With the weather getting a bit colder, I decided to research the fake fireplace I have. Turns out, it's a gel fuel unit. That means, instead of wood or logs, you burn cans filled with an alcohol gel. Kind of like sterno cans for chaffing dishes. They burn for about 2-3 hours, have pretty long flames and crackle like a fire. Plus, no extra ventilation needed as they burn clean with no real fumes (also, I can move the unit to just about any area I want to). of course, the fuel is kind of expensive. It makes the living room seem cozy though! Fortunately, it doesn't give off a ton of heat. Unfortunately, my cat is a bit scared of it. He's never seen fire before, so he's not sure what to make of it.

I'll try to attach a photo or two, one with the fire screen, one without:

I did some volunteering at a women's shelter down on Skid Row this weekend. Wow, what an absolutely humbling experience.

I worked the breakfast shift, so we arrived a little before 6am. To be honest, it's not an area you want to be during daylight hours, let alone before sunrise. A co-worker and I met at the office and he drove us over, so at least I wasn't on my own. We saw someone open the security gate to the parking lot and moved quickly to get inside before it closed.

Once inside, we introduced ourselves and said "put us to work!". Being the first to show-up, we had our pick of stuff to do. I got to slice up an entire crate of cantaloupes into 1 1/2 inch wedges. The guy in charge liked me, so I got the "good" knife (or so he said). My co-worker was working the grill. He had 130 eggs to fry! After fruit, it was putting shredded cheese and salsa into new containers. Folks from our office started to show up, so things were really gearing-up.

I worked the sink for a bit, then was directed to take the HUGE pans of hash browns out of the ovens and put them in to chafing type dishes (without the sterno candles), then wash the pans. Next, I got all the counters cleaned and started rolling 200 forks into napkins. It was getting close to serving time, so we had to get everything ready.

The way it worked was, we were in a line with one person in charge of each item that goes onto the plate. The first item goes on and gets handed to the next person to put their item on it, and so on, until it got to me where I handed it to the next lady in line.

I felt it was really important to engage as many women that I could. I looked at everyone in the eye (most looked back, but not all), said "Good morning, how are you?". If they answered I would respond, if not I would hand them their plate and say "enjoy your breakfast and have a good day.". I'd say 99% of the ladies were so friendly and said "Thank you" or "Thank you so much for coming down, we appreciate it". little did they know how much I appreciated them!

These women broke my heart and I am so glad there are places like where we spent our Saturday morning. I believe most were residents of the center, but not all. Some had chores to do after the meal (dishes, floors, etc). and the rest either went to other areas or outside. Before we arrived, we'd gotten almost 500 toiletry packs made-up with items we all went out and purchased to donate and some were passed-out, from what I understand, the women were so grateful. Imagine, a bag with soap, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lip balm, sunscreen, a washcloth, a brush or comb and a few other things like that was enough to make these women's day. Things we take for granted. Think about that.

Most of us volunteers also brought in items on our own to donate. I brought a huge handled bag with as many articles of new clothes (with tags) or gently used clothes. They have a real need for career wear (New or gently used) and undergarments (new, of course). I was able to find or buy a lot. Plus, I had new shoes I'd gotten online that didn't fit (5 pairs), plus casual wear clothes. I hope it makes a difference. This place works to get women back on their feet and into jobs, they need anything they can get to help.

To all the jerks who say these people are taking advantage of the system, fuck you. You do not live on or go to Skid Row to take advantage of the system. Some of these ladies don't know any other life, some were hit by disastrous events and are trying to claw their way back to a normal life and some were so horribly damaged by life that I want to cry when I think about where they would be without places like this.

Seeing the smiles our simple breakfast and just being there caused made my day. I was also really proud when our head kitchen guy told us that he would love for us to come back, because "A lot of folks come here and don't want to work. They want to play around and take pictures, you guys work hard and I would love to have you back any time". High praise! He actually ran out of stuff for us to do, so we did some of the work the lunch team was supposed to do. 😀

I'm really glad we went when we did and that it wasn't over Thanksgiving. They need help during the times there aren't celebrated holidays. They need help every day.

I told the gal that hooked us up with this program to let me know whenever they plan the next volunteer day, because I'm looking forward to going back.

Any one of us could end-up in the same situation as these ladies, don't take your life/situation for granted and, if you can, find a reputable program and see if you can help out. You won't regret it.

Time to work on a gratitude list....

Black Friday was such a cool day. I went in to the office my normal time (most of you are still in dreamland when I get to work, LOL!). Worked a little bit, then helped fix breakfast for everyone, did some more work and then got out of there st 10:10am. Awesome!!

Cruised up to the dealership where I got my tire replaced last week to see if they had my prescription black Ray Ban sunglasses (I called multiple times and never heard back from the service dept.). Alas, they didn't have them. I know I left them there, so I hope whoever picked them up has my prescription and that they really needed them. Sigh, they were expensive. Plus, I don't know if I can get them configured like that again (long story). Anyway, only good thoughts to the person who has them.

After that, I came home and puttered/relaxed. There was no way I was going to a store and dealing with crowds, so I hung out listening to podcasts and reading. I made sure to take all my laundry out to my car, so I wouldn't have to do it this morning in the dark.

I went to a new laundromat this morning and it was so cool. Because I'm me, I got there a little before they opened so that I could be sure to get however many machines I needed, plus have a little instruction time. This place does not take cash, you have to get a free card and then load it with money. Now they're pricey for a laundromat, but it's clean, well-lit, has good parking (if you get there early) and they always have staff there.

They also have HUGE machines!!! I should have used the largest washers, but ended-up using three four-load machines and two two- two-load machines. Yes, I had that much to wash! I was down to three clean sets of sheets for the bed, so that means I had EIGHT sets to wash (don't judge, I have a thing for sheets), plus one comforter and a bunch of clothes to wash. All that cost $30 to wash. It would have been a bit cheaper, but since it was my first time there, I didn't want to risk overloading the machines. The best thing is, everything was done washing in 27 minutes!! Each machine finished within a minute of each other, making it perfect to unload one into a cart, move to the next one, etc.

When it came to drying, after taking out a few things that needed to hang dry, I was able to fit all my stuff in two MASSIVE machines. They cost .75 every 10 mins and I think I ran one for 30 mins and one for 40 mins. May have run one machine another time, I'm not sure.

So, with folding everything, packing it up and walking back to my car, I was out of there around 8am. I did the equivalent of probably (conservatively) 10 loads of laundry from start to finish, in under two hours. I'm definitely going to go back! Hopefully, it won't be with so many sets of sheets, they're a pain to fold by myself out in public.

I'm also still working on my clothes gathering project. We're volunteering soon and the place we're going is also taking clothing donations. I've been going through and getting a lot of things ready to take. Nice thing, I've found shoes that I purchased online that I never wore as they didn't fit, along with clothes that still have tags. I'm hoping this will help people! We've gotten together about 500 toiletry packs as well. You know, bags with shampoo, conditioner, soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, sunscreen, deodorant, shower caps, etc.

I'll let you know how it all goes after we're done.

My new project for this weekend is that I'm going through and getting all my Christmas stuff together. I'm not going to put anything out until December, but I want to get it ready. Plus, I'm not sure where I'm going to put my tree this year. I'm keeping my front door open more than I did last year, so I'm not sure if the place I put it then is practical.

I also brought work home.... we'll see if I get to it!

My house is a mess, lol!!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Because I'm a crummy friend, I begged-off going to friends houses today. Everyone lives kinda far and I really just don't want to drive. To be honest, I've only gotten 3-5 hours of sleep each night for the past week or so (I feel tired and "off")and I knew the idea of getting dressed-up, driving, cooking, cleaning, helping, then driving back home wouldn't appeal to me (I was right!). Plus, I have to go into work for a couple of hours tomorrow (Office closes at 10am), so sticking close to home is probably a good idea.

My current agenda for the day is wide open. I'd originally planned to go to the laundromat, but they're closed today (who knew?). I'll go tomorrow or early Saturday morning. As an alternative, I'm hoping to get in a couple of naps, continue going through my clothes for donations, make a few lists of chores I need to get done over the next few days and perhaps walk over to Starbucks. Maybe I'll bake something? I dunno. The cool thing is, as I don't have to get dressed-up, I can do all of those things while wearing my comfy overalls. YAAAASSSSSS!!!!

Whatever you end-up doing today, be safe and have fun. Don't forget to take time out to stop and reflect on everything you're thankful for!

Work has been kind of weird/odd since I last posted. I have made a concerted effort to be very nice, but not fully engaged with my friend/co-worker. I think he regrets a lot of what he said, but he's not the type to apologize. I also think he misses our back and forth throughout the day. While friendly, I'm keeping it all surface level stuff. No asking about the weekend or evening before. No volunteering on my part either.

Example:


Him: "Did you see that article about xyz?".
Me: "No, I hadn't, what was it about?".
Him: "Blah, blah, blah".
Me: "Oh, cool. I'll have to check it out".

Normally, we would have a really good conversation about it. I'm sure he misses that, I do.

At least it's not awful at work. It's just weird. I guess it's our new thing. Only good thing is, I'm getting crap done I've been putting off.

I'm making apple crisp from our tried and true family recipe. No oats or anything like that- no, no! Ours is more like apple pie with shortbread crumbled on top. I tried using part raw sugar with the regular sugar, we'll see how it turns out. I also added two extra apples and some cinnamon as the baking pan was a little bigger than I needed. I hope the people at work enjoy it, I'm only making it to make my apartment smell good.

Well, chores to do...

Today was a difficult day.

I had a lot written, but I deleted it. A very good work friend who I value and look up to did and said some things today that I will have to pretend to have gotten over, but in reality I'm devastated. They are going through difficult stuff in their personal life and chose to lash out at me in order to vent their frustration/feeling of helplessness. Horrible things were said. I sat there, quietly and let them do it, because it was coming from a place of pain/anguish. When it was done, I asked if we were good and he said "yes". But I'm not good. I'm crushed. Some things you can't take back once they are said.

I have to suck it up and go into work tomorrow as though everything is great.

Wish me luck.

Well, I was driving home from work and as I exited the freeway, the “tire pressures are low” alert came on. I drove to the closest dealership and found that I’d run over a really big screw. Right at the sidewall. Could they please fix it? No, they can’t. Now I’m waiting to hear how much this is going to cost. I’m expecting it to be steep. I found out after I got the car that I had “performance” tires, which is code for EXPENSIVE. I have no need for tires like that! I drive to work and back and sit in traffic, who has a need for performance tires in Los Angeles?

Waiting is taking forever. They’ve just turned the lights off. Should I be worried?

Well, I was there for two and a half hours and just got home. Is it worth eating dinner?

A friend gave me the news Stan Lee passed away earlier today. While I haven't picked-up a comic book or attended a convention in quite a while, the news took me slam-bang back to the first time I met him at San Diego. I could almost see/feel/smell/hear everything about the con, all the books and the panels. It was surreal. He lived a full life and will be missed. My heart goes out to all his friends and family.

We were able to get out of work early, so I got home over an hour early! I'm probably going to waste the extra time, but that's okay!

Update- I did waste the extra time. I ended-up taking a really long bubble bath and listened to a podcast interview of Simon Pegg. I thought about things in general. Was sad for a bit, but then Gotham came in, looked-up at me over the edge of the tub and meowed.

Time to get my afternoon chores done.

I'm a voter that is spitting mad right now.

I walked-up to my polling place, sample ballot in hand and ready to cast my vote! I get to my table, hand over my ID (I don't like to have to spell my name and address, so that's easier). Next to my address, someone hand wrote "vbm". Apparently, that means "Vote By Mail". Well, if you have that and want to vote in person, you have to surrender your mail ballot. Well, I have NEVER been a vote by mail person, EVER. I love to vote. I mean, I love the whole thing, standing in line, punching the card, watching them put the ballot in the box. All of it.

I told them I never got a mail ballot, so I can't surrender one. I'm told I will have to cast a provisional ballot. WTF??!!?? I asked if there was a supervisor or someone who could override it, so they call over this woman. She comes over, having no fucks to give. She says basically, too bad fill out the provisional. I asked who I could complain to and she flippantly says "call the governor" and walked away. Again, WTF? I said "that was a bullshit answer, alike I'm going to call Jerry Brown and he'll get right on the phone to hear my complaint about voter fraud". The people at the tables felt so bad and were so nice, I have no qualms with them. The other lady though....

Soooo, when I returned home, I googled my issue and then got on the phone with the Secretary of State Voter Complaint Hotline. Spoke to a nice lady who took everything down and filed it. I already got a follow-up call!

The guy who called me back was awesome and outlined what they were going to do. He also recommended that I re-register to vote, so I'll do that tomorrow.

Know your voters rights folks!!! If you experience any issues voting, call your Secretary of State's office. They should have a voter hotline.

If you're interested, here is a good article on Trump rallies I found in the Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/nov/01/trump-rallies-america-midterms-white-house

It's been an okay week. I was sick Monday and part of Tuesday. I think I ate something bad on Sunday, because it was just barfing non-stop and that's it. I got sent home from work both days, which I always feel guilty about. I made my boss laugh though. He asked me what was wrong (I looked like shit!!!) and without missing a beat, I replied totally deadpan "listeria". I thought he was gonna choke he was laughing so hard. The next day an older new dude who started working with us asked and I did the same thing, but answered "Typhus. I don't have the rash, body aches, abdominal pain or cough....yet". He stared at me for a few beats and then started laughing and went back to his office.

One thing about barfing non-stop for a day and a half- I got a good ab workout from it.....silver linings, right?

BTW- how awesome is it that Pluto has an MST3K channel???

Weird coincidence today. I came across a tiny vial of Q-bit and then in another box, I came across some BBW Orange Ginger Energy products. One I haven't smelled in about 8 years and the other I stopped wearing about that same time. It was weird, but really nice.

I got up really early this morning since a friend said she was going to call me from the airport (to kill time waiting for her flight). She must have been running late, she didn't call. Since I was up already, I decided to enjoy the rain a little bit. Got dressed and headed out the door on foot by 6am. It was so nice out! Drizzly, but not too bad as I'd put my hair back and had a cap on Got a couple of things done, swung by Starbucks to get my usual Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher and came home. I had 70's music on while I was showering / changing, which is usually a good thing. Then they decided to follow the excellent song "The Hustle" with the downer buzzkill that is Harry Chapin's "Cat's in the Cradle". How do you rationalize that? Then they came out with "Ballroon Blitz". I need a steadier groove this early on a Saturday morning!

Okay, I feel more positive about things. I'm not really sure why, but I'll take it.

Besides, it's hard to stay glum when "Slow Ride" by Foghat comes on followed by a little "Knock Three Times" (yeah, I like Tony Orlando and Dawn while I'm doing stuff....don't judge).

Work was busy, but in a good way. I had a good convo with my boss this afternoon and made him laugh a lot, which is always fun. He's been feeling poorly lately, so getting him to laugh is a good thing!

For the first time in a while, I'm feeling a little upbeat, I hpoe nothing happens to ruin it!!

Yay! It's Wednesday, only two more get-ups until the weekend! Hopefully, I'll take my car to get it washed, I keep putting it off and it's getting dirty.

Ooooh, Free just came on!

Well, the news out of Washington is bad. Kavanaugh was confirmed and sworn in.

This whole thing has brought back feelings I haven’t felt in many years. A while ago, I was in a situation where I was telling the truth and, because of external forces, quotas, whatever you want to call them, I wasn’t believed. To the people / organizations / bureaucracies I was dealing with, it’s “not a big deal, why are you so upset? Get over it! It’s trivial!”. But it WAS a big deal to me. I know other folks who went through similar situations and they didn’t give a shit, but I did. I still do. I wasn’t lying and it’s very important to me that I am seen as a person of my word. I’m a person you can count on to follow through on promises and someone who you can trust what they say.

I felt helpless, disappointed, disgusted, hopeless, railroaded, angry, disillusioned, sad, depressed, etc. we were always taught that the side of good always prevails. It was a harsh reality lesson to me that, in the real world, people and truth don’t matter.

Even if we were to take the accusations off the table, the sneering entitled demeanor and partisan beliefs/actions of this man prove that he should not be on the Supreme Court. This is not a man who will put the law ahead of his agenda. I can only hope that the conservative justices that were already on the court will perhaps vote a little to the left in order to counterbalance his potentially dangerous actions and keep the court balanced. I ferverently hope that Justice Ginsburg can serve for at least another 6 years.

As sad as it is, I’ve lost faith. I don’t believe the senators that voted to confirm this man will be voted out. I don’t think there will be any shift in numbers after the election. Right is wrong, up is down, front is back. Nothing makes sense anymore and it’s heartbreaking.

I have a screen grab, but I don’t know how to attach it here. It says “I love my country, but I’m ashamed of my government”. It’s such an accurate sentiment right now.

Hopefully, I’ll post something more upbeat later.

Have a good day, do something nice for someone...

Wow, today was a shitty, SHITTY day.

Switching gears a little, actually switching gears a lot. Watching the hearing today, I admire Doctor Ford so much!

It was on a few of the televisions at work and, being in the industry I am, I felt like I was alone in an office with a bunch of people in it. Everyone is so conservative and making comments about the whole event that, honestly, hurt and offended me. Nothing sympathetic or even humane said about this incredibly brave woman who had NOTHING to gain by coming forward, but EVERYTHING to lose. She has dealt with so much since her name was revealed. I can't even imagine what it took to go through with it. She handled everything with the two things our administration doesn’t have even the tiniest amount of: grace and intelligence. We need more people like her.

I'm currently watching a program that is showing the cast's reaction to the 2016 presidential election returns coming in. I actually shed a couple of tears. Like an idiot, I was hoping they were going to show a different result. The last (almost) two years have not felt real to me. All the hatred, anger, lying, stupidity, moving backwards from all the gains we have made as a people, the deliberate destruction of anything and everything President Obama accomplished... is this how things are going to be from now on? It's so depressing. Look at the election results in Sweden, Austria, Italy, France, Denmark and other countries since Trump was elected. Nationalism is rising up and it's scary.

I think I'm going to go do some baking, that should help distract me, if even for a short time..

Decided to make a trek down behind the orange curtain this past weekend. We had tickets for both of the Joel McHale shows at the Irvine Improv. How was it? AWESOME! Both guys were really funny! It was a pretty lengthy show and it was just Joel and one opener. Definitely a value for my hard earned money! Staying down there was a good call. I forgot how long it takes to get to/from Irvine. There is always traffic.

On Monday, being the clutz that I am (and easily bruised) I lost my balance while standing on a box in my closet, which caused me to trip, fall, land on and drag my leg down the corner of a wooden box. Now I have a scratch that’s 4 inches long and a MASSIVE purple/black bruise that’s 4 inches long and 3 inches wide (yes, I measured, ‘cause I’m a dork) above and to the side of my knee. It happened 3 days ago and it’s still swollen and hard. GAH!! I guess shorts and dresses outside the house are off the menu for a while.

Today was the birthday of a friend at work, so I made them a chocolate cake from and old family recipe (with cream cheese frosting from scratch). I added pecans to the cake and put chopped semi-sweet chocolate to the outside on top of the frosting. It turned out really well, I wish I would have taken a picture if it. Added to the small batch bourbon and gift cards I bought, they seemed pretty happy. Phew!!

I’ve been in a weird, stressed, melacholy-yet-good mood lately. What does that mean? That means everyone at the office has been having to eat my baked goods. I guess that’s how I deal with some things, baking. In the last few weeks, I’ve made truffle brownies, cookies, cake and rice crispy treats with chocolate chips (that one can’t be considered baking though). I think next week I’ll bombard them with endless loaves of zucchini bread. My cookbooks and recipe boxes are living on my counter!

It’s Weds, so only two more get-ups, yay!! I get my roots done on Friday, so I’ll be starting the week in (hopefully) good shape!
Speaking of my hair, I’m thinking about growing out my bangs. It's been two months so far and hasn't annoyed me too much yet. We’ll see how I feel in a few weeks, lol!!

Well, I've got stuff I should probably be doing....

I was asked by a very kind person who doesn’t really know me that well if “everything is okay at home?” I was confused....then I realized that, while asking, they were looking at the underside of my exposed forearm, which had a really nasty bruise exposed.

I looked down and laughed, shocking them (from their expression). Then I had to thank them profusely for their concern, explain that I’m single at the moment and then tell them my bruise was a result of dumbass me, sitting in the drive-thru at Del Taco bored, waiting FOREVER for my crinkle cut fries and burrito.

To pass the time, I was messing with my hair and got a long strand caught and decided to drop the single hair out of my window. I proceeded to push the button to roll the window down, stuck my arm out, not realizing that I’d done something else to the button, causing the window to come back up really fast and close on my arm. I couldn’t stop it fast enough! Getting your arm stuck in a car window really hurts!!

The result? A HUGE bruise on my arm that looks like someone grabbed me and held on hard!

That poor person didn’t know how to react! I think I put them at ease though, they were laughing at me by the end of my explanation! They were so sweet and nice... I was embarrassed.

The burrito and crinkle cut fries were SO worth my shame though!!!

It was so kind of them to ask and it took a lot of guts, I hope they continue to ask if they see things amiss and that I haven’t put them off with my gluttonous, yet bruising Del Taco adventure.

Yikes! We walked over 6 miles when we went to Santa Monica / Venice this past weekend! It was fun though. As we had a birthday in our small group, we insusted on getting cheesy Venice souvenirs. Some of the stuff you can find....crazy!! breakfast was good. Thankfully, we didn’t go to Shutters and instead ended-up on the top level outside patio of a bar / restaurant in Venice. The breakfast tacos were outstanding! we finished at just the right time, it started to get really warm out.

Looks like I’m going to be in Santa Monica Saturday morning. meeting a couple of co-workers at the pier to walk to Venice, then brunch/breakfast back in Santa Monica afterwards. One of them likes to go to Shutters, but I don’t feel like going there and spending a zillion $$$ on eggs. Hopefully, we’ll go someplace else. I enjoy that walk a lot, but I’ve got chores to do!! Ah well, it’s only a few hours. I’m sure it will be fun. Right?

I went on my usual Labor Day road trip this past weekend. The only differences with this year compared to previous years are that I went solo and I drove my new car.

I’ll be honest, apparently my car has “performance” tires, where I guess “performance” means that you feel every bump in the road, because their profile is so low. Because of that, the drive each way was even more exhausting than usual.... and let me tell you, 7-8 hours straight in a car is tiring enough! I only stop once, to get gas, so breaks are rare. My arms were sore from holding the steering wheel so tight! Plus, my car has a weird “driver attention is low” notice that flashes with an icon of a cup of coffee while it does something wierd with the steering wheel. Excuse me? I’m driving hundreds of miles in a straight line, my attention isn’t low, there’s just nothing to do!!! WTF??

I was really glad to see, once I got to the mountains, that lakes have more water than in previous years. They’ve been so low in the past I was afraid it would be the same this time I rolled through. I really live that part of the drive! The mountains are so pretty!!! Mojave, Death Valley, a good portion of the 5 FWY, not so much.

We’ve been working on a stressful project at work, so now that it was over (Friday), it was great to leave the office and not worry about it. Believe it or not, I actually slept in to at least 7am each day!! Usually I’m up by 5:30, but this time I guess my body really needed the rest. My dad was shocked!

What did I do while visiting my folks? NOTHING!!!  We stayed home the whole time and relaxed.  Since I got in at 7:30pm Friday, I was too tired to eat dinner, but the rest of the trip we barbecued or made pizza and had cocktails. A couple of nights we used their fire pit to make s’mores under the stars. You can see everything in the night sky out there!!!

I was sad to have to leave and come home.  I missed Gotham though.

It’s good I did come home though....I came back to gazillions of ants in the kitchen. Just what you want to do after driving for most of the day, get rid of ants.

Today, after work, I need to get the bugs washed off my car and put some gas in it. I drove about 1,000 miles!!!  Then I’m going home, taking a hot shower, then relaxing until I fall asleep. Chores are for another day!

<yawn> I’m beat!!!

I got a really neat compliment recently. I was told by someone who has known me for over 27 years that I am a kind, loyal, caring, nice person and a very good friend. Seriously?  WOW! I almost started crying! It’s nice hear things like that, especially if you are feeling down.  My friendships are just about the most important thing to me, outside my very small family.  It’s so awesome to know that people appreciate me and my friendship as much as I appreciate them.

She DOES think I need to get angrier at other asshole friends though.

In regards to anger (not sadness or disappointment, but anger), 99.5% of the time, it’s just not worth it. Don’t get me wrong, I get pissed-off! No doubt about it, I’m human, but I do my best to not hold on to that anger overnight (at the most, a couple of days!). I can honestly say, there are only three people in my life I’ve not forgiven for various things. Two are old bosses and one is a relative. At least those are the only three I can come-up with right now!

The best way to describe it is I do my best to put myself into the other person’s position and look at the intent (as far as I can tell).  Everyone has bad days and says things they don’t mean. People have off days. I posted about  a month ago that I got a horrible haircut, now- am I going to be upset by that and yell and never go back to my hairdresser again? Of course not!!!  Shit happens. She didn’t do it on purpose!  We ALL should try and take breath and do that more often.

I’m not going to knowingly be a doormat, but I will be as understanding as I can..... it might take a day or two, but I do get past things.

Although, to be honest, rather than get mad, I’m far more likely to think I’ve done something wrong and they’re angry at ME and then I’ll feel horrible. I need to work on that! 😬 Better than rage though!!

Anyway, as corny as it sounds: don’t go to bed angry at anyone if you can help it and try to see things from the other persons point of view. You’ll be happier.

Spent yesterday volunteering at a HUGE living facility that’s going to become a home for homeless families.  I’m not sure what this place was before we got there.  It didn’t feel like a motel or hostel, but didn’t feel like a house either.

Each room has it’s own full bathroom, so they are hoping to be able to provide housing for one family per room.  I think there were about 12 rooms and they are hoping to get four people per room (twin beds). It’s a tight fit, but much better than the alternative (the streets).  Each family will have their own refrigerator in the humongous kitchen, so cooking and eating will be communal, which I like the idea of.

We spent the entire day cleaning toilets, showers, floors, walls, windows, EVERYTHING. The building seemed like it had been abandoned for a bit.  A lot of stuff (like sinks and windows) had weird damage to them. There was still so much to do, but I think a lot got done. Next, they need painting and some repairs done, but I think they are waiting for more donations.

When I got home, my clothes were (still) soaked through with gross sweat (even after a fairly ling drive) and I was exhausted. It was a good feeling though.  Helping make a difference, even a small one, always feels good. I managed to shower and eat/drink, but that’s about it. I slept like the dead for ten and a half hours last night!! Very sore today, but it was so worth it!!

Ugh! I'm so tired, but I can't sleep. The countdown to when I have to get-up for work is on.....

It's only Tuesday, but it's been a challenging week.  Monday mid-day we got slammed with a project at work. On top of regular work. Exhausting!

I dropped my car off yesterday afternoon to get the protective coating applied (inside and out). I was fortunate enough to have a co-worker pick me up this morning and take me to work, but they weren't able to take me back to the dealership this afternoon (last minute family emergency came-up). It wasn't a problem, but it was the first time in a long time that I've taken the train to Union Station and then catch another train, then a Lyft. Walking through Union Station brought back so many sensory memories. The smells, the texture of the floors, the shine on the seating in the main terminal and the sunlight streaming in made me think of my last trip through a few years ago. I have to admit that I was wistful as I trudged my way up to my platform.

It took a looooong while, but I got to the dealer and picked-up my super-shiny car!  It's supposed to last 10 years (with a reapplication at 5 years). I hope it keeps the ride looking nice, it was expensive, even with the discount!!

I got home and didn't feel enough energy for cooking dinner, so I ate a handful of tortilla chips and two mini dark chocolate peanut butter cups, washed down with a Diet Coke. Alongside some breakfast bread, thats my intake for today. LOL, usually I eat really healthily, but sometimes I eat like a 5 year-old!!!

I just wish sleep would come, I'm running out of episodes of Southern Charm to watch!!!

Not much is happening here. Gotham and I are battling through the miserable summer weather though. Seriously looking into an additional a/c unit, if I can find an affordable portable unit.

Went to see Wendy Leibman perform at Flappers in Burbank this past weekend. Had a great time!! She's still as funny as I remember. I need to go to more comedy shows! The next one planned isn't until September.

My dad made a surprise visit last Friday morning..... with a trailer full of stuff. My living room looks like an antique furniture shop and my hallway looks like a storage closet. Argh!  It was good to see him though, even if it was for just a couple of hours. I can't believe he drove 12 hours down here (it takes longer with a trailer), slept a few hours, came to my house (I had to take some last-minute time off), unloaded stuff, went to my uncles' house to unload stuff there, went to lunch and then drove 9 hours home. I was really worried about him the entire time.

I am researching mattresses. Mine is so hot to sleep on, is getting old and needs to go!!! I can't believe how complicated and expensive mattresses are. I've been online looking at them constantly in my spare time and I went to a local Sit N Sleep to look at some in-person. It was a horrible experience.  The mattresses were so gross!! They didn't even try to keep them looking clean. Plus, the salesman didn't listen to any of my answers to his questions:

Him: what is your budget?
Me: (low balling him) Well, I really don't want to spend much more than $xxx.
Him: what kind of mattress are you looking for?
Me: well, I sleep REALLY hot, so a cooling mattress with inner springs and a tight top. I don't want to spend a ton though. I mean I don't want a cheapo mattress, but nothing insane either.
Him: how about this Sleep Number bed?
Me: seriously? Dude, that set is over $3,000! If I could afford that, I guarantee you I wouldn't be here looking at mattresses, I'd be paying someone to do it for me.
Him: oh. What about this one?
Me: that's a memory foam mattress, I said I was looking for one with inner springs and a tight top.
Him: okay, here is a good mattress, see how that feels.
Me: um, this is another foam mattress and it's getting hot with me just sitting on it.
Him: yeah, it does that.
Me: remember, I told you I sleep hot and need a cooling mattress.
Him: yeah. How about this floor model (that was $300 more than I told him I wanted to spend).
Me: it's kind of dirty and sagging for so much money.
Him: well, it's a floor model and it IS half off.
Me: so, yeah. I gotta go. Are you going to be here Saturday?
Him: for sure!
Me: okay, cool. I'll come back Saturday and we'll look at more.
As I'm leaving, I thought "there's no way I'm buying a mattress from this place".

There are so many different types of mattresses out there! I'm not tied to inner springs with a tight top, but cooling is imperative!!! Plus, I want one RIGHT NOW, but buying one online takes weeks to get and after my store trip, I'm hesitant about going someplace else.

If anyone has any tips, let me know.....

Ugh! It’s humid, I’m feeling fat (I can’t remember the last time I went to the gym AND I’ve been comfort eating) and I have a bad haircut.

Now the fat part is my own fault, but the hair situation is beyond my control. I went to my normal person last Friday and she said she felt we should take some of the length off. As it was hot as ballz outside, I was agreeable to just about anything that would make me more comfortable in this awful weather. I said “I don’t care, do what you want, just make sure it looks good”.  Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.  She took off too much length (probably about 5-6 inches) and didn’t really blend it. It kind of looks like a third grade picture day disaster haircut.  Oh well, we all have “off” days. Hair grows back (right?). I’ll figure something out. At least it’s still long enough to put back in a ponytail.  First World Problems!!

Work has been super-busy, which is a very good thing.  I’m still loving my car, which I have to get that protective top coat for (you know, that stuff that makes sure the paint is protected).  I think I need to plan a road trip of sorts, even if it’s just me!!

More later.

Well folks, it’s the end of an era.  As of the other day, I no longer own the sweet, SWEET Focus. It was bittersweet. For all the problems I’ve had with the car lately (and all the money spent trying to fix it), it was a great car that lasted 15 years.  After taking it to Ford and having them tell me that they couldn’t fix because Ford no longer makes the part, I made the decision that it was time to let it go.

Luckily, my mom and dad were in town, so I had them go with me to the dealership (I’ve never walked in to one of those places on my own before). I had three used cars all picked-out ahead of time that I wanted to look at and test drive.  I came away with a brand new car. The payments aren’t much more than I would have paid for the used car, which surprised me. Now I gotta see how much my insurance is gonna go up, lol!!

Only drawback so far is that I have no idea how to use most of the bells and whistles, but I’m sure I’ll figure them out when I read the manuals.

There are no two ways about it, the last week has sucked. Work has been good, everything else, not so much. If you don’t have good news for me, I don’t want to know about it, lol!!

This is going to kind of a random post. I’m working on 2 1/2 hours sleep today. Forgive any spelling and/or grammatical errors.... it’s HARD typing posts on my phone!


It’s that time of year again. This time, as they weren’t able to come into town, I flew up to see my folks over the Memorial Day holiday weekend. The weather was really nice and it was neat seeing their new house outside the dead of winter. Everyone was in a good mood and I didn’t get into a single argument over politics with my mom (i.e. I kept my mouth shut). While there, I was able to get all their bluetooth devices paired, Ipod’s loaded with music, Siriusxm enabled and other little tasks they needed my help with.  Dad is supposed to come down in a few weeks for a visit, so I’m looking forward to that.

I had an odd thing happen on the way to the airport. My rideshare driver, who looked to be about 22, had a car that smelled vaguely of weed, who wore a wooly beanie AND a hoodie....asked for my phone number.  I was shocked! Apart from the fact that I’m old enough to be this young man’s mom, it’s rare that random guys ask for my number! I was, quite literally, speechless. Then I managed to say no, but let him down nicely, didn’t hurt his feelings  (and made him laugh) by saying that I’d only known him for 45 mins and that he could be an axe murderer for all I know....but perhaps I would see him around town at some of the bars we’d talked about. (Hopefully, I won’t.)

After all that, I had a birthday. Thank you to everyone who sent such nice wishes.  Because of when it falls (and because I don’t really like to be the center of attention),  I don’t tell a lot of people when the big day comes around, so it’s always nice when friends pop-up with notes and stuff unexpectedly.  So, again, thanks everyone!!

I had a busy weekend in Orange County after that and ended the weekend exhausted.   Not much to complain about here!

Don’t forget to vote today!!!

Here’s hoping I get a little more sleep tonight. Bloodshot eyes are NOT a good look for me!!

I’ve been binging on “Oh No Ross and Carrie” podcasts lately. If you haven’t found them yet, you should give them a listen.

“What are their podcasts about?”, you ask? Well, they try/join fringe science, religions, so you don’t have to. Very interesting!  Some examples of things they have done/joined:

Scientology (I think 11 episodes....this was my favorite)
Moromonism
Kabbalah
Rythmia (Costa Rican Ayahuasca clinic/resort)
Gazing with Braco (pronounced “Bratzo”)
Myers Briggs personality testing (I’m a Mediator)
Ouijaboards
Cryotherapy
Ear candling
The Flex Belt
Christian Science
Synthetic Pheremones
Isolation Tanks
Theresa Caputo (psychic)
Flat Earthers
Ordo Templi Orientis

And MANY more. It’s an interesting, funny podcast. I highly recommend it to everyone.

Not much else going on. I’m loving the cool weather, too bad it’s supposed to be so hot in a few days.

Gotham is doing okay. I need to take him back and get tested again in a few weeks to see if everything is good.

Work is going well. Had a few hiccups today, but nothing I can’t handle....at least that’s what I keep telling myself!

More later, gotta iron my work clothes. Ick.

It's been a few weeks since I've posted anything, so I thought I'd put something up.

Not much is going on, just working and trying to shred every document I have that I don't need (a never-ending process).

After some online research, I tracked down and got in touch with my best friend from my college sorority. I know what you're thinking .... "YOU were in a sorority? You are the opposite of joiner, you don't have a lot of patience for women who complain about nothing constantly and you're not thin, tall and blonde with blue eyes". Well, all that was true then as it is now. I didn't have a choice and was forced to join one. I pretty much hated the entire experience, but I did make a few friends who were awesome. We were the misfits who spent all our spare time going out dancing at the Red Onion (ARGH!!  Remember that place?), the Palace in Hollywood, going for $1 shots at the Acapulco, $1 movies at the 2nd run theater and hanging out with the fraternity guys who had a nice shared house that we could hang out at (more fun than sorority sisters for sure).

It's been nice reconnecting after all these years since we last spoke. The cool thing about it is that neither of us feels or acts like we're grown-ups (even though we're pushing 50 and she's married with a 12 year-old).  She and her husband own her parents house, so I was able to drive out and still remember how to get there without directions, I was practically on autopilot.

She looks the same as she did in school, which isn't fair!!!

Next time we get together, she's going to come out this way. Yikes!!!  I guess that means I'd better shred more stuff so she doesn't think I'm a paper hoarder crossed with Fred Sanford.

This woman knew me when I was working 3 jobs to pay for tuition and books while going to school full time. Concerts, friends, not studying and having fun were important to me. I wasn't the responsibility / repercussion fanatic that I am today. Back when I didn't have the hang-ups I do now (well, I had a couple). I wonder if she sees me as being the same or radically different?

I know my eyebrow game is much more on point now than it was then!!!

Weird.

Happy Birthday CBLMW, I hope you have a wonderful day. This next year is going to be your best yet.

A quick update on Gotham...

As recommended by the vet, I took my handsome boy in for more tests (thanks to Sam for driving us, so I could try to keep him a little bit calm on the way to/from the appointment).

Turns out, according to the tests: in addition to his kidney issues, Gotham has hypertension as well. We’re starting him on a prescription for the hypertension and the new special prescription food for the kidney stuff. Fingers-crossed this stuff works. He’s too handsome to be sick. I’m so thankful he’s not in any discomfort and probably doesn’t know anything is amiss. The vet caught most of it so early, he probably just feels a little run down.  We’ll adjust.

Not that we’ve got much of a choice, this is our new reality...me trying to give him heart pills and food most cats hate. Yay? How do you give a cat a pill?

Updates at the end.

Wow, so here I am at Gallifrey. Again. I don’t know how many years we’ve been coming, but I think it’s year number 12.  I know I keep saying I’m never coming back, but it keeps pulling me back in!

To be honest, the programming for this year is awful. Don’t get me wrong —They have good guests, but crummy panels. Everything seems like a mish-mash or something you had to get additional tickets for or pay extra.  PLUS, who the fuck came up with “The Cornell Collective”??!!?? Is that a joke?  My nemesis gets a panel?  He was also the first person I saw when I got here. Lucky me!!  LOL!!!

Not much to do downstairs, but I’ve already made time to go down to the dealer room and bought a cd box set. I’m sure I’ll pick-up a few more things tomorrow, but I wanted to make sure I got this set before they sell out.

By the time I saw the programming schedule, it was too late to cancel the hotel reservation, so I’m just enjoying staying in a hotel, which I rarely, if ever, do any more. It’s kinda nice being in a fancy room. A little cold though. I haven’t figured out the a/c properly yet. BAH!  I just turned it off. Seemed to be the easiest course of action.

It’s weird, sitting here watching the Winter Olympics in this VERY hotel. Last time I did this was the convention where I met CBLMW.   I found myself thinking about him all of a sudden a little while ago. I had this enormous sense of de ja vu, the only things missing are the Twitter DM’s and then text messages.  <Sigh>  if he’s reading this “I hope you’re doing well, and maybe we can catch-up one day soon”.

Now, if only curling could come on (I LOVE CURLING!!!).

Well, I’m getting kind of hungry. I’ll post later.

Updates:

We walked down the street and picked-up sandwiches and stuff to bring back to the room.  Figure Skating was on, plus some ski jump stuff. Curling finally came on sometime around 1am and was AWESOME!! I think I got to sleep sometime after 2am and got up around 6am and watched more curling, skiing and (I think) biathlon (skiing and shooting). Not in a hurry to get downstairs, plus my head hurts a little from the couple of cocktails I had last night (I’m not used to that anymore).

I’ll head down to the convention later.

Sunday Morning:

Not much of interest here today programming-wise. There is a panel later today I’d like to attend, but it’s not until around 4:30pm, so I think I’m just going to do another turn around the dealer room and then head home. I don’t feel like sitting on my ass, killing time for 8 hours just to see one panel.

So, I’m going try and pick up a couple of things, then leave.  I want to hang some pictures and do a little cleaning today at home, so I can relax tomorrow (holiday Monday). I also want to drop by Marshalls and Home Goods at some point....

I got home a little while ago and it’s so nice to just relax and take stock of things. I have a huge amount of document shredding to do and a ton of stuff to put away in cupboards/trash (I moved furniture around), but it’s so nice to be home!

I got a little bit of distressing news yesterday, I’ll post about it later. It played a part in me deciding to head home.

The news: Okay, so around December I thought it looked/felt like Gotham was losing weight. I wasn’t sure, so I decided to keep an eye on him.  I measured his collar and it was getting looser and looser. He’s been on prescription food for a few years, so I thought maybe he was bored with it and not eating as much. I did some research and found a food he liked that was good for him in his situation. He gained some weight back, but I wanted to take him in to the vet to get checked out and to have his teeth cleaned (he’s never had it done). The vet said his teeth looked good and there was no real rush for the cleaning, but he was concerned about the weight loss and a couple of other things, so we did a full senior blood and urine panel. I got a call from his vet Saturday with the results and he’s got kidney issues. Luckily, we caught it early and we are hopeful that a change in diet will keep it under control, but I guess a lot of cats don’t really like the prescription food, so we’ll see what happens.

While I was typing this, the vet called again to let me know that they need to run another urine test. I have to take him in Saturday to get his blood pressure and other things tested, so I guess we will do yet another test then.

I’m grateful all this was caught early and I understand it’s pretty common, but I’m still upset. Gotham has been with me for almost 12 years and is just about the most important thing to me. The thought that, in addition to his normal immune system issues, he has something else to battle breaks my heart.  I just want him happy and healthy and around for a long time to come. My poor baby. At least it doesn’t hurt him (I asked if it causes pain/discomfort and the vet said no). 🙁

Happy New Year to everyone out there!!

I spent a quiet NYE at home. I was supposed to go out with my friends Samantha and Terry, but decided in the end to stay in. Even though my hangover the day after Christmas was fairly minor, I didn't particularly feel like a repeat. Besides, I started the project of cleaning out and organizing my bedroom closet in the afternoon and really wanted to start the New Year with it done..... and I did!!!  It looks great!

Today, I spent the day trying to keep the momentum going. I cleaned the bathroom, changed the bed linens (okay, I usually do that every Sunday anyway, but STILL, it's a new year.....the bed deserves new sheets. ) I also got some of the kitchen done AND I managed to sneak in two loads of laundry at 6am.... it's weird, my neighbors have been doing laundry every day for the past 6 weeks and I have to try and do mine at weird hours if I want the machines to be free. I'd planned on sleeping in today!!! As soon as I was done though, they were off and running washing clothes. I wonder if they are moving?

Tomorrow, after work, I think I'm going to take down the tree and wreath and stuff. I was going to leave everything up until after we celebrate my friends birthday, but I think that might just be kind of silly.  This year I'm actually going to mark the boxes "ornaments", so I can find them again next year.

I'm also going to maybe un-box and use my new oven tomorrow. 😁  I hope I don't burn anything too bad!!!

Speaking of which, I need to go fix dinner.

Again, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!