I'm sitting in the Reno/Tahoe airport waiting for my flight back to LAX. I was supposed to land at 5pm, but the flight is delayed a little bit. Hopefully I will be home by 7pm. I've taken tomorrow off work, so at least I don't have to rush around when I finally do get home.

Christmas was nice. As usual, my parents were way too generous with the presents. I'm very grateful to have such wonderful parents. I only wish I could have gotten more into the holiday spirit. I tried, I really did, but I just couldn't shake this damn melancholia I've been stuck with for the last, oh I don't how long it's been. Bah.

On another note, I've decided to make a few changes at work. I need to find out what I can and cannot do, but I decided that I'm no longer going to kill myself to please people when, in the end, they just don't care and it doesn't make any difference anyway. Don't get me wrong, I'm still going to do my job and I will continue to do it well, but I'm going to go about it in a different way.

I wonder what kind of damage Gotham did to the apartment while I was away? Did he try to eat my Christmas trees? Probably. 'Cause they're there.

Ack. The gate is starting to fill up. I have a good boarding position, but that's not for a while and it seems like all the passengers with kids are drawn to me and I'm surrounded!

I watched the Christmas Doctor Who episode. I liked it a lot, even got a little weepy. I miss the Christmas episodes involving battles over London, but I guess Moffat always goes in a different direction. Last year was off Earth as well.

I hope this entry doesn't jump around too much. Since I'm typing it on my phone, I don't have the option of going back and editing like I usually do.

Oh yeah, before I forget, if I didn't get you a Christmas card, I apologize. I got really sick the weekend before Christmas and was in bed just about until I left for Reno Thursday morning. I only sent out one card via the mail, and that's it. I didn't even get my parents cards. Don't even ask me about shopping, I didn't get any done. I feel really bad about that. REALLY BAD.

I can't wait for 2011 to come to a close. I'm hoping that all the crap that's happened over the last 14 months will finally be over. I have never had such a horrible time on all fronts. Not one aspect of my life was immune. Home, health, work, relationships, friendships, financial.... everything. I have to keep hope that things will turn out as they should, as I hope them to that is. I have done my best to deal with everything head on and I've tried to keep a good attitude. Fingers-crossed it pays off. A friend of mine, who has gone through her own nightmare this year, told me "Robin, you're a good person, you care about others, you always put everyone else's needs and feelings before your own. That will come back to you in ways you've never imagined". I almost started crying! Seriously. I dearly want things to go my way for once. It's been 14 months of everyone else getting ahead. 14 months I've been made to feel that I'm not good enough, smart enough, pretty enough, healthy enough, dedicated enough..... It has to come to an end soon, right?

Ok, I'm done with the "feeling sorry for myself" part of this entry. It's "suck it up Robin and just get on with it time". I don't usually have New Years Resolutions, but I think I will this year. For one, no matter how much it hurts, I'm going to try to get back into comics. I'm going to try and start painting again. I may even start back up with my writing. I put the paints and writing away a long time ago. I lost my confidence. Now I think I'm just going to do them purely to do them and the feeling I get when I create something. Maybe I will take a cooking class in a new kind of food I've never prepared before? Lot's to think about. I'll let you know what I decide on.

Oh hey- I saw the new Sherlock Holmes movie this weekend. The movie was good and Stephen Fry was sublime. I hope there's another one.

Shag's website is having a sale. Ah to dream if all the pieces I would buy if I could afford them. I might be able to replace all the Alex Ross prints I took down in February. I can't believe it's been that long! You shoul see what I put up in their place. I'll take a picture and post it here. It's an odd collection of photos, prints, pictures, etc. All carefully chosen to cover all the holes and damaged I caused hanging the Ross prints. :-) I'm not very good at hanging pictures. You need two people I guess.

Well, I'm off to get away from these babies and the girl next to me eating Cheetos with her mouth open.

Good Times.

Thanks for everything you guys. I know I don't say it enough, but I appreciate you all.

Robin

BAH, these winds have kicked-up my allergies and I'm miserable.  I tried going in to work this morning (when the dumb, yet really cool gusts were at their height), but bailed after about 45 minutes.  Since it was still early, I was able to get the same parking space I vacated earlier..... where there are no trees or structures to fall on my car, should the winds start up again.

I can never get used to being home during the day when I should be at work.  Gotham doesn't seem to mind my being home though (as he just walked in, jumped up and plonked himself next to me).  At least someone cares, even if it is my cat.  Here he is (below).  The photos are a little washed out because the sun was shining through the window and I used my phone.  He's still handsome though.

It's been a few weeks since I blogged, but there hasn't been much going on.  The holidays have been quiet and uneventful so far.  Is that good a good thing or a bad thing?  I don't know. 

Work has been really busy.  Still in the internal audit mode.  Being out today is going to set me back a little on what I need to do this week, but I'll manage.

Man, I'm bored.  There's not much to do around here, apart from normal chores and I don't think those will help my allergies.  I guess I could glue the hand back on to the musical Frank Sinatra Christmas ornament I have.  I wonder what kind of glue I should use?  He looks weird without one of his hands and it's creepy to see a disembodied hand holding sheet music sitting on my shelf.

Wow, I'm uninteresting today!  Should I even mention that I have to walk over to CVS after 3pm to pick up a couple of prescription refills?  I'm not sure I'll be able to handle the excitement.

What's on TV today?  At least this time (unlike my last sick day) I have TV to watch.  In fact, my crappy TV in here died a few weeks ago, so I had to get a new one.  It's bigger than the other one and it's flat,  but, to be honest-- I liked the picture on the old one better.  It was a good set!  It lasted 10 years and cost more than the one I just bought.

Well, back to the boredom and checking my Ebay auctions.  Don't be too jealous.

Happy birthday daddy, I love you!

I remember when I used to get my dad's birthday off work. Boy, those days are long gone.

I was given a couple of really good tickets to see "Vigil" tomorrow night, but everyone I asked is busy over the holiday weekend (I'm sensing a trend). I don't want to go solo, so if you would like a pair of tickets, (free) or if you would like to go, let me know. Olympia Dukakis and Marco Barricelli are in it. Should be good.

*UPDATE* I didn't want the hasslw ir stress of unloading the tickets so I returned the tickets to my friend. Since they've been a subscriber for eons, they're going to see if they can change the date.

Typing this on my phone is very arduous. Bah.

Phew!  On a break from day 1 of the Ops Conference I mentioned yesterday.  Of course I returned to a desk full of work, which I expected.  I go back at 2pm.  I'm hoping I'm out of there no later than 4:15pm.

So far the presentations have been pretty good, if you can call Anti Money Laundering, Cash Management and Human Resources good. :-)  I learned a lot and I have a lot to convey to my staff in our next staff meeting.

Next up for me is two hours of Compliance (industry rules and regulations).  Can't. Wait. 

And don't forget my generous offer from yesterday to allow any of you to come over and bring or fix me dinner tonight since I'm going to be wiped out from the conference. HA! 

I bet a nickel I end up fixing my own dinner tonight.

It's that time again.  Every year around this time we have our annual Operations Council Conference at work.  Friday shouldn't be too bad.  I think it ends at 3pm, so I'll be able to bail at my regular time. Tomorrow is going to be a really long day as we have a speaker and Q&A that doesn't even start until 4:15pm.....So that means the last two hours tomorrow are going to be "Compliance" (rules and regulations) and then a Division Manager address, then Q&A.  I can't even leave early because I need to be there for that stuff.  At least I got out of going to the dinner and I can just go home afterwards.

So, hey if you want to meet me at my apartment around 5pm tomorrow with an already cooked delicious dinner or if you want to come over and cook me dinner, please feel free

:-) 

Gotham likes bacon, so if you could bring some along for him, he'd appreciate it.

Seriously though, it will be really nice to see some of the other Ops people.  I only get to see them once a year and they're a great group and a fantastic resource when I need help.

Okay - new topic: Is it me or is it rude to want to come into my firm, present to my people, yet refuse to pay for lunch, have me print all of your presentation materials (in color), supply you with a projector and laptop, load your presentation onto the laptop for you  AND bring an extra person in without letting me know (so I didn't order them lunch).  It's just me, right?  That's not rude AT ALL.

Oh well, all in a days work.  A long day's work.  In fact, this week seems to be a really long week.

Happy Halloween from Gotham (Or why my cat will eventually kill me in my sleep)

Here's my horoscope for the day.  My only comment?  RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT, I wish!

<<Wednesday 26 October 2011: Someone seems to think they can wear you down. Adverse circumstances are eroding your confidence. I cannot promise that the cosmos will wave a magic wand, but I can predict a distinct reduction in pressure. Think about the one area of your life in which things actually are going rather well. That's the kind of experience you will soon have more of. Some of this change will come naturally, and some will be the result of a new idea that is slowly dawning on you. Be brave. Be bright. There is hope on your horizon.>>

Sorry I haven't blogged in a while.  Over the past three weeks or so I've had three separate groups of plans fall through over the weekends and it's left me in a less than happy mood.  Oh sure, I tell people "No problem, things come up, don't worry about it" or "Hey, you just let me know when you want to re-schedule, my calendar is pretty light".  What else am I going to say?  Is it worth an argument with a friend you've had for years and years?  No, it definitely is not.  "Suck it up Robin and go with the flow.  
Anyway, I'm being too sensitive.  Things happen, right?  It's not like it was on purpose.
I'm also really upset that I lost an earring that was half of a pair my parents gave me when I turned 18 ( a looooooooooong time ago) and graduated from high school.  Now, most of you know I'm not able to wear much metal, but for some reason these earrings are now ok.  I didn't used to be able to wear them, so I was excited when I put them in and I didn't have a reaction.  It was so nice to take advantage of some of the gold jewelry I had stored away for a change!  I received a lot of compliments on them, which was a new and cool thing to happen.  Well, about a week ago, I got home in the afternoon, changed and went into the bathroom to take off my make-up and earrings and the right one was gone.  I have no idea when I'd lost it since my hair covered the earrings (stupid long hair).  I retraced my steps for days.  In fact, I'm still looking for it whenever I'm walking around.  I checked my clothes, my shoes / boots, desk at work, my car, every inch of my apartment, everywhere was searched.  I was even on the gross streets of downtown LA with a flashlight at 4:45am looking for it.  I alerted the building I work in, employees on the different floors I'd visited that day, all the cleaning crews I could find, people at my apartment building, everything.  Nothing came up.  I may have to go over to the jewelry district and see if I can find a place that can make a mold of the remaining earring and duplicate it.  I dunno.  Here's what it looked like- pretty, right?

It's not the best picture (took it with my phone).  I know it's a plain gold hoop earring, but I think it's pretty and it has a lot of sentimental value.  Plus, knowing my parents, it's all real gold and I bet the pair cost a lot of money.  I can't even go back to the jeweler they got it from since he retired a while back and his shop is gone.

The Epilepsy walk went ok a week ago.  I feel bad that I went, participated and bailed.  I just wasn't up for socializing with people.  Officer Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg) was there.  He's there every year!  Raises a lot of money and awareness for Epilepsy!!!  I raised a little bit, not as much as I'd like, or as much as I did last year, but I'm not good at asking people for money or to sponsor me at things.  Even though I didn't raise a ton of cash personally, the event raised over $160,000, which is amazing.  It's probably more by now as money still tends to come in for a few weeks after an event is over.

So with all the cancellations, really shitty days at work, not raising what I'd wanted for Epilepsy, the loss of my earring and other stuff, I've been in a sad mood for the past few weeks.  Note, I said a sad mood, not a bad mood.  There's a difference.  I've been able to smile at work and chit chat and stuff, but my hearts just not in it.  We're coming up to Halloween, then the other holidays and, while I'm going to try, I don't see anything improving much.  I really hope they do though.  This weekend (Halloween) is going to be especially crappy, it's my favorite holiday.  

I'm probably going to cut back on my blogging over the next few months.  This will (hopefully) be the last time I mention all this melancholia crap.  Let's face it, you guys don't want to hear about it and it doesn't help for me to go on about it.  It will be back to pictures of my cat and silly stuff like that.  In preparation of that, here is a picture I took of Gotham years ago, when I still lived in my way cool apartment that had a ton of problems with it in K-Town.  Yes, he's wearing an official red Pee Wee Herman bow tie:

Yes, I have to cover the couch when he's laying on it.  And here's another one, he's attacking his arch enemy, the little white mouse (that we still have bits of):

Here he is right after I got him, before he hid for three days because he hated me:

Okay, now I'm just going through pictures I have on my computer.  Here is the wallpaper I currently have up.  I think it's fitting.  

Here's me, on a bright and lovely day, at Cardiff Castle in Wales. I know, it's a dumb pose.  Wow, my hair has grown out quite a bit:

I had so much fun on that trip.  Who knew that, to quote Captain Jack Harkness, "Everything Changes", not just in the 21st century, but about 6 months after this trip.  That reminds me, I STILL need to get my passport renewed.  I've been putting it off for a year and a half.

Have a good day you guys.  I'm going to try and have one myself.

Wow, today is a profoundly "meh" day.  Not a bad day, but not a particularly good day either. 

I'm finally giving up on getting my eBay issue straightened out.  I had a buyer in Bulgaria (Damn it!  I thought I put "no international shipping" on the auction)! whose daughter paid for the item before I could invoice her and she WAY overpaid for the item's shipping.  It's only cost about $14 to send it and she paid $45 for the shipping.  I emailed the buyer to make sure she meant to pay that much and she was very thankful, since her daughter didn't tell her what she was doing.  The thing is, Ebay charges fees on the total amount (auction AND shipping), so I was charged a pretty high fee that wasn't credited back when I refunded the money, then I got charged again when I sent an accurate invoice.  Ebay is double-dipping!  I think I'm going to give up, but going forward, I am adding "Please do not pay for your item before I send you an invoice" to all of my auctions.

Ah well, live and learn, right?

The day is almost over, so I have that going for me, right?  I have three stops on the way home, but they're all close to each other, so I should only have to park my car twice (one place is right next door to another one).  Yay!  I'll be able to take care of things really quickly.  Two of the places are just pick-ups, the last one is the post office to mail that dumb package to Bulgaria.  I hope there isn't a line.  Maybe I should go there first?  ICK - I just checked the temps and it's almost 90F at my house.

Since it was forecasted to be really hot yesterday and today (100F), I decided to drive in to work both days.  Taking the train in the heat is a nightmare.  Since mine is completely underground, it's hot and it really stinks when the temps rise.  Anyway, when I drive in I park across the street (south) of my building.  It's cheaper than parking in the building where my office is, and it takes debit cards, credit cards and cash, so I don't have to carry money with me like I do if I park in the building ($10/day cash only, you have to arrive before 9am, leave after 1pm for that "earlybird" rate too!).  So after work, I walked across the street and to the payment machine (it's like a big vending machine) and I found a Mercedes parked right in front of it (not a parking space), with some dude in the passenger seat with his feet up on the dashboard and a woman, probably in her 50's, at the machine.  Yelling at it.  Cussing at it.  Asking it why it was so expensive.  She did this for at least 10 minutes, then pushed the button to call for assistance, where she proceeded to yell at, cuss at and berate the woman trying to help her.  The best part is, she kept saying "why is it so fucking expensive?  This is bullshit, why the fuck do I have to pay so much goddamn money?" over and over again.  Then she added that she's unemployed, waiting for her unemployment check, has no money and that it was too fucking expensive.  When the attendant asked her if she had her parking validated she said, "of course I had the fucking ticket validated.  I just ate at Arnie Morton's and they validated it".  Okay, you drive a Mercedes and just ate at Morton's (where my boss had also just eaten lunch to the tune of $280 for three people), you're rude and loud...I don't feel that bad for you.  She was on the security camera the whole time and I don't think she was going to get a lot of sympathy from an attendant shut in an office down in the basement of a parking garage.  She ended up paying the money with her credit card and cussing at everyone the whole time, jamming her finger over and over on the buttons.  I just stood there, looking at my shoes, at the garage, at traffic outside, etc.  The weird part is, the dude in the car didn't do anything, apart from near the end of the ranting, when he said "Hey you shouldn't cuss".  All of this went on for over 15 minutes, in the heat.  I couldn't wait to get out of there!

I left, drove home, opened all of the windows, turned on all the fans, showered, washed my hair, put on shorts and a t-shirt and tried to keep cool for the rest of the afternoon/evening.  It's October!  When I was growing up, October meant lot's of wind (kite flying!) and crossing your fingers that it doesn't rain on Halloween and ruin trick-or-treating.

Probably more of the same today (without the rude lady).  I think I need to go to Rite Aid or CVS on the way home.  I hate running errands on the way home when it's hot outside.  My car stays cool while I'm at work since it's in a parking structure, but if I run errands, it gets all hot and gross, so I get all hot and gross..... plus I get home later.  Maybe I can get out a couple of minutes earlier so I can still get home at the same time......  Getting home after 4pm sucks!  I've been averaging walking through the door around 3:50pm if I drive and there's no traffic, a couple minutes after 4pm if I take the train.  I'd say that I'm spoiled, but since I get up really early and am at work by about 5am, I'm not.  Actually, I made a promise to myself, that if I ever had a good reason, I'd change my work hours to going in later and going home at the same time so that I worked a normal number of hours every day (10+ hours every day is way too much when you don't get overtime).  As of yet, I don't have a good reason. LOL.   :-)

My day off was so nice!  I slept in until 7:00am, had a big breakfast and left around 8:30 or 8:45am to drive to the Arcadia AAA to get all my car registration nonsense taken care of.  My name has been spelled wrong since I got the car (I never bothered to fix it), plus I noticed that although I paid my car off three years ago, the credit company was still listed as the leinholder, so I had to get them taken off.  I also had to pay my registration.  Bah.  The only good thing is, since our state budget wasn't passed in a timely manner, if your car registration is due any time after July, you have an extra few weeks to pay it without penalty.  Mine was due 9/14 (never buy a car the day before you get paid if you're going to have a car payment), but I actually had until 10/12 to pay it with no late fees.  It was so cool, the lady who helped me made a production out of crediting me the fees.  I think she really enjoyed doing it!  I was in and out of there in under 30 minutes, much better than going to the DMV.

One observation I have about being out and about mid-morning...... I would kill myself if I had to sit in morning rush hour traffic every day.  Luckily I was going East and I know a few tricks, so I was able to avoid the worst of it, but man, I feel bad for those people!  I could see the freeway most of the time I was avoiding it and the cars were stopped!  I'm sure there has to be a better way for those people to get to downtown.  For instance, they could have gotten off at Lankershim, driven south to Ventura Blvd, made a left and gone straight down to Wilshire (Ventura turns into Highland) and then made a left to get to downtown.  I've gone that way when I've heard there were accidents and while it may take a little bit of time, it's got to be faster than sitting on a freeway for 14 miles not moving. 

Anyway, since I avoided the worst of the traffic, I made it to Arcadia in about 40 minutes, which isn't bad at all.

If you don't already think I'm a freak, you will after this:  After AAA, I headed over to my favorite Target ("Fedco" Target in Pasadena).  I spent nearly two hours wandering around with my list and coupons.  Did you know that Target lets you use up to five coupons for an item?  As long as they're not the same coupon and as long as the coupon doesn't say that you can only use one, you're good.  I did some planning and I saved about $30, and everything I bought was something I needed (razors, laundry detergent, etc.).  PLUS I got a $5 gift card for buying two razors, razors that just happened to be on sale that I also had a coupon for.  So, instead of $20+ for two Venus razors (my much preferred razor), I paid around $10.  After Target I went to CVS to get my hair color (since you asked - John Frieda Precision Professional Foam hair color in 4N - Dark Brown... but looks black unless I'm out in the sun, which is weird, but ok), normally around $13.99, it was on sale for $11.99, I had CVS Extra Bucks, a CVS coupon for $4 off the color and regular John Frieda coupon.  I ended up paying $.99 plus tax for it, but then got $3.50 in CVS Extra Bucks back on my receipt, so they paid me to get my hair color.  :-)  

See, if you do a little strategizing, you too can feel the triumphant feeling I get when I'm at the checkout counter and end-up making money on a transaction.  Once or twice a week I put something good on TV then sit at my kitchen table with the weekly circulars, my coupons and my shopping lists.  The only two rules I have are: 1) Only buy things I need / use and 2) Don't drive out of my way just to get something.  For instance, if I see a good deal at Walgreens, I will only take advantage of it if I know I'm going to be near a Walgreens.  I don't have one near my house, so I almost never shop there (plus most of them seem really dirty).  Same thing with Wal Mart.  I don't have one near me, but if I'm going out to Monrovia or Arcadia for something else, I'll swing by the one over there.  I've gone once.  Again, like Walgreens, they always seem dirty.

I'll admit something though.  I do kind of break rule number 1, but only for one product.  Even though I don't need it, I've been buying up foam hair color whenever I see it on sale and if I have a coupon.  I've gone online and checked out the customer reviews for the different brands and they're pretty mixed.  John Frieda usually has the best reviews though, so I've only used that brand so far........ but I have six boxes of other brands in my cupboard (Clairol, L'Oreal and Samy Fat Foam).  This is in addition to the two boxes of John Frieda that I have in there.  I'll eventually use them (as far as I know hair color doesn't expire), but I'm getting them now while they're so cheap.  Seriously, good hair color is expensive and once a product is popular, it doesn't go on sale that often.  For instance, I used to use Feria, which was really expensive.  Once it became popular, I hardly ever saw it on sale for more than $1 off and rarely saw coupons for it.  Sometimes there would be coupons in the Sunday paper and sometimes they would be in the box, but that was only a couple of times a year.  I had to buy two to three boxes of the stuff to cover all of my hair (depending on the length), so it got really pricey to keep my hair up when the lowest price I ever saw was $10.99 a box.  The sale prices for these new foams have been $3 and $4 off PLUS coupons, etc.  With the recent promotions, I've spent, maybe, $25 total for 8 boxes of hair color, which will keep my roots under control for 8 months (for some reason, you use way less foam than regular hair color).  In essence, for what I paid for two boxes of hair color that would do the job for one month, I got 8 months worth.

If you're on the fence about using foam hair color: Personally, I really like it.  What do I like?  Well, and I can only say this about the Frieda color I've been using, the "pros" of it are: you use less (with my hair being a little past my shoulder and being really thick), I have problems using the entire bottle (which is strange since there seems to be less product than most colors), since it's a shampoo-like foam it doesn't run or drip, you don't need a cap, the gloves are great (no food service quality here), it doesn't smell bad, it doesn't burn and it has a great conditioner to use afterwards so your hair doesn't get as jacked-up from the chemicals. 

The only "cons" I've experienced so far are that the color is quite a bit darker than what's on the box.  This is okay for me since I've been told I can pull it off.  This may not be the case with a lot of people out there.  Also, the first time I did my roots I followed the instructions on the box and it didn't work out.  It was much better this last time where I broke the rules and applied the foam directly to my roots from the bottle and cut out the part where they say to put it on my hands and apply it from there.  It was much easier that way and I felt like it was more accurate and the hair color wasn't sitting on the hair that had already been colored longer than necessary (that really damages your hair).  I'm not sure about gray coverage when it comes to roots yet.  When I did them the first time (following the instructions on the box), I saw gray within a week.  I just did my roots Saturday, so I think it's too soon to give a verdict.  I hope they don't show, I really like this product and want to continue using it. 

I  may go to a lighter color in the future, but I will have to go through the whole "color correction" process first, which is a pain in the ass, smells bad and takes a while.  So if I decide to get rid of the brown / black, I'll have to spend a weekend getting rid of the color that's currently on my hair first.  Last time I did that I still lived in Monrovia with my uncle and I did it at Sam's apartment in Arcadia.  I've moved once and she's moved twice since then!  I also bleached my hair last New Years Eve (no "loser" judgements please), so I really don't know if I want to remove the color that's on there now.  That orangy blond was frightening!  I don't want to see it again!

Anywho, after I ran my errands I picked up lunch and went home.  I watched some old re-runs of TV shows, then I saw that "Al Franken: And God Spoke" was on, so I switched over to that.  I really like that documentary, but since I'd seen it before, I could do other things while it was on.  In this case I made brownies.  I'm not sure why, but it was something to do.  My apartment smelled AMAZING for hours afterwards.  Then I watched TV and stuff until it was time shower and go to bed. 

All and all, not a bad day.  Nothing to boast about, but ok nonetheless.

Hey, should I go to Camikaze Expo since I can't go to LBCC (and I'm still really sad about that and I still have no plans in it's place)?

Are you sitting down?  I'm taking tomorrow (Tuesday) off work.  I know!  Weird, right?

It will be really nice to sleep in a little bit on a weekday.

I have one errand I need to run, but other than that, it's a free day.  I have to go to the AAA office to deal with my car registration and title correction.  I'm hoping to get there when they open at 9am, so fingers-crossed I can get in and out and back to my side of town pretty quickly.  I have to get all that done by the 12th at the latest, so I'd rather just take a day now and not worry about it.

I got quite a bit done around the house over the weekend, but there's always more I can do.  Unfortunately, I didn't get to cleaning out the filing cabinet, maybe I can do that tomorrow.  Truth is, I bet I would have gotten more done if I hadn't been sucked in to the Real Housewives of New Jersey marathon on Bravo.  Don't get me wrong, I did stuff while it was on, but I did spend a fair amount of time on the couch, marvelling at how some people live their lives.  Although, I'm not one who can cast stones.  It's not like I have anything going on that's worth writing home about.

So, ok, filing cabinet tomorrow!  Exciting!  To be honest, I'd rather be doing something fun, but I don't really see that happening.  I haven't got a clue as to what's out there to do on a weekday and I'm not creative enough to come up with something on my own.

I think the weather is supposed to be nice, so at least I won't be stuck in my apartment in the heat, right?

God, I just read over what I wrote above and it sounds like a pity party is going in my head.  I swear, I don't mean it to come across that way.  I think I just haven't shaken off this gray cloud that's been hovering over me for a few weeks and the issues with that awful co-worker aren't helping much.  I need something to cheer me up.  Too bad I'm not a big drinker or gambler!

I'm still very upset about yesterday.  The only consolation I have is that, instead of the six months worth of documentation that the co-worker asked for, I was able to get it down to the actual four days they needed.  She knew the dates the entire time!  Instead of being reasonable and asking for two weeks on either side, which I would have happily done, she asked for six unnecessary months, knowing that it was extra work and knowing that it wasn't my office she was supposed to be looking at.  It's a victory, but a small one.  Her behavior isn't going to change and that's unfortunate. 

Yet another thing to go down in my notebook.  It's getting mighty full.

Before you say it, I know I need to let this go.  It's going to be difficult this time.  I don't take well to having someone threaten me.  At all.  It's inappropriate on every level.

At least it's Friday.  I was going to get in some extra work this weekend, but now I've decided against it.  Instead, I'm going to organize my home office stuff (such as it is).  You know, get my priority mail stuff put away and go through my filing cabinet.  As of now, my (albeit small) dining room table is piled high with tissue paper, boxes and receipts. 

I wonder what the chances of an early day are?

I am extremely upset right now.  I just dealt with a co-worker who has a long history of interpersonal problems with just about everyone she comes into contact with (including one of my bosses who actually complained about her), she treats me like shit (verbally abusive), pounds off an email, not just to my boss, but his boss and his boss's boss, "reporting" me for something, yet neglecting to tell the whole story.  The documents she was asking for were inappropriate for what she was doing.  I told her that if she gave me a time frame, I would get her everything she needed, but I could not supply six months worth of paperwork, when it wasn't warranted.  Anyway, I'd already called her boss (you'll notice I didn't go to two people above him) and told him what happened, then I went to my boss to tell him what happened.  I gave them the whole story, not just my side.  They both agreed I was in the "right", but no one was going to do anything about it.  She's not going to get cautioned for yelling at me, she's not going to get cautioned for threatening me.  Nothing is going to be done. 

He behavior will continue and I'm going to have deal with it.  You want to know the really shitty part?  The reason I was dealing with her was because she had been terrorizing one of my staff members, continually asking her for things that have nothing to do with her job.  "I don't handle that, I don't even know what that is" apparently doesn't register.  Poor girl was petrified that she was going to get into trouble for not cooperating.

I'm hurt and I'm angry.   I will not be getting over this anytime soon.

The rain yesterday was awesome.  When I got home I opened both my doors and all of my windows.  It was chilly, but it was nice to get fresh brisk air blowing through the place for a while.  It got rid of the stuffy feeling that's been settling over the place since we've had all that warm weather.  I think I was hoping that it would blow away the sad mood I've been in (it didn't).    

I have to say, regarding the rain, why do local newscasters make such a big deal out of it?  We had a few hours of it and later on in the afternoon, I actually heard one say "How much more of this can we take?".  Seriously?  I know it rained pretty hard during the most of the day, but jeez, come on!  PLUS, the forecast showed that we were going to get some rain and that it would only last the day, maybe part of the next.  It's not 40 days and 40 nights people! 

I started wearing my contacts again this week, not every day, they're bothering me for some reason.  I think the batch I finally settled on wasn't the best choice after all.  I was so tired of trying new lenses that I told my eye doctor that I wanted the same contacts I had last year and to order those, even if he has to use the old prescription.  I don't think they are the same on either count. :-( 

I think I should do laundry either today or tomorrow when I get home.  I didn't get a chance to do it last weekend, not that there was a lot to do.  I just don't want it piling up.  I just know if I do that my apartment will smell like dirty laundry.  Gross.  I guess that means I need to get quarters.  I think I only have about $1 in change right now and the washer / dryer at my apt definitely cost more than that.

Random note - I got a newsletter email from Ticketleap (firm that processed 2011 SDCC passes) and in it they have a sort of "What are people saying" section.  It was hilarious, not one single positive comment.  I guess they're "keeping it real".  My favorite was: "This whole process was full of fail".  Bad grammar for a bad thought.  Still funny though (and true!).

Finally, I'm sad that Steve Jobs died.  It was never a secret that he was really ill, so this wasn't unexpected.  Still sad though.  We've all heard that he could be an asshole, but he was truly an innovator.  He kept in touch with the public (his late night email wars were hilarious) and he gave us things we needed even before we knew we needed them. 

Anyway, I'm rambling (really tired and worn out today for some reason), so I should bail.  Gotta go get those quarters!

For the first time in a really long while, I'm wearing a necklace my friend Sam made for me.  It broke many, many moons ago and she had to fix it for me.  She kept it for quite a long time, so I got out of the habit of wearing it.  It seems a little longer than it was before, but it's still pretty.

I forgot to mention it yesterday, but I had to take Gotham to the vet over the weekend.  His face cancer flared up again, just four months after the last time.  It seems like it's happening more and more often.  This time was REALLY tough on me.  Everyone knows that he cries when I put him in the carrier and take him in the car.  It's usually funny (I have a recording of him on my phone from a while back, it's hilarious!), but this time it broke my heart.  The cries were so loud and long, I almost started crying myself!  I'm being serious.  It was that bad.  He wouldn't stop.  It went on and on and on.  I opened the door to the crate and petted him, nothing.  I tried giving him a treat, nothing.  I tried talking to him, nothing.  Just cries.  I've never heard him sound like that before.  So on top of being worried that his health was bad, I had to hear him cry.  No "parent" should have to hear that.  :-(  I just wanted to take him out and hold him for a while.  We got to the vet ok, he came out of his crate, had his temp taken, was weighed, got his shot and then he went into the crate again no problem.  He cried again on the way home, but it wasn't as bad.  I should have known something was up...... we got home and I let him out right away (he bolted to the other room).  I went to put his crate away and I thought I smelled something.  Yup, the damn cat crapped in the crate on the way home.  Four neat, dry pieces.  At least he was considerate enough to refrain from having the runs all over it.  I laughed though.  He was mad and he got back at me.  We're even.

Here's a photo of Gotham that I took yesterday while I was waiting for the street to open.  The quality isn't the best, sorry!  Please ignore the old flower sheet I put on the bed while I'm at work...... and please ignore the gross gouge on my arm from my last round of tests at my skin cancer doc's.  And people wonder why I wear long sleeves!

Now that we're into October, I'm starting to get really sad that I'm going to miss The Long Beach Comic Con this year (for the first year).  I know I'm being silly.  Still makes me sad.  Maybe I can plan something to do that weekend that will keep my mind off of it.

I hope this doesn't set the tone for the day, but my train didn't come this morning.  I waited an extra 10 minutes for it and then the station started to fill up with people for the next train.  All of a sudden it was REALLY crowded (not to mention hot!) and I could only imagine how crowded the other stations were going to be (thus the trains were going to be packed), plus I wasn't going to get to work on time if I took the next train, so I bailed and drove in.  Wasted a token, bah.

I think I want to take a vacation day or two one of these days.  I checked my balance and I've got over a month accrued, so I may as well use some of it.  I don't have anything planned and none of my friends can take time off, so I'm not sure I'll do it.  

Wow, this heavy feeling of melancholia has just descended on me.  I hope it goes away.

Okay, today has been an interesting day!  As you guys know, I've been having problems sleeping, so I've been catching the early train, which means I've been leaving my house at approx. 4:15 - 4:20am.  Well, not today my friends and here's why:

Yup, that's a string of "caution" tape and a bunch of traffic cones blocking my way..... along with a load of water and a DWP construction crew.  You guessed it, a water main blew and of COURSE it was on the only part of my street that allowed me to leave and go to work.  I sat there, in my car, for about a minute, then I tapped my horn to get the attention of one of the guys.  I saw an older skinny guy slowly making his way over to me.  He looked really tired!  Probably the nicest guy ever though.  He told me what happened and that I wouldn't be able to pass for a couple of hours and that I should go home and maybe get a couple of hours extra sleep.  That wasn't going to be possible, I mean, I was UP and WIDE awake now, no getting back to bed.  I was at odds as to what I should do, but I didn't pitch a fit or anything.  Why should I?  It's not his fault.  It's not like it was done on purpose, plus, I knew I wasn't going to lose the parking space I'd just vacated.  I could tell he felt really bad.  He even offered to call my boss and explain what happened.  He also offered to call me when the road was open.  I said thank you and there was no need.  Poor guy was probably going to get a rash of shit from other people in the neighborhood, he didn't need any trouble from me!  I drove around the block, parked, went back to my apt and sent my bosses a text letting them know I was going to be late, and possibly not in at all.  I even sent them the photo I posted above.

I should have known there was something weird going on when there was no water for the first half hour I was up.  Well, at least I didn't have to catch a flight or anything.  Although, it's made me think, if there's a fire or an earthquake, we're all fucked.

The first business day of the month is not a good day to be late to work, especially when it's a Monday!  Talk about slammed!  Reports, calendar items, meetings, new employee starting, UGH!  Headache City!  Plus, I saw that our mail didn't go out on Friday, so that means my rent check was still sitting there.  I called the management company and the lady who answered said I should overnight it.  Man, if Sam still lived in Santa Monica, it wouldn't be a problem, she could drop it off for me.  Even worse, I was quoted $6.95 to ship FedEx and when I printed everything else, I was charged $21.98.  Of course I was!!!!  There's also a huge stack of Ebay stuff to mail out.

I got an update from my on-site apt. manager and, hey, guess what?  The water is off again and the street is closed.

Strangely, I'm still in a good mood.

Oh yeah - cool thing from the weekend...... this is probably going to sound retarded and dumb, but there was a $2 coupon in the paper for Farmer John bacon.  I got two of them (a guy at work gives me his Sunday comics, coupons, etc).  I only like Farmer John bacon and you hardly ever see coupons for it.  Sausage, yes, bacon, no.  So this is a good score.  :-)  Now if it could be on sale somewhere....... bacon is expensive!

Driving this morning was such a treat!  No running to catch a train or worrying that some creepy stranger was going to sit next to me.  PLUS I got to leave later, which means I got to lay around for an extra 30 minutes.  Hooray for laying around!

I'm excited to be getting my hair done this afternoon!  Besides the sheer awesomeness of having someone else wash my hair (just about the best thing in the world, ever!), they give you a free hand massage with creams and oils while you're there. I also like the smell of the Aveda products she uses on me (well, duh, it's an Aveda salon!).  Yvonne (gal who cuts my hair) is great, always friendly.  I think she must type notes into my file on the computer because she always asks me stuff about things we talked about when I was in there last.  All of that really makes the schlep up to the Santa Anita mall worth it.  The only bad thing about getting my hair done on a Friday is that no one gets to see it look nice.  By the time I get to work Monday, I've already washed and ruined it.  LOL!

I just got the paperwork for my annual participation in the "Walk to End Epilepsy" on October 16th.  It's a great cause. I've been volunteering for them or participating in events, in various capacities, for the past 10 years.  The best was when they had the summer day camps and I got to be a R.O.P.E.S course counselor for a day.  These kids are so great.  So trusting and open.  It was hard to leave at the end of the, especially when you got a kid who cried because you were going home.  If you'd like to sponsor me, let me know. 

Wow, the walk means that we're coming up fast to the holiday season and more chances for volunteering.  I don't do nearly enough and only have the distribution of food and Christmas presents for the Knights on my agenda.  I need to look into doing more.

On another, less serious topic..........

I decided last weekend that I wanted to try my hand at making chow mein at home.  That's one dish I've never tried to make.  So, when I was at the grocery store earlier in the week, I picked up a few items I thought would be ingredients.  Turns out I missed a few things, so when I went to Bev Mo to pick-up an online order yesterday, I went to the grocery store that shares the same parking lot.  I have to say, it's just about the crappiest grocery store I've ever been in.  It's a big chain store too!  I couldn't find anything you could consider ingredients for Chinese cooking (other than vegetables), so when I was at the check-out (they had Land 'O Lakes light butter on sale for $1-something) I asked the cashier where I could find what I was looking for.  His response?  "What we do have, which isn't much, can be found on aisle 10".  Now, I looked up and down aisle 10 a couple of times when I was shopping and didn't see anything.  They must only have those fried noodles in a can or something.  How can a grocery store in 2011 not have even a few basic things in a popular demographic like Chinese food?  I think the reason I'm so shocked is because down the way Ralphs has almost a full aisle crammed with all types of Asian ingredients.  You want it, chances are, they have it.  PLUS, some of it is Ralphs generic brand (water chestnuts and bamboo shoots for example..... I bought some earlier in the week).  I guess I've been right to boycott the crappy grocery and stick to Ralphs, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and Food For Less (rarely) the last 10 years or so.  I need to buy oyster sauce, I know Ralphs has it, I just wasn't sure if I needed it or not when I was in the store.  I thought maybe the receipes called for black or brown sauce instead and I wanted to make sure since those aren't cheap!

This is gross, I looked up chow mein reicpes online and one came up that asked for ground beef and a jar of chicken gravy.  I don't think I'll be making THAT!

I just sold two action figures to a super nice guy back East.  While I'm really sad to get rid of them, he assured me that they were going to a good home (I sent him an email asking for shipping preferences, etc. when I saw he was winning two auctions).  While I'm a little anxious that he said he's going to take them out of their boxes, I'm really glad that he is going enjoy them and not just re-sell them or pack them away.  He got a great deal, I know I lost money on those two figures.  A lot of money.  Oh well.  Downsizing is the goal!!!!

Speaking of Ebay, that jerk messaged me again when the item didn't sell, so I finally responded to him.  I told him that I was going to give him the opportunity to buy the item he wanted, then I got his second message and that I didn't appreciate the rudeness of his notes, so I changed my mind.  I told him that I decided to re-list one more time and if they didn't sell, then I would keep them.  Basically, "I'd rather keep my crap rather than let you have it".  Yes, I know I'm five years-old.  Nothing new there. 

I'm going to list more stuff this weekend.

It's weird, I just realized I haven't read Twitter in about 8 months.  I've posted notes that I've blogged, but I haven't read anything.  It's also been approx. 2 months since I've been on comic book websites like Newsarama or Comic Book Resources.  I'm really out of the loop.  So out of it in fact, I didn't know they were filming the new Batman movie by my office.

I left my cell phone at home AGAIN!  This is the second time in, I think, a month.  I could have sworn I brought it in.  I wonder if fell out of my bag and it's in my car?  Ah well, not much I can do about it now.  No point in getting upset about it.

I've been really good about taking the train in to work at least 4 days a week......and I've hated every single minute of it.  Seriously.  I hate it while I'm on the train or waiting for the train, or walking up the zillion flights of stairs that seem to be standard in every train station I go to.  News Flash!!!  I'm lazy AND have a bad attitude!

For some reason, I've been waking up between 2-3am each night the last few weeks, so I've been taking the first train in to work, which leaves my station at about 4:30am.  That gets me to my desk by 5am (that includes walking to my office in the dark from the train station in scary downtown).  I miss driving in!  I could leave later and get to work at the same time (give or take), my hair doesn't get jacked up from the weather and I don't have to use a backpack.  I can use my nice and stylish Kipling messenger bag when I drive, not my trusty backpack that I've had since July 2005 with the squashed flat strap on one side from slinging it over the same shoulder for the better part of 6 years.  I love my Kipling messenger bag, it's cute and I get compliments when I use it. :-(

I'll have to drive in Friday (yay!).  I have an appointment to get my hair done in Arcadia at 3:30pm.  Darn!  I'll guess I'll have to get to work in the comfort of my own car.  I'm just going in for a trim and to have it thinned out.  If she starts on time, I should be out of there by 4:30pm, 5pm at the latest.  She's kinda slow.  She's very good, just slow.

There's a DC Comics "52" party at my not-so-LCBS on Friday night, but I don't think I'll go.  It looks like it might be cool though.  But I don't think it will be my scene.  I'm not very good at going to those things solo and meeting people.  I'd probably break out in hives and run away scared.  I really am bad at those types of situations.  I wouldn't say that I'm shy (but I probably am), but I am really awkward.  I need at least one friend or companion with me in those things.  It's easy to be a loser when you have someone with you, not so much when you're alone.

New topic!!!!!  Ebay has been going okay.  I've sold and shipped out a couple of things and sold a couple of things I'm still waiting for payment on.  (it was rough, but I sold my Batgirl "Justice" action figure MIB).  I've got a few things waiting in the wings to list, but I need to pick-up some more Priority Mail Flat Rate packages in various sizes first.  Plus, I used the online postage/shipping tool on Ebay and I want to see how well that works before I use it again.  Hey - does anyone know what it means when I have an item eligible for a "second chance offer"?  If you do, shoot me an email.

Speaking of Ebay, I can't believe how bad they get you with fees now.  Out of $95 in sales (with shipping included), I cleared maybe $63 after listing fees, sold item fees and PayPal fees.  WTF??!!??  Did you guys know that Ebay charges their final fees on the TOTAL value of the auction?  That means that if I sell and item for, let's say $2.50 and charge the USPS Priority Mail flat rate of $5.00 for shipping, Ebay takes their percentage off of the $7.50.  So if you sell something for basically nothing, you may lose money on the deal because it will cut into your shipping costs.  That's bullshit.  I know they do it because sellers were selling an item for a penny and then charging $50 in shipping and not paying the adequate fee amount, but stilllllll.  That sucks for me.  I  may have to time posting my items for when they are offering free listings.  At least that way I'll save .40 cents (hey - it adds up if you're listing a bunch of things at almost nothing).

That guy I mentioned in an earlier post that sent me a message about my pricing on an auction and wanting me to break up the lot emailed me again.  He was a real jerk too.  He basically told me that my item wasn't going to sell and that before I re-list it, to contact him so we could work out a sale for part of it.  I haven't gotten back to him, but: "No way asshole!  I'd rather keep the item than sell it it to you, you arrogant jerk!".  At least that's what I'd like to say, I probably won't.  The auction still has a couple of days left.  If it doesn't sell, then I'll re-list it, but give it a longer auction time span.  I might block the dude from the auction as well.
:-)

I found out what was going on with my home phone (land line).  I guess when you have them cancel your service, they have to make sure that you have access to an emergency phone line, in case of, well, emergencies.  So, my old number is gone, but I have a new one that they didn't tell me the number of...... but I found it out anyway.  I can receive calls, just not make them.  I wish they would have offered that service when I got the dumb line in the first place.  I rarely make calls, if at all.  I think I made, maybe, 9 calls the entire year I had the phone.  Anyway, yay for free phone service!

Jeezus, there's a lady near me who is spending the day hacking and coughing.  90% sounds fake and like she's straining her vocal chords on purpose so people near her will think she's really sick (she's not).  It's really annoying and gross. It goes on and on for hours.  I'd say something, but she's really mean and would probably kick my ass.

Okay, this part is SUPER boring.  More so than the rest of my blog! 

BTW - I tried both Tide Stain Release packs and Biz whatever-they're-called-packs on my whites and colors over the weekend and they really worked well.  I pre-treated the nightgown by itself with a pack in hot water, then I used another one in the laundry cycle when I washed the white sheets and they came out really white.  The Biz pack worked well with my colors.  I think I paid less than $1 for each of the packages as I had a $3 coupon for each of them and I got the small size.  No use paying full price until I know something is going to work, right? 

See - I'm cheap, lazy and have a bad attitude.  LOL!

I miss having my phone with me.  :-(

Wow, I've been up since around 11:30pm last night.  I'm tired!  I was sound asleep for a few hours and then, for some reason, I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep.  I should have used the time to be productive, but I didn't.  I just laid there and tried to get back to sleep for hours and hours.  That and convince myself that I shouldn't take the train in to work...... which I didn't.  Don't yell at me, but I drove. 

I know I'm supposed to take the train every day, but I really couldn't do it today.  Yesterday afternoons' train ride home sucked and it was still on my mind.  At first I was lucky....I got a seat in a car that didn't have a lot of people and wasn't too hot.  I settled into my seat next to the window (that looks out on to tunnel walls), got out my Kindle and started reading (as I usually do on the train).  Two stops later I had a tiny old lady next to me and her tiny friend in front of me.  That's not so bad.  Old ladies are better than creepy old guys or gang bangers, right?  Eh, not always.  What was bad this time was the fact that they'd both just gotten their hair permed and whoever did it used A LOT of lye.  I don't think they rinsed all of it out either because it was really strong.  I was breathing in lye fumes for over 20 minutes.  Isn't that stuff kind of toxic?  I couldn't wait to get off the train at my stop and get above ground to breathe in the (reasonably) fresh Los Angeles air.

I got to my car and made my way home, but I could still smell the perms.  My afternoon and evening were good, if not a bit dull.  The weather was nice.  Cool and breezy, so I had my apartment door open with just the screen closed. Gotham loves it when I do that because it gives him the chance to try and catch squirrels through a closed screen.  LOL, he's cute when he does that!  I looked around my apartment for some Lancome products for my friend Deanne.  I could have sworn I had what she was looking for from a gift with purchase, but I couldn't find it.  So instead, I got out a nice, new, never used Lancome cosmetic bag (I have zillions of them!) and added the substitute product, along with some other Lancome and Chanel products.  I'll look a little more thoroughly this weekend.  While I was searching, I found some Comic-Con giveaways that I might put on Ebay this weekend.  After all that I fixed dinner, watched tv, played with the cat, showered and went to bed (for a little while).

I'm going to see if I can cut out a little earlier than usual today.  You know, maybe leave after 9 hours, instead of my usual 10.  I need to head over to Nordstrom and Target on the way home, so I think I'll drop by the Glendale Galleria since they've got both. 

Actually, I need to call Nordstrom first to see if they even have what I need to pick up.  Thank goodness for gift cards, right?  At Target I need to get either Biz or Tide Stain Release.  I'll probably give my mom a call to see which one she thinks is better.  I absolutely LOVE my white bed sheets, but, as with all things made from white cotton, they're going to get yellowed eventually, so I want to try and prevent it from happening.  I think I read somewhere that if you soak the items for 8 hours in something (not bleach) and then put them through the washing machine that they will be nice and bright when they come out.  I've had the sheets for about a year and usually wash them once a week or, at the very least, a couple times a month if I use other sheets as well.  If you have a black cat who likes to lay on your side of the bed, like I do, you tend to keep your sheets well-laundered.  Very few things in every day life are as annoying to me as finding a load of cat hair on my pillow and sheets when I want to go to bed.  I've gotten in the habit of covering my bed with an old sheet when I'm at work, but he still manages to get under it.  At least that's the only explanation I can come up with for the cat hair I've been finding.

Yay!  I checked with the Glendale Nordstrom and they do in fact have my Lancome Imanance (in "bisque" thankyouverymuchyesiknowimpale).  They're holding it for me!  Last time I was getting low I called around to about 4 different stores (Macy's and Nordstrom) and none of them had it and I couldn't find it on Ebay.  Finally, when I was getting down to the very last of the tube, Bloomingdales got it in and they were having a pretty sweet gift with purchase promotion that I qualified for. I think Nordstroms has a promo going on right now........... I love free stuff!

I'm trying to decide what I should do with the chicken I defrosted for dinner tonight.  Mexican?  Chinese?  Indian?  Should I forgo (is that the right spelling?  I thought it was spelled forego) cooking it and have a bacon and egg on sourdough sandwich instead?  That sounds good.  Breakfast for dinner!  I'm an adult, I can have breakfast for dinner if I want, right?  I had waffles for dinner a few weeks ago. :-)  Eggo Waffles with Aunt Jemima Syrup. 

Fake waffles + fake maple syrup = a delicious treat!

Ah well, I guess I have some time before I really need to decide how I want to cook it.

Today has been weird right from the start. 

First off, I woke up an hour early.  Everyone knows that I get up way too early anyway, so getting up an hour earlier is just stupid.  Anyway, since I was up, I listened to the news and kind of just lolled around for a while.  I even managed to hand wash some some of my delicates!  Not being in a rush is so cool! 

Since I had so much extra time, I wiped down the bathroom counters, sink and swept up the floor (it seems like I'm always sweeping up that damn floor!).  As is usual for me, I used toilet paper and tossed it in the toilet when I was done and then continued to put on my make-up, brush my hair, etc.  The last thing I do each morning is get dressed.  This limits the amount of cat hair I get on my clothes since I usually like to give Gotham a cuddle or two while I'm getting ready, especially if he jumps up on the bathroom counter.  :-)  On my way out of the bathroom to get the clothes I set out last night, I reached over and flushed the toilet.  Instead of continuing out the door, I turned back into the bathroom because it didn't sound like a normal flush.  It sounded like the toilets at work when they don't complete a cycle (they're set on too low a flow, so you have to flush twice to get the seat covers to go down).  Anyway, I looked in the bowl and sure enough, there was still toilet paper in it.  Sometimes this happens when I flush larger cat box contents (I have flushable litter), so I know from experience that a second "hard" flush usually takes care of it.  Um, not this time.  With a sinking feeling I saw the water rise in the bowl.  and rise and rise and rise.  Yup, I had an overflowing toilet!  I tried to turn the water off at the wall (no luck), then I took the tank lid off and tried to stop it from there (again, no luck).  It finally stopped when about half the water that had been in the tank was now on my floor.  After looking at the bowl more closely I saw that there was a wad of toilet paper sitting at the bottom of the bowl.  Without a second thought, I reached in and pulled it out.  That fixed everything!  I should mention here that it was "clean" water and paper.  No gross toilet contents!!!!

Next thing I had to do was clean up all the water.  Luckily I have three big grungy towels that I spread out on the floor when I color my hair (they have hair dye stains on them.... I'm not going to ruin good towels!), so I grabbed those and used them to soak up the water and try absorb whatever got on the carpet just outside the door.  Keep in mind that Gotham was suddenly REALLY interested in coming into the bathroom, so I had to keep him out and I was still in my night clothes not having gotten dressed yet.  Luckily my make-up and hair were already presentable and my bag and shoes were by the front door waiting for me.  Cleaning up the water took a lot of time!  I ended-up missing my train and had to drive in.  That meant I had to get gas (I was on fumes and a prayer).  The pump I chose at the gas station would only dispense gas at a rate of about 60 cents a burst.  I managed to get $10 in before I gave up and figured that I had enough to get me to work and back.

Despite all of my efforts and all of the racing around, I still got in later than I usually do.  The weird thing is, I didn't get mad or pissed off, like I normally would.  I just laughed through the whole thing.  What else could I do?  It IS funny.

I guess I should probably pick-up a plunger on the way home...... I threw away my old one when I moved to this apartment and forgot to replace it.

On another note - most of my Ebay auctions are getting a lot of views and a few have watchers.  I know this doesn't guarantee that the items will sell, but it's nice to see some interest out there for my stuff.

As I predicted, I have loads of Chinese food leftover from last night to eat for the rest of the week. Most of it is chow mein, which I love.  I just didn't realize that I picked it as a side for most of the entrees I got (yes, I ordered quite a few. I believe I mentioned yesterday they were having a special).  Anyway, hooray for leftover Chinese food!  I wonder if I'm becoming a hermit?  Buying too much food so that I don't have to go out for a few days seems like it might be one of the first steps in that direction.

A couple seasons of Heroes should be arriving today.  I think two and three.  I know I missed a few episodes here and there or was too busy with mojitos and tacos at Sams when we had viewing parties to pay attention.  They were really cheap!  I believe I paid less than $20 total for both with free shipping through Amazon Prime.  I've already got season one and watched it in its' entirety a few weeks ago.  I'm not sure I want to get season four.  I watched some of it when it was on, but carny folk tend to creep me out.  I guess I'll see how much I want to watch it after I watch season three.

I need to call the phone company to see why I'm still getting messages on my answering machine when I cancelled my land line a while ago.  I also need to find a jeweler to replace the batteries in my Wonder Woman, Justice League (without Superman) and Batman watches.  All three are dead and the instructions say to have a jeweler do it.

I finally started getting my act together and began posting stuff up for sale on Ebay.  If  you see that I've posted something you gave me as a present, I'm sorry.  Please don't take it personally!  I really need to clear out stuff I have no use for, no matter how much I may like the item.  You guys all know this.  I've been talking about doing it for YEARS.

It was hard for me to list some of what I put up!  If you know me, then you know I love my action figures.  I posted a few of them, all of which were bought by me (no gifts there!) and all are cool.  So far all of what I listed action figure-wise is sealed and in their original boxes (never opened).  So if you're a friend of mine that's looking for action figures and you don't want to hassle with shipping (because I am going to see you at some point and could hand them to you), then take a look at my listings and let me know.

I've got other things up that I have absolutely no confidence will sell.  At all.  They're just too random. I didn't even know how to price them!  I think I'll start listing DVD's and books next.  I've got a slew of sealed cosmetics that I need to list (already took pictures of them and everything), but that seems kind of daunting.

I hope selling on Ebay is better than it used to be.  I quit selling a while back because I didn't like my feedback rating being "held hostage" by a buyer. For a while, a seller could not leave negative feedback for a buyer, even a deadbeat one.  I'm hoping that's changed.  I should probably look it up!  I've got over 609 transactions and 100% positive feedback.  Yes, I'm proud of that.  <grin>  Gotta be proud of SOMETHING, right?

I've already received a message through Ebay from a guy who wants me to end an auction, break up the lot and sell one of the pieces to him at a price he's told me he thinks is fair.  He also told me that I put too high a price on the lot.  All of this was within an hour of me posting it for sale!  I told him to give me a few days and that I'd get back to him.  Weird thing is, I did a search and the price he said I should be selling it for was kinda low.  I priced it at what the other ones were listed for.  If it sells, it sells, if it doesn't, oh well.

I've been buying way too much stuff on Ebay lately, it's time I worked the other side of the auctions again.

I think I'm going to walk down to Victoria's Secret in a bit.  It's been a while and I want to buy something pretty / girly.

Placed a BevMo order to pick-up on my way home this afternoon.  Yay for the 5-cent sale!  I also placed another Chinese food order, like I did a few weeks ago.  I don't feel like cooking, and I doubt any of my friends will want to go out if I called.  It IS Tuesday after all.  No one likes doing anything on Tuesdays.    Either way, it looks like I'm gonna have leftovers for the rest of the week.  Yes, that means I got a fuck-ton of food.  They were having a special. :-)

Btw - have I said (lately) how much I hate taking the train to and from work?  I had strangers sit on two sides of me yesterday.  THEY WEREN'T THE ONLY EMPTY SEATS IN THE TRAIN CAR, PEOPLE!  Strangers at 4:55am are creepy.  In the afternoon people are rude.  They push past you to get on the train, even though you were in front of them.  There aren't a lot of seats and it smells.  If it wasn't for the fact that I have three weeks worth of tokens to use and and when those are gone,  it's still less than half what I pay for parking..........

Yikes, yesterday was horrible!  After all the bad things that happened during the day, even more happened in the afternoon / evening.  I went across the street around 3:10pm to get my car, arriving at the automated attendant ahead of a big group of people.  I thought "cool, something good has finally happened today".  Welllllllll, the machine proceeded to decline BOTH of my ATM cards, even though we'd just gotten paid and there was money in each account.  Not only did it decline my cards, it said it out loud so that everyone behind me in line could hear.  Then I realized that I was $1 short to pay the fee in cash (I'd lent a $1 to a friend earlier in the day and I usually only carry enough cash to cover parking), so I had to walk to the bank and get $20 out of the ATM.  When I got back to the automated attendant, I decided to try my one of my cards again and it worked.  Of course none of the people who were behind me earlier were still there to see that I wasn't a deadbeat who can't pay for parking.  Not that I'll ever see them again.

When I finally got on my way (late), I almost got into three accidents (two on the FWY and one on Ventura Blvd).  All of which stemmed from people being on their cell phones and drifting into my lane.  Then I remembered that I needed to go to Trader Joe's and pick up food for dinner.  Bah!  So I got there and it took forever to get a parking space.  I finally got one and went in to do my shopping.  Nothing exciting happened while I was in the store (thank goodness!).  When I was in my car and leaving, a blonde lady in a Volvo wagon backed out of her space like a bat outta hell, even though my car was right there and in the way (she almost hit me!), then she tailgated and honked her horn at me a bunch of times because I didn't turn on to Ventura while the light was against me and there were a ton of cars travelling on the street that would have hit me had I done so.  Since she was in such a hurry, I decided to take my time and wait for the light to change.  I received another torrent of honks from her, but I really didn't care at that point.  I finally got near my apartment and of course there was no parking, so I had to circle a few times before something freed up.

Once I was home, I took out my phone and found a text from my friend who was in town yesterday to see Paul Kelly perform.  They let me know that there was a spare ticket waiting for me at the box office if I wanted it.  I did...... but I didn't want to tempt fate.  Instead I politely declined and thanked them.  I ended-up showering, eating dinner and going to bed early.  I just wanted the day to be over.  

I'm pleased to report that today is already better than yesterday.  I wonder what the chances are of me leaving early today?  Probably slim to none.

I received some pretty bad news this morning and have been running around trying to fix things.  For the second day in a row I'm completely drained.

Trying to stay positive though, wish me luck!

*UPDATE* Oh My God - I'm having a horrible day. My bad news this morning just laid the foundation for a crappy day.  Bah!  Seriously.  Anything and everything so far that could go badly, has.

Just got out of a meeting that was chock full of bureaucratic nonsense.  It seemed a lot longer than it actually was and I'm totally drained.... I would like to go and have a nap to recover.  Too bad that's impossible.

After battling with my phone company ever since they bundled my cell and land line service, I have cancelled my land line.  So if you have that number, please toss it.  I will probably get an internet phone account (Vonage?) later this year, once my air card contract is up. 

It's weird, they were never able to logically and coherently explain why my wireless bill went up by $30 a month and my land line went up by approx. $20 a month since the bundling started.  I was supposed to SAVE money when I linked the accounts!  They also jacked my online payment account (making it so I couldn't make a payment) and I had to FORCE them take my payment over the phone and still got hit with a $300 phone bill on a land line I don't use (1 phone call made in 90 days) and a cell phone I only use for internet, email and texting. 

Can you tell I'm still angry?  I'm probably going to switch my cell phone as soon as the new Iphone comes out and is available at another carrier.  I think I heard that Sprint will start carrying it, I'm not sure though.  I'll let you know if / when that happens.

Sorry I haven't posted anything in a while.  Honestly, I just haven't been up to blogging.  

Me being me, I'm keeping my attitude positive and I'm hoping something will happen that will make me smile.  I'll take just about ANYTHING!

<sigh> I have a headache now. 

I guess that's all for now.

Damn Damn Damn Damn!!!!!  I left my phone at home.  On the bathroom counter to be exact.  I took it in there while I was getting ready for work because I knew the alarm was going to go off and I didn't want to have to stop what I was doing to go get it from the other room to turn it off.  Gotham freaks out sometimes if he's asleep near the phone when the alarm goes off. 

Don't you hate when you forget something and you know EXACTLY where it is and it does you absolutely no good?

I just finished two of the reports I needed to get done.  Woo Whoo! Took me 7 hours to get them done, but they're done!   I have two  more I should do, but they aren't as urgent as the other two I just finished. 

Will hopefully be able to leave a bit early today.  Of course, by early I mean "leave after 9 hours".

Okay, I didn't hear back from my skin cancer doctor yesterday, so I'm going take that as an "all clear".  HOORAY!!!!  I don't go back for three months now.  No more cutting, no more tests, no more anything!!!!  At least not for three months.  You guys have no idea what a relief this is.  Seriously, no idea.

My new "Helen!" is great.  Her name is Sandy and she's really nice.  It only took about 15 minutes to get there from work and about 20 minutes to get home after my appointment, and that was in rush hour traffic!  My appointment was for 4pm and I was home around 5pm.  AWESOME!  Plus it turns out that we have a friend in common.  What a small world!  It was kind of expensive.  Actually, it was very expensive, but I think it might be worth it.  There are all kinds of perks at this place.  I made another appointment, but I'll have to weigh the pros and cons and decide if I want to go back.  The whole process is totally different to what I'm used to.  I'm not sure if that's bad or good.  :-)

The Chinese food I got a few days ago is finally history.  I throw food like that out after three days, so it was time for it to go.  I'm embarrassed to admit that there wasn't a lot left!  Awe man, I guess that means I have to cook tonight.... bummer!  Maybe I'll stop off and get a sandwich or something on the way home instead.......

ZOW!  Talk about a crappy day at work!  Dealing mainly with Payroll stuff and lots of errors to fix (not mine!) and fires to put out.  People are tense on both sides of the issue!  I'm trying to correct things and make sure my people get paid correctly, but it's challenging.  Plus I've got those reports....  I was told I could turn two of them in Friday, but it turns out that one of them has to be included with another that's due today.  Like I said, ZOW!  I'm not going to let it ruin  my mood though.  :-)

I just won a couple of small auctions on Ebay that I forgot about, so that's nice!  I didn't remember that I bid on a couple of Benefit Cosmetics mini kits, they're cute!  I love the packaging on their stuff, it makes me happy. 

So, I think today is the last day I have to wait through in order to get the results of my tests from last week.  I'm nervous.  I mean, I've already got it in my head that everything is clear, I'd hate to get a call late today telling me I have to go back in and have my third surgery of the year to remove a mass of cancerous cells.  The surgery doesn't really bother me, it's the thought of: "what if they leave something behind?".  I mean, a single missed cell could mean that everything could come back.  That's scary.

I'm also nervous about my "Helen" replacement appointment this afternoon.  All my friends who know who Helen is will understand my nervousness. :-)  

I guess I'm just nervous all around today!

A friend of mine recommended a website to me that lists restaurants in Los Angeles (and other cities).  It's got ratings, menus, etc.  You can also filter it down to neighborhoods, type of cuisine and if they deliver or not.  I've never ordered delivery, apart from Pizza Man ("He Delivers!") when I was in high school and didn't have a car or drivers license.  Seriously!  I've never even ordered Domino's!  I've ordered food that I've had to go pick-up, but delivery?  What a luxury!  Anyway, if you're interested, here's the site address:

http://losangeles.menupages.com/

I've heard that LA Bite is expensive because they add a surcharge to your order and a lot of the time there is a minimum $$$ to order.  You'd have to look at each restaurant, but it looks like only a couple have a minimum.  They have a ton of delivery restaurants in my neighborhood, which I think is neat.  One of these days I'm going to order from one of them. :-)

I finished the work project yesterday and got everything out.  Now I'm behind on other things!  Bah!  I should be caught up by Friday.  I hope.  There's no way I'm going into the office over the weekend.

Wow, you guys should have seen the amount of Chinese food I ordered yesterday!  I will definitely be working on it for a few days... I really like spicy food, so I was hoping that by picking the items marked with a little pepper that they would be hot.  Nope - I got Mongolian Beef (kinda bland), Regular Chow Mein (plain), Chicken Chow Mein (same as regular chow mein, just with chicken), Firecracker Chicken (kinda sticky, not hot at all), Crispy Dumplings (chicken) and Brown Rice......  they were all delicious, just not as spicy / hot as I'd like. Good thing I have a new jar of chili paste!  Anyway, I barely made a dent in it.  As much as I enjoy cooking, it was nice not heating up the house just to make dinner.

I also stopped by Trader Joe's since it's in the same shopping center that I got the Chinese food.  I'm addicted to TJ's orange juice, so I needed to pick up a jug, along with some fruit for lunch this week.  I'm kinda bummed that they've been out of the wine I like for a couple of weeks now.  They don't have it at the two locations I usually go to that are fairly close to my house.  I was able to find it at the Monrovia location, but I'm not going to drive all the way up there just for a couple of bottles of wine.  I ended-up getting a new wine that had a cartoon pancake stomping around a city.  My friend bought me a bottle of it a few months ago and I can't remember if I liked it or not.  It's a blend of five different types of grapes, so I bet I can have it with anything!  Here's what the label looks like, isn't it cute?  I got the image from the internet, so that's not my kitchen or my bottle of wine.

The big work project is almost completed.  I gave it to another set of eyes to go over everything and check to see if there are any glaring errors.  After that's done, it gets mailed out to approx. 600 people.  I'm hoping we'll get it out today.  Our mailroom is gonna just LOVE us.  Aye, I have a headache now.  My desk, as well as the two cubicles on either side of me are disaster areas!

I haven't heard anything back about the tests last Thursday, so I'm going to take that as a positive thing.  I figure that if I don't hear anything by close of business tomorrow, that I'm all clear (for now).  No news is good news, right?  I think they usually get the results in two or three business days.  Waiting sucks!

I just got off a conference call....... have you ever been on a call when someone who's participating is on their speakerphone and they don't realize that technology has evolved to the point where they don't have to SCREAM IN THEIR SPEAKERPHONE TO BE HEARD?  Oh my god!  I had the volume on my phone turned down all the way and my ear still hurts!  I'm just glad that the call only lasted 20 minutes.  Small favors, right?