will), the life of the party, and is a total goofball when the situation warrants. But he’s also much more responsible than I would have given him credit for back when we first met, and he doesn’t do anything by halves. Whether it’s the Atkins Diet, rollerblading, 8-track tapes, video games, or whatever, he dives headfirst into whatever seriously engages his brain.

Amy
was my college roommate from 1996-2000, but is now my long-distance best friend from Dayton. Normally, I wouldn’t count someone almost three hours away as being in my main CoC, but Amy’s special… at least, that’s what they told her in school. πŸ™‚ But seriously β€” Amy has always been there for me, giving me sound advice and encouraging me to look into my inner motivations. I can tell her literally anything. Even though we don’t see each other as often as we’d like, we’re still just about as close as ever. I love you, man! *sniffle*

Kris H.
is the resident musician of our little circle of friends, and one of the thriftiest people I know. He’s also the vegetarian of the bunch, which makes eating out even more challenging, now that Aaron and I are on Atkins. He’s always good for a good Star Trek conversation (especially Next Gen), and will share mp3’s with anyone who asks… and sometimes even when you don’t ask. Kris is probably one of the most laid-back people I know, while still being kind of humorously indecisive at times β€” especially at thrift stores and garage sales.

Mark
has just moved out of his parents’ house and into his very own apartment! He was originally the quiet guy who hung around with Aaron’s group of co-workers at UPS, but has become an integral part of our social group. He tried making an independent film last year, but got discouraged when all his actors backed out on him at the last minute… gotta love Toledo talent. He’s also a sponge when it comes to new, good music β€” we’ve created a monster by introducing him to the White Stripes, Soledad Brothers, and their ilk, and I even got in on the scene by introducing him to Tegan & Sara. Now he reminds us of how we (or at least Aaron) used to be when we were his age, several years back: going to shows all days of the week, wherever they may be. Mark is another laid-back guy, but in a slightly different way than Kris. He’s comfortable with himself and his lot in life, and doesn’t have any qualms about working for UPS and not doing the college thing.

Kris Fries
was mainly a music-loving acquaintance of Aaron’s during high school at St. John’s, but their friendship was forged after graduation when they started attending concerts together (reference Mark, above). Now, ten years later, Kris is married and they’re expecting their first child next month. Whoa. Despite his lessened interest in music since his marriage, he’s still the biggest Rush fan I’ve ever seen.

If you’re not listed here (Dan, Sheryl, Eric, Beth, Donna, et al.), be assured I haven’t forgotten about you. You’re in my Supporting Cast. πŸ˜‰