The Journey

No Rest For The Wicked

2004-07-24T20:30:00.000-04:00

I feel like I have constantly been on the go lately. Getting into a new job, a whirlwind weekend of company and concerts, and the usual day to day stuff that seems to take up whole days on its own. All in all, it's been a good couple of weeks, but I'm SO glad that I have this weekend off, so I can just sit back and relax a little.

Today has been fairly busy. I ran a bunch of errands, did some laundry, cleaned my apartment. That means that tomorrow, I have a whole day, just to chill and relax. In any case though, here are the highlights of the past week and a half:

~A bunch of us almost got kicked out of Zebb's. (You know you're in trouble when the manager asks if you called him over to the table just to abuse him... and then you later discover that he's the owner's son...)

~Mom and Sarah came to visit for the weekend, and we did all sorts of stuff. Set Sarah up with a cell phone, saw where the townhouse she's renting next semester is, did a *bunch* of shopping, and of course, went to Sarah's birthday concert. The concert was totally awesome (although sorely lacking a much desired tapestry :-( ), and then we got up nice and early the next morning so everyone could head out.

~I got the next installment in my family's dysfunction. Every time I think that I've gotten to the point where nothing can surprise me, I manage to be proven wrong yet again. I guess it's good that something in my life can exceed my expectations, huh?

~After everyone left, I ended up getting called in early to work a ten hour shift. Between a very busy weekend, and a long shift at work, I spent most of Tuesday catching up on some much needed sleep.

~Wednesday and Thursday, the network was down *again*. Thankfully, I was working enough to where it didn't really matter.

~Friday was a long day at work, but lead into a full two days off, which I'm enjoying very much.

And now I'm just waiting until Monday, so the whole pattern can start all over again...

One Surprise After Another

2004-07-14T22:04:00.000-04:00

It's been a busy couple of days. I didn't really have much planned--a couple of short shifts at work was really all that was in the works. Somehow though, I ended up getting thrown a lot more than that--not in a bad way at all, which is a welcome change.

It started off with a phone call from Tim yesterday morning. We ended up getting together for lunch, and then playing Nintendo for a few hours, slowly adding on to our Super Mario World progress. That lasted until I had to go into work to learn the new computer system-- and how thrilling was that? ::rolls eyes:: Anyway, after work, I ended up going out to dinner with some coworkers, and then did some shopping. After that, we ended up playing chess for a couple of hours. Then I got home... literally just in time for company. Nicole decided that since her summer class was cancelled on Thursday, and her parents were out of town, she would come up and visit for a couple of days. Thankfully, my apartment has not reacted as badly to company this time as it did the first time. ::knocks on wood::

So, we watched a movie and hung out for a while, before I turned in early. It's a good thing that I did go to sleep reasonably early (translation: 1:00 AM), because I was wide awake at 6:00, and had no way of returning to sleep. I ended up lying around for a while, and then turning off my alarm before it could go off at 7:30. I got up, and went into work for the fun of trainer certification class. That was actually quite entertaining, all things considered. On my way home, Tim called, and he ended up coming over for another bit of Mario. I seriously think this may be turning into a dangerous addiction, although we have already defeated the game, and are now working our way through finding every single world that exists. Eh. At least we're entertaining to watch when we're playing, according to Nicole. I think she may have been a little scared when we started swearing at the game. I couldn't imagine *why* that would disturb her. (Bleck-bleck! Where's the bleck-bleck?!)

After Tim left to go to work, Nicole and I went to Uptown and saw "Shrek 2". It was a really cute movie. I think I found the first one funnier, because of the originality at that point, but there were some hysterical one liners in the second one too. I definitely laughed a LOT. After the movie, we went to Barnes and Noble for a while, which was *extremely* tempting, but I was very proud of myself for leaving with nothing. We ended up grabbing some dinner and coming back to the apartment, where we both just... sat and read all night. All said, it's been a great couple of days, with some very nice unexpected surprises.

Tomorrow, I'm working all afternoon, so Nicole's going to head out when I go into work. Then I work a long shift on Friday, and I have the weekend off, just in time for Mom and Sarah to visit. I'm not sure what we're doing on Saturday once they get here (besides a very belated birthday celebration for Sarah), but Sunday, we're heading out to the concert for Sarah's birthday. All said, this is shaping up to be a pretty great week. :-)

Catching Up

2004-07-11T20:03:00.000-04:00

Kris and I got together today after she ran the Boilermaker, and it was so nice to see her. It's weird. She's one of those people that I see once, maybe twice a year, but as soon as we see each other, it's like no time has passed at all. When she got here, we went out for some food. In honor of old traditions, we went to Ponderosa for brunch. We sat and talked for so long that our server was getting annoyed, so then we came back to my apartment. We caught up on all sorts of stuff, and filled each other in on any gossip that we had heard. It was just so nice to relax and hang out.

After she left, I sat down to read, and passed out on the couch for a couple of hours. After only being able to sleep for about three hours last night though, it was nice to get in a little more sleep. Now I'm just hoping that I'll be able to fall asleep tonight. I've been sleeping well for almost two weeks now, and I would prefer to keep it that way.

A Day In The Life

2004-07-11T00:36:00.000-04:00

Today was a day of... I don't know what.

It started off normally enough. I went out and ran some errands, including buying a new pair of glasses. Ouch to my bank account on that one, but it was one of those necessary evils, particularly with the way that my allergies have been acting up lately. My contacts don't feel so great when my eyes are red, watery, and itching before I even put them in. Hopefully, having new glasses will help that situation.

When I got home, I ended up on the phone most of the night. Doreen and I ended up talking for an hour and a half, and I got filled in on all of the amusing Jersey gossip. Good to know that some things never change. Then Sarah called, and we talked for over an hour. She had all sorts of exciting news to share. She and a friend of hers are renting a townhouse next semester. Just the two of them, renting a townhouse. I am actually kind of blown away. My baby sister is going to be living a bigger place than I am--and she hasn't even graduated college yet! lol. She also had some nice interesting information to share with me that managed to get me completely pissed off at my father. Granted, that's not all that hard to do, but this one was right up there in the top five times I've been pissed off at him, and THAT is quite the accomplishment. I was also beyond livid that it was my sister who had to tell me this information, putting her in the middle of the situation that she had no part of, and yet got pulled in to. God, he pisses me off!!!

The good news is, tomorrow is the Boilermaker, and so Kris is in town for the weekend. She's running tomorrow morning, and then we're going to spend the day together. I haven't seen her since I stopped at her place on the way down to New Orleans in February, so it will be nice to have an afternoon to catch up.

Decisions, Decisions

2004-07-08T01:26:00.000-04:00

I was out running errands today, when I got an unexpected job offer. There is a good side to this, and a bad side to this. The good side: without even knowing that I was looking, someone offered me a job in which I can make a pretty good amount of money. The bad side: the job is at Friendly's. Ugh. I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I said that I would think it over and get back to them in a few days. On one hand, I need a job, and this one has kind of fallen into my lap. On the other hand, I swore to myself that I did not want to go back to Friendly's.

I was actually offered a position as a supervisor, but I turned that down immediately. I don't want that kind of responsibility, and I don't need a position like that for my resume anymore. Then, I was offered a server position, with whatever kinds of hours I want. That one is a little more tempting. I made more money as a server than I ever did as a supervisor, and if I could get the hours I wanted, it really would be a good job to have.

So, I told them that I would think about it for a few days, and they were quick to ensure that I left with an application in hand. I had to laugh when I looked it over. First, there was the normal application, like what you would fill out for any job similar to that. Then, there's the second half. Apparently, Friendly's now administers an "interest survey" along with their applications. In looking it over, it almost seems like more of a psych evaluation... although after working there for a year and a half, I guess I can understand why they would resort to that.

I guess for the time being, I'm kind of biding my time for a few more days to see if any of the other places I applied to call me back, and I'll take things from there.

Growing Up

2004-07-05T12:14:00.000-04:00

In the past few days, I've been feeling very old. It started the other night, when I was talking to Kristen. We were talking about all sorts of things when she mentioned that she had been house hunting. As in she's looking to buy a house. That just stopped me dead in my tracks. Now, I feel like I've really been making some good steps in my life lately. I'm settling into a job that I like, I'm looking at starting my Master's Degree, and I'm just feeling very comfortable about where things stand in my life. But the idea of buying a house?! That's just so... Inconceivable to me. I can't even imagine *thinking* about buying a house.

Then today, Erin called. As we were talking, she was telling me about all of the things that she's planning for her wedding next summer. That, in and of itself, didn't faze me, because she's been planning this wedding for what seems like a decade. They've literally been engaged for at least four years, However, when it really hit me that she was getting married next summer, and not at some distant "someday" date, I was suddenly amazed.

It's not just people who I knew that were a few years older than me settling down in their lives anymore. Now it's my friends--people the same age as me. They're getting married, and buying houses, and generally establishing themselves. And that gets me wondering how I feel about doing that in my own life. Just how content am I about where I am right now? Hmm... definitely something to think about.

Good and Bad of the Day

2004-07-01T22:20:00.000-04:00

When I worked in NJ, I always started my staff meetings off with a good and bad for the week. It's something that one of my RD's used to do, and I just liked the way it got the staff to share some things. Today was one of those days that would have made both at my weekly meeting.

Today's bad: Around 6:00, my phone rang. It was Tim, and he asked me if I wanted to go out to dinner with him. I said sure, and he said that he would be there in five minutes, which struck me as a little weird, since he lives a half hour away. In any case, we ended up going to Friendly's for dinner, and he told me that his grandfather had died this morning. I felt so bad. Tim didn't really seem to be that upset, and he said that he and his grandfather weren't that close, but still... I hate it when there is just nothing to say.

Today's good: In other news, I got a fantastic check in the mail today from the IRS. You have to love getting money that you never thought you'd see. Plus, I managed to get a ton of errands run today, which means that this weekend is going to be a nice, relaxing holiday weekend. Now I just have to hope that I hear from one of the applications I submitted today...

Crafts, Thomas, and Harry Potter

2004-06-29T23:36:00.000-04:00

It's been a week since I posted, and what a week it has been. Here's the recap:

Thursday: 70 kids, 150 feet of paper, and a LOT of paint. Afterwards, Megan and I cleaned up one hell of a mess, but the mural turned out great.

Friday: Door hangers and visors with the kids, followed by a shift at my "new" job. Katie got me hired working with the "Thomas the Train" extravaganza this weekend at the train station. I got paid $10 an hour to sit and ring up orders at the gift shop for the Adirondack railroad. It made for a long day, but hey-- the pay was great!

Saturday: All morning working the Thomas gig. Back to the museum to make light switch covers with the kids. Back to Thomas for another four hours. Long day.

Sunday: 12 hours of ringing up Thomas orders. Then another few hours of packing up Thomas stuff, so it could be moved on to the next town.

Monday: Sleep. Sleep. Started a new book. Slept some more. Caught up on the sleep that I had been missing for the past week.

Tuesday: Tim and I got together for the afternoon. We walked around the mall for a while, and then came back to my apartment. We spent hours playing Super Nintendo, laughing and swearing at the TV. It was actually pretty amusing--I felt like I was about 10 years old again. Then we went to the Grand Opening of the new movie theater. Tim had some free tickets from work. The plan was to go early, grab some food, and then enjoy a free movie. When we got there, the place was *packed* and although they had 14 movies to choose from, there were quite a few of them that weren't new at all. They were already out on video. And none of them really grabbed our attention. So instead, we went and hung out at Barnes and Noble for a while, where I had to use a high level of restraint to keep from buying the new Lincoln Rhyme novel, just out in paperback. Once I get paid at the end of the week though, I make no promises.

The most exciting news I heard today: The name of the sixth Harry Potter book has been announced: "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince." Now if it could just be published already!

Kids, Kids, and More Kids

2004-06-23T21:01:00.000-04:00

After the past two days, I know why even when I considered teaching, it was never elementary. Ugh. Don't get me wrong, I'm having fun with the kid's crafts this week, but wow is it exhausting.

Yesterday was a lousy way to start the week. It poured all day, which didn't really lend itself to outdoor story hours and kid's crafts. We made due though, and had a surprising turn out, considering. I ended up with about 30 kids there for the story hour. Reading books to 30 children, all under the age of six is an experience that everyone should have at least once in their life. The patience and determination it takes to actually get through the books is amazing. But I have to say, I love reading to kids, and they get *so* into the stories.

Yesterday's craft was paper bag puppets, and that went fairly well. Sometimes, I think that things would go even better if the freakin parents would just leave! While the kids can be trying at times, they really aren't the worst part. Some of the parents are just utterly impossible. The idea of waiting 30 seconds for me to help with something is fine with the kids, but the parents have a fit. It didn't help that none of the three volunteers lined up showed up to help. They all thought that the event was off because of the weather. The didn't realize that we were under a full tent.

Today went better. Story hour was not as well attended-only about 15 kids. But the craft today was making edible necklaces. Fairly simple, and the kids loved it. My volunteers showed up, which was a blessing in and of itself when, upon allowing in the first wave of kids, 50 children walked into the tent. All said, we had 70 kids make necklaces in an hour. We definitely had our hands full. Then we had sidewalk chalk art this afternoon. That was awesome. I love seeing just how creative kids can be when left to their own devices. We gave them buckets of sidewalk chalk, and as much space as they could possibly want. The sidewalks ended up looking freakin awesome.

However, both days I have gotten home, sat down on the couch, and fallen asleep. I am just *beat* after spending all day with children that young. I have to say, I will be kind of happy when this week is over. Hopefully, it will just continue to go well. In the meantime, some random thoughts:

~It's really sad how suspicious people have to be today. A lot of the kids wrote their names next to their sidewalk chalk art. One kid was writing her name, when her mother came over and made her stop. Finally, she let her write her first name, but absolutely refused to let her write her last name. It's sidewalk chalk. As soon as it rains, or enough people walk over it, it's going to be gone, and yet... this woman wasn't willing to have her child's name written. And unfortunately, she's probably right to feel that way.

~I do not know *how* elementary school teachers do it. It's September. Let's go walk into a classroom full of 25 six year olds. By June, they must know ALL of this information, or they cannot continue. After spending two days with young children, I wonder if the real goal shouldn't be the teacher making it to June with his or her complete sanity.

~The mother's curse lives. My mom was terribly amused when, after only two hours of working with young kids, I called her up and immediately asked, "How on *earth* did you watch that many kids for that long?!" She found the question much more amusing than I did. Yep. Mmhmm.

Busy Day

2004-06-21T21:17:00.000-04:00

Today was a busy day. Tim and I got together for lunch, and then I went out to buy supplies for this week's crafts. I lucked out in that half the stuff I needed was on sale, and managed to save over $60. Go me!

I also went to the library to take out some children's books for the story hours that start tomorrow. Or at least, that was the plan. However, the children's room was closed. I asked the librarian, and was told that it had been closed for two weeks because the children's librarian was on vacation. Why no one else could work down there to keep access to children's books available, I have no idea. The good news is, she starts back tomorrow, and since the library opens at 8:30, and story hour isn't until 11:00, I can just run over there before I go to set up at the museum.

After running around for a while, Tim and I came back to my apartment. The goal was to install my air conditioner, but things didn't go as planned. My screens in my window can only be removed with an 6 foot ladder, which I do not have. Even if I did have one, it would attract quite a bit of attention. So I guess I'm stuck actually asking permission to have an air conditioner. If they say yes (which is unlikely) I can just put in a work order to have the screen taken out. If they say no (which is much more likely), then I'll be glad that I held on to the receipt, and didn't open the box yet.

In other news, I'm just watching the end of "Salem's Lot" and I'm very impressed by the job they've done on it. It's been a few years since I read the book, but from what I remember, they are doing a very accurate portrayal of it. Now I'm going to have to make sure that rereading it becomes part of my Stephen King kick.

Anyway, I've got to finish putting everything together for tomorrow's crafts. That, and cross my fingers for some nice weather.

La Dee Dah

2004-06-19T22:02:00.000-04:00

Today was very uneventful. I did a bunch of laundry (more than usual, thanks to my apartment issues earlier in the week), and cleaned my apartment. The only thing I didn't get around to was running a vacuum through. Eh. I can take care of that tomorrow. While I cleaned, I listened to the CD of the concert that I sang in while I was down in New Jersey. It finally came in the mail yesterday. The quality on the CD was better than I expected, which was nice, and it's one of the few recordings of me singing a solo that I've actually liked.

I was planning on actually cooking something good for dinner, since it has finally cooled off enough to allow for me to use the stove in my apartment. However, when I started pulling things out for the recipe I wanted to make, I discovered that the milk in my fridge had gone bad. That pisses me off, primarily because it was almost a full gallon of milk, and the only reason that it went bad was because my fridge stopped working on Tuesday. Needless to say, I ended up changing my menu for the evening. I guess I'm buying some more milk tomorrow. :-(

The good news is, the weather today was absolutely beautiful. It cooled off a lot from earlier in the week, and after dinner, I went out for a bike ride. I love summer, but if the summer temperatures stayed about where they are today all summer, I would be a very happy camper. :-)

A Little Off

2004-06-18T19:20:00.000-04:00

Today just felt--off. After having company here for most of the week, my whole schedule was screwed up. I woke up this morning, ran a few errands, and then came back. I probably should have done some cleaning and stuff, but I just have no motivation for it. Instead, I watched some TV, read a little, and now I'm settling in for an evening of SVU.

I've started on a new Stephen King kick. Right now, I'm working my way through "Different Seasons," which is comprised of some fantastic novellas. I can go a long time between reading his work, but then when I start rereading it again, I remember just how ingenious he is. This is good though, because I have a couple of his newer books that I haven't read yet, so now that I'm back in a Stephen King mode, I can work through those ones too.

This weekend should be a nice kick-back weekend. I want to do some reading, take care of a little cleaning, and do some laundry. If I get really motivated, I may attempt to install my air conditioner. Plus, I should probably throw together some samples of the crafts that I'm doing with the kids next week.

The Week Looks Up

2004-06-17T19:08:00.000-04:00

Thankfully, the past two days have gone much better than Tuesday did.

I woke up Wednesday morning to maintenance knocking on my door, as expected. They came in, and took care of the bathroom first. Then they looked at my fridge, and since it was brand new when I moved in, told me that they would have a brand new one for me by the end of the day. The only bad part? I had to move my whole kitchen around so they could get the broken one out and the new one in. Oh well. It could have been worse. I now have a working refrigerator. Yeah!

Once I moved everything around in my kitchen, Nicole and I headed out for another college visit. This time we went to Ithaca College, which was even nicer than Binghamton was. I was seriously amazed by the way that most conducting programs seem to work. Nicole is almost sure that she's going to be applying to Ithaca, although she may also do Binghamton as a backup.

When we got back to Utica, I didn't really feel like cooking, so we went to Zebb's for dinner. Afterwards, we came back here, had a few drinks, and watched a couple of movies. One of them was "The Whole Nine Yards" which was not at all what I expected it to be, but *very* funny all the same.

This morning, I woke up to my phone ringing, although for a good reason, and since it was already 10:30, I couldn't really complain. Nicole and I went out and did some shopping. We hit a few different stores. I restocked my freezer, and I bought an air conditioner! Wee! Tim said that he would come over and help me install it, and then my apartment should actually be bearable for the summer. Thank God.

It Doesn't Rain, It Pours

2004-06-15T23:43:00.000-04:00

It was just... one of those days. First, when I woke up this morning, I found water on my kitchen floor. Why? Because my entire fridge AND freezer defrosted overnight. Not because the door was open or anything. In fact, not for any reason that I could find. So... I went over and filed a work order to get it fixed, and Nicole and I left for our trip of the day.

Upon returning, almost seven hours later, I had a message. They didn't get my work order (which I filled out at 10 am) until after everyone was gone for the day. So... no one looked at my fridge. They would try to get to it tomorrow. If I wanted, I could get security to open up the empty apartment upstairs for me, so I could use that fridge. So, I went through my fridge and freezer, and threw out everything that was ruined. I took the rest of it upstairs and put it in that fridge. Now, of course this happened after I went shopping last week, and bought a bunch of chicken, because it was on sale. I brought it home, and froze it all... and it all defrosted. So now I have to cook all of this chicken in the next week before it goes bad. Anyone want to come over for dinner?

But wait. It gets better.

I made dinner (chicken of course), and Nicole and I watched a movie. A while later, I walk into my bathroom... and step into a puddle of water on the floor. I turn on the light to see where it's from, and find that I have water dripping through my light fixture on to the floor. I immediately turn off the light, and go upstairs to the apartment above me. Of course, no one is home. So I go over to security, and tell them the situation. They come back with me, and key into the apartment above mine. They decide that the seal on the base of his toilet must be faulty, so they call someone in to turn off the water to his toilet.

At this point, I'm really annoyed with my entire apartment, so Nicole and I head out to Friendly's to get some ice cream. An hour later, we return, and I walk into my apartment. There is still water dripping from the ceiling of my bathroom. Now, in addition to dripping through the light fixture, there is a paint bubble about the size of a softball next to the light, which is also dripping water, and looks like it is about to burst any second. I go back over to security, to see where things stand. They've changed shifts by now, so the new guy tells me that the water will stop eventually, and that maintenance will be there to look at it in the morning.

So... chances are, this is going to be a long process. Nicole and I decide that we should really take showers tonight, because God knows if we'll even be able to use the bathroom tomorrow. So we take showers... in the dark. Of course we can't use the light--that might cause an electrical fire. And there are no windows in my bathroom. So we take our nice, dark showers. And now, we're trying to go to bed early, because the maintenance crew starts at 7, and with my luck, they'll knock on my door at 7:05.

Now for a little bit of good news from today. We did drive down and check out Binghamton University, which was very nice. The conducting program, which is what Nicole is looking at, is a really good one. I was amazed when the professor we spoke to said that he accepts one conducting student a year. That's it. That one person then gets literally hundreds of hours of conducting time in during the course of their Master's Program. I couldn't believe how great of a program this sounded like. So that was my good part of the day... and man, did I need it.

Fun and Games

2004-06-14T23:34:00.000-04:00

Nicole got here this afternoon, and we've had a fun evening. We hit Cavallo's for dinner--you've got to love $1.50 spaghetti night. Then we came back and watched a couple of movies. One of those was "Pirates of the Caribbean" which I have to admit was not the greatest movie I have ever seen. When it first came out, I saw the commercials, and didn't think it looked that great. Then, everyone started raving about how good it was, and I figured that maybe it just had some bad commercials. Stranger things have happened. However, I just never got around to watching it. So tonight, we decided to check it out and... I hadn't been missing much. I mean, it was a cute movie, don't' get me wrong, but I just didn't feel like it was worthy of all the hype that people have been giving it.

So... since the movie wasn't as captivating as expected, we pulled out some board games while we were watching it. We played Monopoly and Yatzee and a few different card games, while we caught up on some good stories. Tomorrow begins the real fun of road trips to go check out various colleges. There's nothing like a good road trip to create some funny stories. :-P

Productive Days

2004-06-13T21:42:00.000-04:00

Well, today was a much more productive day than yesterday. And actually, my apartment looks pretty damn good! It's finally in order. Everything is where I want it, and all of my organizational systems, as strange as they may seem to others, are set to my perfection. The only thing I'm not sure about is that I still have some chairs that go with my table that I don't know where to put. Right now, they're just kind of stacked against a wall in my living room. I don't really need them right now, but I don't really have much space in the way of storage, so I'm not sure what to do with them. Eh. I'll figure it out eventually.

Now I'm looking forward to a good week of relaxing, visiting, and doing a little sight-seeing. :-D

"Strike That. Reverse It."

2004-06-12T21:30:00.000-04:00

I had every intention of getting up today, and doing a once over on my apartment. I figured that if I got my cleaning done today, tomorrow would be a nice day of relaxation before Nicole got here. Yeah. That was the plan.

When I woke up, I had absolutely no motivation to do anything. I did manage to wash some dishes, and clean the kitchen, but that was as far as I got. Instead of cleaning the rest of the day, I read outside for a while (it was a beautiful day) and then watched "Dogma." Now I'm watching a four hour stint of "Law and Order: SVU" and even though I've seen all four episodes, I really don't feel like doing anything else.

I guess that means that today was my relaxation day. Tomorrow I get all the fun of cleaning the rest of my apartment, and washing some sheets and towels. I'm hoping that it will be a dreary day, and that might act as a motivating factor. Eh. We'll see.

Gnomes and Moshi Pillows

2004-06-11T22:23:00.000-04:00

Tonight was a surprisingly eventful evening. Tim and Katie called me around six, and ended up coming over for a while. We were sitting here talking, and Katie needed to run out to the car for something. While she was gone, Tim and I got talking about something. When she came back in, I could tell from the look on her face that she was up to something, but as Tim and I were right in the middle of a conversation, I didn't ask. By the time the subject changed, I had been well distracted. So, the evening went on, and we decided to run out for a while. Tim and Katie were looking to price sheets for their move to Michigan, and I was pricing air conditioners. As we walked out the door, poor Tim was telling me a story about some of the after-effects of last week's accident, and as we walked out the door, I went to look back at him and *burst* out laughing. It seems that Katie had gone to the car to get the plaque that was now hanging on my door. It was a round plaque that reads, "Welcome to my gnome" complete with the classic gnome figure. I was dying.

So, we went out to a variety of stores. We started at Bed, Bath, and Beyond, but there weren't really any good sheets there, unless they wanted to spend $100 on a sheet set, and that didn't seem to be too popular of an idea. After that, we continued on to good ol' Walmart, where I found an air conditioner that I may go back and buy. We'll see. From there, we drove across town to Linens N' Things. While Tim and Katie still didn't find a sheet set that they liked, all three of us did discover the wonder that is Moshi pillows. They had a huge display of them as we walked into the store, and we probably spent ten minutes playing with them before going to look at anything else. Tim was ready to buy one on the spot, until he saw that they were $20. We all agreed that though they were incredible pillows, that could be used for traveling, and at home, and in a variety of other manners, $20 seemed a little steep. (I think Tim may have been coming up with uses just to justify buying one, but at that point, he couldn't quite pull it off.) So, we walked around the store and looked at all sorts of different things. I think that we may have scared a couple of the employees along the way, but that is beside the point. Anyway, before leaving, Tim dragged us over to see the Moshi pillows just one more time. While there, he kept going back and forth on whether or not he should buy one. Personally, I wanted one too, but as stated above, just couldn't justify the price tag.

That was when Erin came over. Erin is an employee there, and our new favorite person. She started talking to us about how many people like the Moshi pillows. We agreed as to how wonderful they were, but then told her we probably weren't going to buy any. She then told us that currently, even though they were priced at $20, they were ringing up for $9.99. Although the employees knew this, they weren't doing anything about it. Well... could we really turn down such an opportunity? Tim and I each bought a Moshi pillow. And to make matters even better, Tim was one of those lucky customers who gets to call in and give his opinion for a chance to win $10,000. Katie and I told him that at the rate he was going, he should call. And if he won, he had to give $1,000 to Erin, our newfound friend.

After Linens N' Things, we went over to BJ's and walked around a little. Then we came back to my place, where we played with our new Moshi pillows. It's truly sad how much fun one can have with a pillow filled with polyethylene pellets.

Summer Has Arrived

2004-06-10T22:03:00.000-04:00

Today was my last day of work for the summer. If only the weather could figure out how that is supposed to work. Yesterday was unbearably hot and humid all day. Today, I woke up to a forty degree morning. There is no making sense of weather around here at all.

This evening, I spent an unnatural amount of time on the phone, a good portion of that spent discussing the new Harry Potter movie. My mother and I talked about it for a while, and then Doreen called, because she finally went and saw it yesterday. All three of us agreed that if people really want to experience Harry Potter, they need to read the books. The third movie turned a book about personal growth and development into an action flick with basically no character enhancement whatsoever. And Doreen proclaimed herself as a "member of geek-dom" because the first thing that she noticed in the movie was that the school uniforms had changed (for the few minutes that they actually wore them in the movie). All said, none of us is looking forward to seeing how they butcher the fourth book.

Now that the summer is upon me, I have to get going on... finding a summer job. Go figure. After all this time, I'm still looking for a summer job. Oh well. I suppose there are worse things. Thankfully, I'm not in *too* much of a rush to find one. I have the next week off, and then I'm running the children's crafts at the Arts Festival for a week. If I don't have a job lined up at that point, then I'll have to break down and think about the really fun jobs, like running register or something. With any luck, it won't come to that.

Page After Page

2004-06-09T12:02:00.000-04:00

I've been on a major reading kick in the past week or so. I'm always in the middle of at least two books, but in the past five days, I've read four full books. Somehow, I've just managed to hit a really good string books from my reading list. The most recent of these was "Lucky" by Alice Sebold, which i finished last night. It's a personal memoir, which normally isn't my thing, but it was honestly one of the most powerful books I have read in a very long time. When I finished it, I set it down on the table, and just sat there for close to ten minutes just letting it sink in. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good read.

In other news, I'm getting company next week! Nicole is coming up for the week to visit. We're going to go check out some NY schools while she's here. She wants to look at graduate music programs, so we'll be doing practically a full tour of the state. Nicole gets the distinction of being the first overnight company in my new apartment. She's even beat out my family, although Mom and Sarah will be here for a weekend next month. It works out well though, since tomorrow is my last day of work for the summer.

Now I'm up to today's amazing excitement. It's time to go start some laundry, and then I'm going out to run some errands. Fun, fun, fun.

And the Tony Goes To ...

2004-06-06T23:21:00.000-04:00

The Tony Awards were quite good tonight. While it's always good for the one show when one show sweeps the awards, it's a lot more fun for the audience when it's all split up, and there are some good surprises along the way. Particularly when a show like "Avenue Q" pulls best musical, totally shocking everyone. I love shock endings like that! Anyway, here's a short recap of the evening for those of you who missed it:

Most embarrassing job reading the tele-prompter: Billy Joel
Most overly dramatic acceptance speech: Phylicia Rashad (And at the Tony Awards, that's saying a lot)
Most surprising presenter: LL Cool J
Question of the evening: How long does it take Idina Menzel to get off all of that green makeup after every show?
Best line in an acceptance speech: "When we got this idea, I was a temp, and he was an intern. Our lives kind of sucked. We decided to write a show about people like us, whose lives kind of sucked."
Most forgettable moment of the evening: Mary J Blige's rendition of "What I Did For Love"
Most memorable moment of the evening: Hugh Jackman pulling a very unsuspecting Sarah Jessica Parker up onto stage with him, and forcing her to dance against her will.

The Prisoner of Azcaban...But Not Much Else

2004-06-04T22:52:00.000-04:00

Today was a wonderful day, with one glaring exception. Tim and I went out to lunch, and hung around for a while. Then we came back to my apartment, and watched some Monty Python--there's nothing like full out musical numbers about sperm to really make a day great. The plan after that was that Tim would drop me off at the mall on his way to pick up Mike to drive to Rochester. However, on the way to the mall, we ended up in a small fender bender, and plans got changed a little. Thankfully, no one was hurt, and there was absolutely no damage to Tim's truck. Not so good was the fact that the accident was Tim's fault, and the other vehicle has two nice holes in their rear bumper thanks to the tow hooks on the front of Tim's truck. Eh. At least the cop was cool, and he didn't issue a ticket. All things considered, it could have been a lot worse on a number of levels.

So eventually, I made it to the mall, and I saw the new Harry Potter movie. My take on that was fairly mixed. On one hand, there were a lot of things about the new movie that I liked. There was some fantastic camera work, and the work with the ghosts is improving every movie. On the other hand, I felt like this was the first movie where there was really a lot missing. Not that the movie didn't make sense, but so many things were just breezed over once or twice in the movie, while the book really integrates them into the story. The term "animagus" plays a major role in the story. However, it is mentioned in one scene in passing, until the end of the story, where there are multiple animagus that are... never explained. I'm sure that if you haven't read the books, you could follow the story. But it really seems like of the three movies, this one was really missing a lot. I am scared to see what they decide to cut out of the fourth book, because the further the series goes, the more it seems that every factor becomes important. My other big complaint was Lupin. He is the first actor who has not been even somewhat close to what I imagined when reading the books. Perhaps some of it was the cutting of crucial scenes, but I really didn't believe that he and Harry were suddenly the best of friends. It just didn't fit.

After the movie, I wandered the mall for a while, and picked up some things. I got a much needed haircut, which I'm very happy with, and then I went and did some grocery shopping before I returned home. All in all, if not for the little fender bender, it would have been an absolutely fantastic day. Even with that, it was pretty good all around. Hopefully, the weekend will continue that way.

Double Standards

2004-06-04T00:07:00.000-04:00

While online tonight, I found a (very) brief story about how Bruce Willis just broke up with his 26 year old girlfriend of ten months. Now honestly, I could care less who Bruce Willis dates, but along that same line, I could care less who Demi Moore dates. However, after having the Demi/Ashton coupling shoved down my throat for ages, I find it interesting that this is the first time that I've even heard mention that Demi's ex is also dating someone half his age. In fact, while Demi is a modest sixteen years older than Ashton, Bruce is a whopping 23 years older than Brooke Burns, his newest ex. While some may argue that the lack of complete and total public scrutiny is in part due to Ms. Burns' lack of fame, I find it interesting that one of the allegedly terrible things about the relationship between Demi and Ashton is that same age difference which is apparently no problem between Bruce and Brooke. Despite the many progressions by the women's movement in the past few decades, it is still appropriate in today's culture for men to rob the cradle... just not women. I'm so glad that we have progressed so far.

All right. That was my rant for the day.

The Start of a Beautiful Weekend

2004-06-03T22:36:00.000-04:00

Today was a very good day. Work went quite well. I had a meeting this morning where I got to help plan RA training (I *love* training!), and this afternoon, Alicia, Rose, and I sat around and talked for an hour while the rest of the building was over at a planning meeting. We aren't sure what they were planning, but we had a great time making our own plans while they were gone. lol. Anyway, in addition to that, it was also quite a productive day. I managed to book a comedian for orientation, and a musical comedian for later in the semester. All that, and my boss told me that the way things are going, he may be able to justify making my position full time come fall. Go me!

That was pretty much it for today's excitement. Tonight's fun is going to consist of bed and the new book that I'm reading. Tomorrow, Tim and I are getting together for lunch, and then I'm heading to the mall to catch "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azcaban." Sounds like a fun-filled day to me! :-)

Motivations, Promotions, and Harry Potter

2004-06-01T23:50:00.000-04:00

For some reason, having one extra day off this weekend made it feel like I was going back to work after a full vacation. I did *not* want to go to work today, and when I got there, I had to force myself to find things to do. It was a very long day. And all of this after a four day weekend? Yeah. Not good.

In other news, I got some good news today from a friend who's going to be starting a new job. I really think that this will be a good move for him, and I'm very happy about it. Maybe he'll even... leave work before 11:30 pm once in a while. lol. Who am I kidding. He'll still be a complete work-a-holic.

The rest of this week's excitement remains to be found. I'm sure it will come along though. After all, Friday is getting closer all the time, and I can't wait to see the new Harry Potter movie. (The plan is to get to the mall early, and catch it before all of the kids get out of school. I'm hoping that if I do that, I can avoid my past experiences of children talking through the *whole* movie.) I've been reading some reviews, and it sounds like a new director has come in at just the right time for the series. This book is definitely a major turning point for the series, and a new director is helping the movie to be the same thing.

And finally, I feel the urge to share a story that I read online tonight. If I hadn't found it on multiple well-known news sites, I would have thought it was a joke. I'm still not completely sure that certain details aren't. In any case, as good as the intentions might be in this, some of the... methods absolutely crack me up, and I can only imagine some of the rather imaginative situations that could result from the proposition.

Amorous Swedes to Get Emergency Condom Deliveries

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - A Swedish aid organization will roll out a new line of defense to the country's emergency services next week -- the condom ambulance.

From Friday, June 4, amorous couples can call the telephone number 696969 and a white van featuring a large red condom with wings as a logo will deliver them a packet of 10 prophylactics.

"We need to increase the usage of condoms," said Carl Osvald, marketing manager for the Swedish Organization for Sex Education, the non-governmental organization behind the initiative. "It is 50 percent about pregnancy and 50 percent about sexually transmitted diseases."

The ambulances will operate in Stockholm and the southern cities of Malmo and Gothenberg. The service, aimed at young people, will run until June 25 and be available between four in the afternoon and nine at night.

A packet of 10 condoms will cost 50 crowns ($6.72), less than they cost on average in the shops.

The incidence of sexually transmitted disease is increasing rapidly in Sweden and not enough young people use condoms, Osvald said.

"We need to change attitudes to condoms," he said. "If we need to get out in to the bedrooms to make things better we will do it."

Creativity Abounds

2004-05-30T23:40:00.000-04:00

Today was another incredibly productive day, although in a very different way from yesterday. I woke up this morning with an idea for a story in my head. I got up, sat down at my computer, and started typing. Three hours later, I came up for air, and to grab a glass of water. I ended up writing an entire short story today, something that usually takes me at *least* a week. And the best part? After leaving it for a few hours, and coming back and reading it, I still like most of it, which is even more unusual.

That took up a good portion of my day, and now I feel like I have... nothing else to say.

Shoes, Shoes, and More Shoes

2004-05-30T00:23:00.000-04:00

This has been one of the most productive days I've had in a long time. I got up this morning, and decided that I needed to do a bunch of stuff around my apartment. I sat down, made a list, and got to work. The result? I spent three hours completely revamping my kitchen (thank you Linens-N-Things!), and I'm very happy with the results. I also scrubbed my bathroom, did some laundry, did some much needed ironing, reorganized my closet, and put up my new shoe rack.

In completing the last of those, I came to the conclusion that I have way too many pairs of shoes. I bought a shoe rack that goes over the back of my closet door. It's supposed to hold 24 pairs of shoes, but depending on what type of shoes you have, and how you manage to cram them in, you can fit more. In fact, I can fit 32 pairs... and I still have shoes that do not fit on the shoe rack. How sick is that?! Individually, most of the pairs make sense. I have a couple of pairs of boots, a couple of pairs of casual sandals, formal sandals in multiple colors, clogs (black, gray, and navy), my Birks (which I would easily wear 24/7 if I could get away with it), two pairs of sneakers, black loafers, brown loafers, several pairs of heels flats... and that's not including the "specialty" shoes. But as you can see, once I put them all together, that is a hell of a lot of shoes. No wonder I needed to buy a shoe rack! I seriously could not believe it once I got them all up. Note to self: I'm not allowed to buy *any* new shoes for a long time.

So that was what today's adventures consisted of. I'm kind of hoping that the inspiration is still there when I get up tomorrow. If it is, I think I'm going to start sorting through my various book shelves (don't *even* get me going on how many books I own), and do some major weeding out. I know that there are a fair number of books lying around from college that I will never open again, and after this last move, I'm getting sick of hauling them from place to place. I'm going to sort through them all, and try to sell some of them online. Other than that, the rest of my weekend is pretty up in the air. And to make it even better? I don't have to work on Monday, because of Memorial Day! (I actually forgot about this until I tried to schedule a meeting with Alicia on Monday morning. She just looked at me, and was like, "Um... it's Memorial Day.") The best part? Not only do I get the day off, I get paid for it anyway. God, it's nice to be a non-salaried employee again. :-)

Parallel Lives

2004-05-26T23:05:00.000-04:00

I heard this song on a television show over a month ago, and I've been looking for the lyrics on and off ever since. I finally found them, and I absolutely love them, so I'm sharing them with all of you.

Parallel Lives
By Judie Tzuke

Have you ever had one of those days
When nothing goes the way you planned it?
Fate takes you down a different road
When you look in the mirror
It's another face that looks out at you
You forget everything you've been told

I frighten myself when I see what's inside of me
The parallel lives leave me mystified
Did I ask the right questions?
Did I get the right the right answers?
Am I living the right life inside?

Like living out part of a dream
When you never really know for certain
What is real and what is not
And no matter how much you believe
That the day you went is the day you started
You can never be sure of what you've got

I frighten myself when I see what's inside of me
The parallel lives leave me mystified
Did I ask the right questions?
Did I get the right answers?
Am I living the right life inside?

I'll dance to the rhythm of confusion
I'll dance to set my mind at ease
I'll dance till my feet can't take the weight of me
I'll dance till I get some relief

I frighten myself when I see what's inside of me
The parallel lives leave me mystified
Did I ask the right questions?
Did I get the right answers?
Am I living the right life inside?

Did I ask the right questions?
Did I get the right answers?
Am I living the right life inside?

I'll dance to the rhythm of confusion
I'll dance to set my mind at ease
I'll dance till my feet can't take the weight of me
I'll dance till I get some relief

I frighten myself,
Nothing goes the way you planned it
I frighten myself,
With the parallel lives.

In some other, more humorous, news, I put in my resume at a couple of banks today. I figure that if I can get a part time teller job, it will be a nice M-F, 9-5 summer job. Tonight on the 11:00 news, I saw that one of the banks I turned in my resume to was robbed a few hours later. In the course of the story, they mentioned that it was also robbed last September. While both thieves were apprehended, I think I'll be crossing that particular bank off of my list of potential employers.

An Unexpected Discovery

2004-05-26T21:08:00.000-04:00

Today was an errand day. Nothing terribly exciting. I went out to do some pricing for the Children's Arts Festival that I'm organizing, and to pick up a few other things at the store. Since I had nothing else pressing to do, I wandered around the other stores at Riverside Mall, and in doing so found... my new favorite store. Linens N Things.

I have never been in a Linens N Things store before, but I am sure I will be returning soon. Despite the fact that I don't really *need* anything for my apartment right now, I easily could have spent hundreds of dollars in there today, no questions asked. Thankfully for my bank account, I walked out with only one bag. I also left with enough ideas for my apartment to keep me going for months. I can quickly see this becoming a very dangerous store for me...

In the meantime, I'm quite proud of myself (and a little scared) that I have already begun working on Christmas projects for this year. If I keep this up, I'll be done with my Christmas shopping before my birthday rolls around. Yeah. That's pretty weird.

Ramblings of an Insomniac

2004-05-15T04:00:00.000-04:00

Well, it's 4:00 in the morning, and I'm wide awake, so now you all get to hear my random opinions on a bunch of stuff that, in all likelihood, you don't care about.

For starters, I would like to share that I have finally seen a sitcom that knows how to end a series. In the past few months, there have been many that have tried to do it right. First, there was "Sex and the City." It was an ending that I called months in advance, while at the same time maintaining that the ending was completely stupid, unrealistic, and disproved the point of the whole show. Yeah. I wasn't impressed. Then, last week, there was "Friends." Again, the final issues were resolved in a way that anyone who had seen more than three consecutive episodes of the show could have predicted. While there were some small surprises in both finales, nothing worthy of "Wow. That was a great way to end a series." Therefore, when I found myself at home the other night, watching the finale of "Frasier," I wasn't really expecting much... and yet, this show that I barely watch managed to pull off what I can honestly say was one of the best finales ever. Did some things work out a little fairy-tale-ish? Yes. (It's a 30 minute sitcom--did you really expect otherwise?) Did the entire universe shift to ensure the complete happiness of every single character? No. Rather, the entire show ended with what I thought was a wonderful twist. The main character was willing to take a huge risk, because he realized that unless we are willing to take huge risks in life, we will never reap the huge rewards. And the best part of this? The viewer never realized until the final moments of the show exactly what risk Frasier was taking. Props to the writers of this show for knowing how to end a series. To all of the other series out there that are still going, take notes.

Other recent events? I'm up to five fire alarms in one month here. Come on, already! Personally, I'm thinking that this should lead to one of two conclusions: 1. We need to provide (or mandate) some very heavy duty fire prevention education to the residents of this building, or 2. The smoke detectors are a *little* to sensitive. Yeah.

It's been a busy week otherwise. Katie and I went on a little... mission out at Tim's the other day. The mission was accomplished, and no casualties have been reported. lol. Today, I went over to Katie's and did her hair for the Senior Ball. As we were sitting there, we realized that two years earlier, we had sat in the exact same apartment while Katie did my hair for my Senior Ball. How wonderfully full-circling, don't you think?

I have a lot planned for this weekend. Between Moving Up Ceremonies and UC's graduation, and plans tomorrow evening, I don't really have much free time at all. But that's all right. As long as I can fit in enough time to do all that, and perhaps catch a little sleep along the way, I'll be happy. Am I actually going to be able to get some sleep? That's another story. I think that some of it may be the changes in weather. I'm hoping that's all it is. Because then, it doesn't necessarily mean that I am getting ready for another month long run of insomnia. Yuck.

I'm going to go back to counting sheep now... If anyone has any other suggestions for sleeping, please feel free to share.

Sirens and Templates

2004-05-12T00:54:00.000-04:00

Wow! Well, I signed in twenty minutes ago to post, and discovered that blogger has undergone some pretty major changes. New options, new designs, and as you can see, new templates. I'm not sure how much I really like this one, but for now, it's a change. Tomorrow, when I'm not quite so tired, I'll look around a little more. Who knows what I'll end up with.

Anyway, you may be wondering why I'm so tired right now. Well, that's because I was asleep. I was just asleep. I was in that "I just hit deep sleep and am out for the night" stage. Then... yep, you guessed it. The fire alarm went off. Now, I have lived here for just over a month now. That's what... four weeks? I have, in that four weeks, been here for four fire alarms. What the hell?! And I've noticed that they almost always seem to be Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. I'm sure that has *nothing* to do with the fact that I have Wednesdays off. Mmhmm.

So this time, thankfully, it wasn't raining/sleeting outside. It was actually fairly nice. The game here is, as soon as security arrives, they tell us which apartment set it off, and we spend the rest of the time outside making smartass comments to that person. So they tell us this time that it was apartment 302. All right. But... she wasn't outside with us. She got smart, and went out the front door, which is for emergency exit only. It turns out, she was ironing right under the alarm. Come on already. I mean, it's really nice to live in a building that has competent smoke alarms, but I've now seen it set off by dust from the vacuum, burned toast, an iron, and one unknown factor, because I was too annoyed to wait and hear what the problem was. Let's just wait until there's really smoke before it goes off again, ok?

I'm going to try to get back to sleep again. If I'm up for hours at this point, apartment 302 is going to hear about it.

Making a Difference

2004-05-07T14:15:00.000-04:00

I felt like such a hippy today. I went out and participated in a protest. It's actually something that I had never done before, but I'm really glad that I went. It felt good to stand up for something that I believe in. Here's how it all started:

I guess every year, the Catholic bishop comes to Utica, has a service, and then leads a group of parishioners up to Planned Parenthood afterward to protest its existence. This year, a group of Pro-Choice advocates got together to hold a silent protest supporting the ability to choose. So, a bunch of students here were participating, as well as some other people I knew. I decided to join in, because I think that it's something that's very important.

First of all, props to Planned Parenthood. They were organized, supportive, and did a great job keeping things under control. Upon arrival, we were all given t-shirts and signs if we wanted them. They laid out some basic ground rules. This was a silent protest, so we couldn't start yelling things back and forth with the anti-choice protesters. Also, there were rules about who could stand where, and not insulting anyone.

I think the showing for each side spoke volumes in and of itself. The anti-choice protesters had a start of about thirty people, and within an hour, they were down to the five that stayed for the rest of the day. The Bishop never did show up, and they really weren't getting much in the way of support. The pro-choice side started with eighty people, and stayed strong at that number as people came and went throughout the protest. For a while, we had a "Honk For Choice" sign, and we were getting a lot of support with it. Then one of the anti-choice protesters made a sign. It had writing on both sides. One side said "Honk 4 Murder" and the other side said "Honk 4 Porn." I guess there is some sort of connection? Anyway, he didn't seem to get nearly the support that everyone else did, although he did get some nice police attention, because he wouldn't stay out of the road. I love that he thought that he was helping his point of view, while all he was really doing was making them look stupid.

Everything went well, though. There were some fantastic signs. Among my favorites were: "Stop the War on Choice," "God is still speaking and so are we! Protect women's lives!" "My body is not public property!" "Pro-Choice! (Nobody's pro-abortion)" and one that I *loved* but was not allowed for fear of offending people: "Keep your rosaries off my ovaries."

All in all, I felt really good about doing it. I also had to laugh on the way home. I was walking back with some of the Pratt students, and we had our signs with us. This guy walked up to us and said, "I totally agree with you! And anyone who doesn't should get a turpentine enema!" It was actually a little scary. We just kind of kept walking. And yes, that's just another sign that I'm back in Utica.

Cab Fares and Food Stamps

2004-05-05T00:57:00.000-04:00

I've had some ... interesting experiences in the past week or so. I've already told you all about what a "safe" area of the city I live in. Let me add a couple of other events, just to fill in any holes in that perception.

Yesterday, upon arriving at Union Station, I got off of the train, and walked to the front of the station to call for a taxi. When I got out there, there was already one there, so I asked if he had a fare or not. He asked where I was going, and I said "Kirkland." (Although my mail goes to State St., and my building is on Plant St., to get to the parking lot of my building, you go to Kirkland Ave.) He gave me a weird look, and says, "Let me check on the price for that." I wait while he radios in, and then proceeds to tell me that it will be $15. My jaw drops to the ground, and I was like "Um... it was $4.75 to get down here two days ago..." He gives me a weird look and says, "From what part of Kirkland?" "The corner of Kirkland and State St." Then it's like this light bulb is going on. "Oh! You mean Kirkland *Ave* not Kirkland, NY!" After a good laugh from both of us, he drove me back to my apartment and charged me $4.75.

Then tonight, I went grocery shopping. First of all, the bus system in Utica sucks. There is no time schedule. The buses just do loops all day. So you know when the first and last trip are. In between? Yeah, good luck. So, I must have just missed it when I walked out to Genesee St, because I sat there for almost an hour waiting for the bus to bring me to Price Chopper. (Please note, it only takes 25 minutes to walk there, but I was certain that if I actually started walking, the bus would then pass me by, merely out of spite.) Just to add insult to injury, it was about thirty degrees out. That good ol' consistent Utica weather just can't make up it's mind. One day it's 83, the next it's 25. Yeah.

So, I'm at Price Chopper doing my shopping. I'm about three-quarters of the way through the store, and a guy approaches me. He goes, "Would you like to get your groceries for half price?" I look at my cart, which is fairly full, and I'm a little confused. I look at him, and slowly as "Why?" thinking that this just seems too good to be true. "Well, I'm stuck here, and I need some money to get home, but I just have my food stamp card. I would pay for your groceries on my food stamp card, and you can give me half of the cash." I looked at him, and just said "No thanks." I saw him walk up to four other people and make the same offer as I was finishing my shopping. Of course, when I got through the line, and heard my total, I almost wished that I had taken him up on it...

Now, it's 1:00 in the morning, and I just put a batch of brownies in the oven. Why am I cooking brownies at 1:00 in the morning? Because I'm such a great employee. There's a bake sale tomorrow to raise money for one of the residence hall associations, and I'm such a nice person that I am making brownies for them to sell at... 1:00 in the morning.

Discovering Insanity

2004-05-02T20:13:00.000-04:00

Well. The concert went well. I only made one significant mistake, but I doubt that anyone else really noticed it. My solo sounded great, which is not something that I will normally say about myself, so I know that I nailed it. It was really nice to see everyone in Chorale again, too. The best part though, was just singing again in a group. It's great to love singing, but unless you're actually *doing* it, it doesn't do you any good. I bought a CD of the performance afterwards, so I should be getting that in a couple of weeks.

John came to see the concert, and said that he enjoyed it very much. One thing that he commented on was the selection of music, and how varied it was. It truly was quite a selection. We had classical, Americana, Broadway, gospel, even a piece in Icelandic. After the concert, we hung out for a while waiting for Robin. We caught up on some things, and just... goofed around like we always do.

When Robin got there, the three of us went out to dinner. No one knew where they wanted to go, so we just drove around, and ended up at this little Mexican place called Juanito's. It was surprisingly good, and the conversation was absolutely fantastic. By the end of dinner, we were laughing so hard we were crying. We managed to cross any boundary that may be considered sacred, and by quite a bit. Again, a common phrase used throughout the conversation was "Cunni lingus what?"

After dinner, we went to Rita's for the ever famous gilatti. It was absolutely fabulous. We proceeded to go further and further down the scale of decency, and asked some poor defenseless woman to take our picture. I learned more than I ever wanted to know about both John and Robin, but God we had a good time doing it. They are both incredible people, and it's really too bad that I didn't get to work with them longer.

Now, Nicole and I just finished watching a really weird movie. Looks like I'm going to be heading back to NY in the near future. It's been nice to see everyone, but it will be even nicer to get home.

New Jersey: the State of Pollen and Penises

2004-05-02T11:16:00.000-04:00

I'm down in NJ right now. The trip down wasn't too bad, except for when I remembered that I was allergic to this state. Since I have had no allergy problems in NY this spring, I didn't even think about how miserable I was last spring in NJ. Sure enough, as soon as we got down here, my eyes started watering, and I was sneezing and coughing. And of course I didn't think to bring my good ol' Zyrtec, because I hadn't been having any problems.

As for NJ itself, things are going well. Interesting, but well. lol. All right, in the story I am about to relate, there are three very ... odd factors. Almost anyone who knows me will be able to figure out the first one. If you are a close friend, you'll know the second one. If anyone can figure out all three, major props to you. That said, here was my evening last night.

First, I went out to dinner with one of my former RAs and some other students. We went to the China Buffet, and gorged ourselves on Chinese food. All was good in the world. After dinner, we drove to Jackson, and went to a male revue. That was something that I had never done before, and it was ... not exactly what I would have expected, but interesting to say the least. All I know is that by the end of the night, each and every one of us had gotten a lap dance, and the person that I expected it from the least was the most enthusiastic about her lap dance. If nothing else, it was very funny to watch people's reactions to things. Afterwards, the person I had ridden with had me drive back, because she had been drinking very strong vodka and cranberry mixed drinks all night.

So... that was my first day back in NJ. Today is the concert, and then I'm going to dinner with John and Robin. Both of those things should be a lot of fun. I'm sure I'll have more funny stories for later. :-)

Utica, Sweet Utica

2004-04-30T00:03:00.000-04:00

We had a hypnotist come to campus tonight. He was really funny. As usual, some students got hypnotized, and some students got up there and performed, pretending that they were hypnotized. I wonder if they realize just how easy it is to tell the difference from the audience perspective. Of course, I'm one to talk, having had some rather interesting hypnotism experiences myself. Anyway, it ended up being a looong night.

It wasn't a long night because the performer went on so long, although he did. But he did at our request. During the show, a bunch of police drove by the building with lights and sirens. No one paid any attention to it. It's fairly normal in our area of Utica. A little while later, Security came in and pulled the staff aside. We were ordered to keep the students there for at least another half hour while police were securing the area. Why? Eh. Someone got shot in the head a block and a half from campus. No big deal.

It's so nice to be back...

Boring is Good

2004-04-28T00:03:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I have to wonder if going to work is relaxing, compared to some of my days off. For example, I just finished making a list of things that I am doing tomorrow. It is longer than any list I have on a work day! Oh well. At least it's stuff that I "want" to do... right? Anyway...

This weekend, I'm heading down to NJ. It's going to be an interesting trip. I'm not looking forward to being in NJ at all. However, I am looking forward to seeing some people again, and I'm looking forward to singing. God, I miss singing. I want to do it again so badly. I need to find a group to join up here.

In other news... yeah. That's about it. Life has been frighteningly normal of late. Nothing terribly exciting. ::knocks on wood:: I'm sure that I'll have more to report later in the week. Stay tuned.

You Know You Work at an Art Institute When...

2004-04-25T13:07:00.000-04:00

... you spend an entire Saturday evening looking at light sculptures.
... a group of students put on a performance completely in the nude, and no one is offended.
... complete projects center around videotapes of body piercings.
... students spend their entire weekend in the studios instead of the library.
... when in doubt of anything, label it part of the "artistic process."

Singing, Dancing, Drinking, and Ticking

2004-04-22T18:18:00.000-04:00

I went to Chicago last night, and I have to say that it was fabulous. I was amazed at the level of talent those students. They were primarily sophomores and juniors in college, and this was practically a Broadway level show. I was particularly impressed by "We Both Reached For the Gun." The girl playing Roxie Hart was extremely convincing as the puppet.

Today has been a very long day. I had to go into work an hour early for a staff meeting. I was planning on leaving an hour early to make up for it, but that didn't happen. Plus, I had an event tonight, which meant that my day was only half over. I'm had a "Karaoke and Mocktails" night that had a really good turnout. At first, there were only a few people there. However, throughout the evening, I ended up with almost 40 people in and out, and everyone had a really great time. I even got one student who doesn't really participate in much of anything to not only show up, but sing. Go me!

Now I'm totally wired, and I feel like going out to do something, but... no one is around. I would be tempted to just go out for a walk, if it weren't for the fact that I now live in a not so great portion of Utica. Oh well. I'll live.

Other random things to tell you all:

~I hung a clock in my bathroom the other day. Just a normal wall clock. That thing has the loudest tick I have ever heard. I can literally hear it clicking throughout my entire apartment. Last night, when I was trying to go to sleep, I was in my bedroom (as far from my bathroom as you can get in my apartment) and I had to turn on music to drown out the ticking to get to sleep.

~Sometimes, people just need encouragement. There is a student at my new job that every staff member has warned me about. This student has apparently been a problem child for quite a while now. However, I've been really trying hard to give this person a chance, and ... it seems to be working. Now granted, it's only been three weeks, but I've noticed that when this person is treated like that--a person--the reaction is absolutely a 180 from when this person is treated the way everyone else seems to. Amazing how that can work, isn't it?

~Two guys singing "What a Girl Wants" is just far too frightening for words. Please don't let this happen to you.

Wake Up Calls

2004-04-21T15:25:00.000-04:00

Tim officially cursed me yesterday. He came over and hung out for a while, and in the course of our discussion, we were talking about fire alarms. (Tim is starting to discover the thrill that exists in living on campus.) All right. Great. The evening continued. It was a 1:30-in-the-morning-Denny's kind of night. Got back and wrote some e-mails. Did a little reading. Got to bed between 4:30 and 5:00 ... to be woken up at 10:30 or so this morning by the *loudest* fire alarm that I have *ever* heard. Oh man. So I pull on a pair of jeans over my pajamas, and go outside... for twenty minutes. The fire department comes, and searches the building. They finally figure out why it went off. Housekeeping was vacuuming the hallway, and the dust set it off. What the hell?!

In other news, I'm going to Syracuse tonight with the Admissions Department and a bunch of students to see "Chicago." That promises to be a good evening. Wee!

Home Again

2004-04-19T23:39:00.000-04:00

All right. I know that I've said this in person to just about everyone who reads this, and at least once in a previous post, but it is SO nice to be back in Utica. I may not be "from" Utica, but this is where I really found a lot of myself. This is where I found myself, and as far as I'm concerned, this is where I am happy. At least for the time being, I completely feel like I am back home after a long time away.

I was talking to Kris tonight, and I was trying to explain it to her. The best I could come up with was this: I was in New Jersey for almost two years, and barely left campus. Even when I did, it was almost always work related. I sat in my rooms (read: not apartment) and had a life that was not at all fulfilling. Fast forward to now. I am living in a situation where I go to work and then I... come home. Where I have a life. One that is mine, and that makes me happy. I have friends, both here and far from here. But I feel like I'm at home. That's something that I haven't felt in... such a long time. In fact, I honestly can't remember the last time I felt this safe, this content, this... settled.

In other exciting news, for the first time in *seven* *years*, I got mail on a Saturday. I do not believe it. I feel like I am suddenly a real person again! Woohoo!

A Stream in the Desert

2004-04-16T14:09:00.000-04:00

After almost a full week without internet access in my apartment, I feel like I've discovered the Holy Grail. My internet is back up and working. Thank God!

The past week has gone fairly well. I'm getting settled into work, and I had my first program last night. According to my boss, it was a raging success. I didn't think it was *quite* as successful, but I figure that my next one will go better, and at least now I have some experience to base things on. This morning, I went to a co-op with a bunch of other area schools to book some acts for next semester. That was an interesting experience. We booked some comedians, a musician, a gameshow or two... oh yeah. And a mechanical bull. A guy from SUNY IT was telling us that there was a local guy who owned one, and would run sessions with it. Actually, the conversation began with someone from Morrisville telling us that there had been one at a recent conference. The guy from SUNY IT goes, "Speaking of mechanical bulls...God, I never thought I would say that." The conversation went downhill from there. It was quite amusing. I'm really getting to like some of these Student Activities people. hehehe.

What else has been going on? Eh. I had my "pre-employment physical" on Tuesday. It was the most non-thorough exam I have ever had. "Is anything wrong with you? No? Great. You're done." Oh well. At least there were no problems. I've been working away on my apartment some more. That's dragging along. I swear to God, if I don't finish it up this weekend, I'm just going to throw whatever is left out the window. In case I haven't said it before, I HATE moving.

Good news though? There's a really good chance that I'm going to get permission to have a cat. I'm totally psyched about that. Katie and I went to the Humane Society this afternoon to see some cats. They were soooo adorable. There was one tiger cat that I really liked. She was about six months old, and she was just such a sweetheart. I should know next week if that is going to happen or not, so I'll be crossing my fingers until then.

Ahead of me? I have a weekend of unpacking. Doesn't that just sound thrilling?

Do the Boxes Ever End?

2004-04-10T22:58:00.000-04:00

All right. I know that I promised to update you all on my first day of work. I'm just glad I didn't say when I would be doing that. Oops. lol. Needless to say, the past week has been very busy, but in a good way.

The first day of work went well, as did the rest of the week. I've met a few of the students, and my first program is planned for this week. I'm going to run "Who's Line Is It Anyway?" for starters. I'm hoping that I get a good turnout. I'll let you all know how it goes.

Other than that, there have been all sorts of things going on. Of course, the endless unpacking project has continued. My goal was to be done today. Righhhht. So much for goals. But I have been working away on it, and as I told Katie today, I would rather do it right then have to redo it all later. (Translation: I'm not just going to throw all of the boxes into the closet.)

The real thing keeping me busy though? My friends. I just cannot explain how nice it is to be so close to everyone. The other night, George randomly called me at 12:30. We were bored, so we ... went to Denny's. As stupid and simple as that sounds, it was so nice to have the luxury of doing it. Another night, Tim called me up. He was driving around with nothing to do, and he had another couple of hours before Katie was out of night class, so he just stopped by and hung out for a while. It's amazing. Seeing my friends is no longer a drawn out, fully planned, very expensive ordeal. I just... call them up. Or they call me up. And we get together. The comfort of being able to do that so easily is something that I used to completely for granted. I don't do that any more. I am truly enjoying seeing everyone: George, Jason, Tim, Katie, Lisa... I even ran into Deb today at Walmart! (The look on her face was priceless--a lot of people don't know that I'm back in Utica yet.) After two years of keeping in touch with people only through IM, I am totally psyched about seeing people on a regular basis.

Other than that, I'm just sick of boxes. I've decided that I own a *lot* of shit, particularly books. Every time I think I've finally found a place for all of my books, I find more, and I have to find new areas for them. I keep trying to go through them, to weed them out a little, but I've found about ... ten that I am going to sell on Amazon. The rest are legitimately books that I want to own. Note to self: When looking for next apartment, look for extra bedroom, just for books. (However, that will not be for a loooong time--I HATE moving.)

In other news? Tomorrow is Easter. Sarah was thinking about coming to visit for the day, but she has too much work to do. So... I'll probably spend the day unpacking. lol. What a thrilling life I lead...

Welcoming Weather

2004-04-04T23:09:00.000-04:00

Well, after an eventful week that included packing, a hospital trip, more packing, a final Chorale rehearsal, sad goodbyes, and some new hellos, I am officially back in Utica. This afternoon, Katie, Tim, and I unpacked the U-Haul amidst spitting snow. Now it's actually sticking, and we're supposed to have four to five inches by morning. Ahh...it's good to be home. lol

Currently, I've made travel paths through the piles of boxes. I can get to anywhere that I need to, and I just found my sheets, so the next task is to make my bed and fall into it. Tomorrow is my first day of work at Pratt, so I have to get up and find the shoes I want to wear bright and early. (Thankfully, I've already come across an outfit that will work.) My goal is to have my entire apartment settled by next Saturday. Considering I'm only going to be working part time, it seems like a completely attainable goal. In the meantime, I wouldn't be surprised if I had dreams of boxes attacking me in the middle of the night.

The apartment is very different. Size wise, it's probably about the same as what I had in Lakewood. However, it is laid out *so* differently. I don't have to go into a hallway to go from room to room AND I have a kitchen! Oh, the things that excite me. When we first started moving stuff in today, I could not figure out how I was going to get things to work out, as far as furniture arrangement went. However, as the day has progressed, things are falling into place. I can actually picture in my mind now how I think things will end up looking when I'm finished. If that's how they actually turn out, it should be really nice.

That's enough babbling for now. It's time to go clear off my bed and turn in for the night. I'll let you know how the first day goes tomorrow! :-)

The Producers

2004-03-29T00:55:00.000-05:00

OHMYGOD! That's what I have to say about seeing "The Producers". It was one of the most incredible Broadway performances I have ever seen, and that's a number that is fairly respectable to begin with. This is the first time I have seen this show, so I can't compare Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane to any other performers in the role, but I'm sure that even if I could, there would be no comparison. I have never seen two actors interact more naturally together on stage in my life. They played off of each other, they worked together seamlessly, and according to someone that I went with who *has* seen the show before, they ad-libbed entire portions of the show.

However, by far the most impressive portion of their performance was the physical humor. Matthew Broderick blew me away with his antics--I truly think the man's legs are made of rubber or some such flexible material. Both he and Nathan Lane pulled off pratt falls that looked as if they should have been down for the count. The blocking was perfect for them--or they perfected it themselves--and they looked like they were born to perform together.

Then there was the plot of the show, which I purposely knew almost nothing about going into it. Mel Brooks all the way. If you want to offend someone, bring them to this show. I promise you that something in there will offend them...unless they're like me, in which case they will just laugh hysterically the entire time. One of my favorite scenes included a musical number (from the show "Springtime for Hitler) that ended with Hitler in the center of a human swastika which was rotating around him. Could you... get any more politically incorrect? But it was done SO tongue in cheek, I couldn't help but laugh at it.

So, that was "The Producers." It's too bad that Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane are only in the show for another week, although I've heard that they both signed contracts to do the movie, so I'm hoping that turns out decent. Another one to add to the waiting list...

Let the Tears Begin

2004-03-25T22:58:00.000-05:00

Wow. What a night. I had another insanely busy day, as they all seem to be lately. I was looking forward to Chorale though, because it's always so good for stress relief. I got there early, as I usually do, and I was sitting and talking to some people. So the Director walks in with some stuff in her hands, including a beautiful bouquet of flowers. I was like, "Oh, those are pretty flowers." She responded with, "Good, they're for you." She then told me how much they were going to miss me, and wished me luck. I was so touched! I thought that I was going to cry!

So, we went through rehearsal, which went really well. Then I came back over to my building. I put my pretty flowers into water, and Nicole wanted to watch a movie. It sounded like a good idea to me, so I went down to Nicole's room. She said that she had been in her room all day, and felt like going somewhere else. She suggested that we go downstairs and watch the movie on the big screen. Again, it sounded like a good idea to me. When we got downstairs though, I found a whole room full of people. There were streamers and banners and balloons. There was Connie, the RA staff, a bunch of residents from both halls...it was a surprise going away party! It was so sweet! Connie gave this speech to everyone, and made me cry. Then we all had some cake and talked a little.

They had also hung up a piece of posterboard on the wall for everyone to sign. After we cleaned up, I started reading it. I got through about two people before I started losing it, and had to stop reading. The one that really got me said this: "... and always remember to keep smiling. Your friendly smile has cheered me up more over the past two years than you know." I couldn't believe that she wrote that! And it was a student that I know casually, but not anyone that I am particularly close to.

So yes, the parting tears have begun. It's going to be a long last week, I have a feeling, and yet I'm sure that it will fly at the same time. I'm glad that I'm going to be able to leave here remembering the good things. There are a lot of incredible memories that I will be taking with me...

Winding Down

2004-03-22T23:15:00.000-05:00

Today was room lottery. I wasn't looking forward to it. I mean, who would look forward to sitting at a table for ten and a half hours straight? But actually, it was a better day than I expected. I got some work done, I talked to a bunch of different people, and someone even lent us a "Dirty Dancing" DVD to watch while we were sitting there.

Tonight, we got together and took staff pictures. They turned out pretty well. (If anyone wants to see how they turned out, e-mail me and I'd be glad to send them to you.) All in all, it was a fairly good day. I even managed to get some more boxes packed. Woohoo.

Tomorrow is the real fun, though. Between judicial meetings, overnight host meetings, and work study evaluations, I have 11 meetings tomorrow. Although each individual meeting will probably be between ten and thirty minutes, it's still a hell of a lot of stuff to fit into one day.

Time in Boxes

2004-03-21T01:26:00.000-05:00

Time is passing. There are moments when it feels like April 1 will never arrive, and there are others when I see it racing toward me with a speed that both astounds and frightens me. I've been busy the past few days, and I'll be even busier in the upcoming week and a half, but soon enough I will be packing up the moving van and heading on up to NY.

Noteworthy news of late? Eh. Not too much. I've started all out packing. My shelves are starting to look so bare! The fun part of that is not actually packing the boxes--it's finding the boxes to pack. That's proving to be quite the challenge. However, I have made myself a "packing schedule" that tells me how many boxes I need to pack every day. It sounds anal, I know. OK, maybe it even completely qualifies as a little anal. However, if it works, that's all that matters. And it does put my mind at rest a little, knowing that if I stick to it, I'll be ready to go on time.

Tomorrow is my last Georgian Court Open House. I get to sit and try to convince potential students that they want to live on campus. It's almost entertaining...I think I'm going to bring some work with me to do at the table. Perhaps my self-assessment that needs to be done by Tuesday? We'll see. In any case, I'll be packing tomorrow when I get back from Open House. I have a lot of boxes scheduled for tomorrow. I guess that means I should get some sleep now. Later...

Life's Too Short

2004-03-17T23:25:00.000-05:00

Did you ever notice that when you know you won't have something much longer, it suddenly becomes so much more important? Why is this? Why does it take that potential of loss before we realize how important things truly are? It's funny. Now that I'm "officially" leaving, everyone is making such a big deal out of it. Now it's not just getting together here and there. It's "We have to go out together after work tonight--you won't be here much longer." It's not "Want to watch a movie sometime?" It's "Let's watch a movie tonight." And everyone seems required to tell me how important I am to them and how much they're going to miss me.

It's not that I mind any of these things. In fact, I find them flattering. But... why does it have to take such drastic situations for us to do these things in our lives? Life is so short. Why can't we tell people how important they are every day? Why can't we make time for each other all the time? Why can't ... Ok, the sappiness has ended. But seriously, I feel like I should take a look around me, and remember all of the good things that I have going.

The Hands of Time

2004-03-16T23:49:00.000-05:00

It's so strange. On one hand, I'm so deliriously happy to be leaving Georgian Court, and heading back to Utica. On the other hand, I keep telling myself "this is the last time you'll be doing such and such." I get all sad and nostalgic.

Then reality sinks in, and I'm happy again.

Today was fairly basic. Connie and I went out for our 4:00 coffee run, and insanity ensued as always. Tonight, Nicole and I went to Target, and then we got some Chinese food.

I need to find a moving truck to rent. It's amazing. I only have two weeks of work left. Damn.

Mixed Emotions

2004-03-15T23:36:00.000-05:00

It's official. I met with Evelyn today and turned in my resignation letter. It was a... weird day. I thought that I was going to feel so relieved and so happy after my meeting. I ended up leaving feeling confused and guilty. I went back and forth all day. I feel badly that I'm leaving at this point in the semester. It's going to really end up leaving some people with a lot of extra work. At the same time, I know that I'm doing what I need to for me, so it will be worth it in the long run. Now I just need to get through the next two and a half weeks ...

Secret Windows and Moral Degradation

2004-03-14T23:16:00.000-05:00

A fairly uneventful day. I got up at...noon. Messed around on my computer a little. Then Nicole and I went to the movies and saw "Secret Window." It was a pretty weird movie. I had read the book that it was based on back in high school, but I didn't really remember most of it, so the end was a total surprise for me. I think I might have to dig it out and read it again, now that I have seen the movie.

When I got back, I began organizing. The plan was to begin packing, but I don't have any boxes yet. I think I'm going to see if I can get some from the Dining Hall tomorrow. So for today, I just organized. And while doing that, I listened to a bunch of Bobbi. It's been a while since I have done that, and I was in hysterics. (Note: How sad is it that I could listen to Bobbi clips for four and a half days straight, and never repeat a single one?) Oh! And as a bonus? While I was organizing, I found a $20 bill that I misplaced a while ago. Wee!

And finally, since George proclaimed on his blog that he is a Republican, I *had* to share my own results with everyone. lol.

Threat rating: Medium. Your total lack of decent
family values makes you dangerous, but we can
count on some right wing nutter blowing you up
if you become too high profile.

What threat to the Bush administration are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

One Adventure After Another

2004-03-14T02:27:00.000-05:00

Well, it has definitely been a week filled with excitement. I got a job offer from Pratt, a new computer, and finally posted my trip pictures...and of course there's a story to go with each of those events.

The job offer from Pratt. They called me Tuesday, and offered me a position. I immediately began calling people. I received a wide range of reactions. Not one person has failed to congratulate me, but it has ranged in sincerity from Connie ("Congratulations" with a "Please say no so that you don't have to leave before the end of the semester and leave me with tons of work to do" tone behind it) to George ("Congratulations" with a "OHMYGOD! You're moving back to Utica in less than a month!" tone behind it). Then there were a bunch of reactions somewhere in the middle. All said though, I'm excited. My new boss (God, it feels weird to say that) is already arranging to have my new apartment all ready for me to move in. At this point, there are only a few people who don't know ... including my mother, because I got the call a good half hour after she left for Florida. Since I have no way of reaching her there, she won't know until she gets home next Tuesday evening.

I got my new computer. Of course, it wasn't that easy. I got a package slip, but the mailroom was already closed. I managed to get permission for security to let me in to get it. The package wasn't there. The head of the mailroom was called. He says the package should be there. I agree. But it's not there. I begin to slightly freak out at the prospect that the school has lost my brand new iBook before I even get to see it. I freak out for a good forty-five minutes before it is found, thankfully with no further problems.

My pictures from my trip are finally posted, and I'm quite proud of that fact. In order to post the pictures, I had to actually figure out how to use my new iBook. This in itself has been quite the adventure. Even something as simple as getting a CD *out* of my computer is suddenly a new and challenging ordeal. Therefore, please allow me the satisfaction of looking at my pictures. They can be viewed here:

http://homepage.mac.com/nathaig/PhotoAlbum1.html

Other than that, if anyone has some boxes, I have to start packing!

Forks in the Road

2004-03-08T14:30:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been a while, and things have been moving right along.

I went to Mardi Gras and had a *fantastic* time. I honestly can't rave enough about my vacation. As soon as my new computer gets here (I'll give you more about that in a minute) I'll be posting some pictures from my trip for you all to enjoy...some carefully chosen pictures. lol

Came back from New Orleans and went all the way up to Utica. I had a job interview at Pratt, and I'm waiting to hear on that right now. I *really* hope that I got the job. It's almost exactly what I am looking for, and best of all? It starts April 1. Now I'm just playing the "waiting to hear from them" game. I know that they talked to all of my references on Friday, so hopefully I'll get a call soon!

In other news, I ordered my new computer. My iBook should be shipping...any time now! I actually already have my new printer (and yet no computer to use it on--go figure), so I'm hoping my computer gets here soon! It will be SO nice to have a functioning computer. Woohoo!

Other than that? Yeah...I want Pratt to call! (I'm a little obsessed about this today, if you couldn't tell.) Oh well. In the meantime, back to work.

::waits on pins and needles::

Beginnings, Ends, and Mardi Gras

2004-02-21T00:18:00.000-05:00

Well, I had no intentions of actually doing this, but I ended up telling Evelyn today that I won't be renewing my contract for next year. We were talking about a student concern, and she asked me when my contract ended. I told her, and she mentioned that she needed to speak to Human Resources about extending it through the summer, since Connie was leaving. While it's one thing to just keep my mouth shut about leaving, it's another to outright lie about it. So I told her that I needed to tell her something, and I explained that I was applying for grad schools in the fall, and that I wouldn't be renewing my contract. I don't think that she was happy--by the deer-in-headlights look on her face she was anything but--but she was characteristically optimistic about it.

Then, at the staff meeting, Connie announced to the RAs that she was resigning. Their reactions were absolutely priceless, and although Connie was surprised at the depth of their reactions, I was not. I've told her time and time again that she makes a difference every day that she is here. The RAs exemplified that when she broke the news to them. At the beginning of the meeting, the RAs reapplying for next year had turned in their applications. Several of them seriously requested their applications back before she convinced them to apply anyways. Whether she believes it or not, Connie is going to be sorely missed by a large number of people when she leaves here.

Besides that? Most of my day sucked. I'm SO glad to be going on vacation soon (in less than eight hours)! I actually had a student come into my office, and inform me that the problem that she refused to take responsibility for was entirely my fault. I felt like crying when she left. Sometimes, I think that my problem in this job is that I care too much. I work so hard to try and help these students. I bend over backwards to help them succeed and in return I get told that the problems they have are all my fault. When you pour that much effort and concern into someone, that kind of a comment really hurts.

We also had a very ... interesting meeting with Security this morning. I love the kinds of things that go on at this college. Even after all of the things that I have seen, sometimes, things still shock the hell out of me.

The rest of my day? I met with a couple of other students about some issues, and I sat through a two hour Orientation meeting. I felt like that was a total waste of my time, because I won't even be here.

This evening, on the other hand? I'm so excited, I can barely sit still. I did laundry for my trip, and packed my suitcase. It was tough to figure out what to bring, because I am essentially packing for two trips. On one hand, I wanted to pack for New Orleans weather, and Mardi Gras fun. On the other hand, I had to have some things for the Utica climate, and for a job interview. It was an interesting feat, but I managed to pull it off.

Then I hopped online for a few hours, and printed out all of the info I've been collecting over the past few weeks--tours, attractions, restaurants, parade schedules. I want to see as much as I possibly can while I'm in New Orleans. I could not be more excited about it.

I've got to head to bed now, because I'm leaving for Baltimore bright and early tomorrow morning. Have a great week without me--cause I'll be having a great week of my own! :-D

One More Day...

2004-02-19T22:59:00.000-05:00

Today was one of my longest days at work ever. The only thing that looks longer? Tomorrow.

Mardi Gras can't get here soon enough...

Two Days and Counting

2004-02-19T00:26:00.000-05:00

One person has already been vastly amused by this evening's adventures, so now I'll share them with the rest of you. It all started because...I was on call. My phone rang, and it was the RA from the other building. A resident smelled gas in her room, and couldn't figure out where it was coming from. I went over, and quickly discovered that her window was open. The window that looks out upon the parking lot. Where there are cars. That have gas in them. Right. Back to my building.

I walked in to some students telling me that they had been stuck in the elevator. I went to make out of order signs, and before I could put them up, someone else got into the elevator, and of course they got stuck, too. We got them out, and had security turn off the breaker to the elevator, so that no one else would ride in it.

Then I had to go back over next door to confront a student about a fight. Of course, that student was no where to be found, and I spent twenty minutes looking for her, to no avail.

Finally, I came back to my building, where I ended up having to talk to an RA about a problem that was brought to my attention. After over two hours of running around, I finally got back to my room.

Two more days until vacation...I can make it.

On a good note, upon my return, I was informed that perfection has now reached the Internet. See for yourself at www.georgespohr.com . Who could ask for anything more? ;-)

My Intentions Were Good

2004-02-17T23:44:00.000-05:00

Tonight's plan? Figure out exactly which Mardi Gras tours I want to go on, and tentatively figure out what else I want to do while in New Orleans.

Tonight's reality? The phone wouldn't stop ringing, and the problems didn't end.

The good news? It's snowing. If it keeps up, we might have a snow day tomorrow, and *that* would be heaven.

::sings:: Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

Finalized Travel Itinerary

2004-02-16T23:47:00.000-05:00

All right...after phone calls, and e-mails, and IMs galore, I finally know where I'm going to be pretty much all of next week. Here's how it looks:

Early Saturday morning: Leave NJ and go to Baltimore. Spend the day with Kristen.

Sunday morning: Fly to New Orleans. HelLO Mardi Gras!

Thursday morning: Leave New Orleans and fly to Baltimore. Take the bus from...Baltimore to Philly, Philly to NY, and NY to Utica. I will arrive in Utica at 2:00 AM.

Monday: Interview at Pratt. 5:45 PM, catch the bus back to NYC, and from there to NJ.

Tuesday morning: Drag myself out of bed on what I am sure will be almost no sleep to start...another fabulous work week!

And just a side note:
A bus ticket from Baltimore to Philly to New York to Utica? $49.
A bus ticket from New York to Utica? $52.
Trying to figure out the Greyhound pricing system? A priceless headache.

Cloud Nine and Climbing

2004-02-16T20:28:00.000-05:00

Today may have been Monday, but *damn* it was a fabulous day. Pratt called me this morning, and I officially have an interview on March 1. (PRATT!!! WOOHOO!!!) I ended up talking to the guy for about a half hour. We talked about the school, and then about grad school. He told me that he used to work in Career Services, and he was quite impressed with my resume and cover letter. He mentioned that I had made it to the top of the pile in several screenings. ::beams:: Props to me.

There are pluses and minuses about the job. It's a nine month position with a twelve month apartment. The pay is not so great, but it's only a part time position--16 hours a week, on average. (Although a wise soul pointed out to me that I should make sure that I could work a job, and actually only work 16 hours a week there-a good point to keep in mind.) Theoretically, I could work there, get a part time job with two or three shifts a week, and go to school. Would it be easy? No. Is it feasible? Absolutely. And ultimately, it gets me where I want to go, and helps me get my foot in the door for grad school, which is truly my ultimate goal.

So, as I said, my interview is on March 1. That means that I'll just be extending my vacation an extra day. :-) Because I'll need to be in Utica though, I decided to restructure my vacation a little. I'm going to head down to Baltimore early on Saturday, and spend the day with Kristen. That will be a lot of fun. In talking on the phone tonight, we realized that we haven't physically seen each other in almost a year--since last Easter, when I went down to Virginia. It's cool though. I'll get to see her new apartment in Virginia, and (finally) give her the birthday and Christmas presents that have been sitting, wrapped, on my bookshelf for months now.

Sunday, I'll fly from Baltimore to New Orleans, to spend three and a half days at Mardi Gras. There's one I will soon be able to cross off the list. ;-) I'm totally psyched about just having one hell of a fantastic time. Thursday, I'll fly back to Baltimore, and then continue up to Utica. I'll spend the weekend there, seeing some good friends, and go to my interview on Monday. After that, I will turn around, and head back down to Jersey, to get back to work in the real world.

The good news? I will have had one *hell* of a good vacation in the mean time. :-D

Kick Back and Relax

2004-02-15T22:15:00.000-05:00

I spent a few hours online this afternoon deciding what I was going to do at Mardi Gras. Then, I went to the store tonight, and bought a bunch of travel stuff for my trip. It's finally starting to feel real--in less than a week, I will be in New Orleans. Woohoo! Between that and the promise of an upcoming interview, this week should be a fantastic one. ::knocks on wood::

Other than that, today was fairly uneventful. I did get some reading done, which was nice, and I caught "Dogma" on TV, which is *always* worth a good laugh. And...that was today. Done.

In Need of a Compass

2004-02-15T02:14:00.000-05:00

Since I last had a blog, blogger has severely limited their template options. They didn't have tons of options to begin with, but now they are just pathetic. And I hate them. So this afternoon, I decided to find a new template to use. I only had one absolute requirement: I would not pay for a template. I would find a free one. Considering how many hundreds of free templates there are online, this didn't seem like such a tough requirement.

Oh, how wrong I was.

I think the problem was that I had a picture in my mind of what I wanted. Therefore, logically, I couldn't find it. So I ended up spending all night online, looking for blog templates and yet...I still have the exact same one. Eh...at least there was an SVU marathon on while I was searching, so my time wasn't a total loss.

In better news, I leave for Mardi Gras in ONE WEEK! I can't wait. This is going to be a kick ass vacation. :-D

More About Me Than You Ever Wanted to Know

2004-02-14T01:41:00.000-05:00

It's 2:00 in the morning. I feel like posting to my blog, but I have nothing to say, so...I'll borrow a survey from George's blog. Enjoy!

Anger

1. Who did you last get angry with? Evelyn
2. What is your weapon of choice? Guilt.
3. Would you hit a member of the opposite sex? No.
4. How about of the same sex? Nope.
5. Who was the last person who got really angry at you? I'm not really sure. It's been a while.
6. What is your pet peeve? Purposeful ignorance, and people who ask you a question even though they don't really care what your answer is.
7. Do you keep grudges, or can you let them go easily? If it's worth having a grudge over, I hold onto it for a looong time.

Sloth

1. What is one thing you're supposed to do daily that you haven't done in a long time? Clean.
2. What is the latest you've ever woken up? 3:00 p.m. or something ridiculous like that.
3. Name a person you've been meaning to contact, but haven't: I've been saying that I was going to call Kristen every day for week now. Yep...I need to get to that one.
4. What is the last lame excuse you made? That I couldn't go to an RA program, because I had to "do something else."
5. Have you ever watched an infomercial all the way through? Yes. Welcome to the world of insomnia...anyone want a Beanie Baby with a State quarter sewn in the foot?
6. When was the last time you got a good workout in? Wednesday. Go me.
7. How many times did you hit the snooze button on your alarm clock today? I use my cell phone as an alarm clock, so I don't have a snooze button. However, I do have the option of setting two alarms on it. If I stagger them by 15 minutes, and keep resetting them? Yeah, that can be a bad thing.

Gluttony

1. What is your overpriced yuppie beverage of choice? Vanilla chai.
2. Meat eater? Yeah, sometimes.
3. What is the greatest amount of alcohol you've had in one sitting/outing/event? My 21st birthday, hands down. In the course of an hour, I had something like 12 mixed drinks. The next morning I had to ride in a van for an hour to go to RA camp. Ouch.
4. Have you ever used a professional diet company? No.
5. Do you have an issue with your weight? Yes.
6. Do you prefer sweets, salty foods, or spicy foods? Bland. (I'm a picky eater.)
7. Have you ever looked at a small house pet or child and thought, "LUNCH!"? Um...no. ::wonders where this question came from::

Lust

1. How many people have you seen naked (not counting movies/family)? 5
2. How many people have seen YOU naked (not counting physicians/family)? 4.
3. Have you ever caught yourself staring at the chest/crotch of a member of your gender of choice during a normal conversation? Yes.
4. Have you "done it"? Yep.
5. What is your favorite body part on a person of your gender of choice? Eyes.
6. Have you ever been propositioned by a prostitute? No.
7. Have you ever been tested for an STD or pregnancy? Yes.

Greed

1. How many credit cards do you own? I have two ATM cards with Visa symbols. Does that count?
2. What's your guilty pleasure store? Barnes and Noble.
3. If you had $1 million, what would you do with it? Get out of debt, give some money to friends and the family I acknowledge, and quit my job to get my Master's full time.
4. Would you rather be rich, or famous? Rich.
5. Would you accept a boring job if it meant you would make megabucks? No.
6. Have you ever stolen anything? Yes.
7. How many MP3s are on your hard drive? 437.

Pride

1. What one thing have you done that you're most proud of? Got my degree.
2. What one thing have you done that your parents are most proud of? Made it in life on my own.
3. What thing would you like to accomplish in your life? Happiness.
4. Do you get annoyed by coming in second place? Yeah, sometimes.
5. Have you ever entered a contest of skill, knowing you were of much higher skill than all the other competitors? Yes.
6. Have you ever cheated on something to get a higher score? Yes.
7. What did you do today that you're proud of? Nominated a deserving group of students for "Who's Who."

Random

1. What item of your friends would you most want to have for your own? I don't know...
2. Who would you want to go on "Trading Spaces" with? Katie.
3. If you could be anyone else in the world, who would you be? Britney Spears. I hate the girl, but how much fun does she have?
4. Have you ever been cheated on? No.
5. Have you ever wished you had a physical feature different from your own? Yes.
6. What inborn trait do you see in others that you wish you had for yourself? Self confidence.
7. Do you wish you'd come up with this survey? No. At this point, I wish I had never started taking it.
8. Finally, what is your favorite deadly sin? Pride

Faith

1. What religion do you follow? My own.
2. What religion were you raised as? Episcopal.
3. Do you believe that forgiveness is a religious property or a human property? Human.
4. Do you believe in magic? No.
5. What was the last promise you broke? It's been a long time since I've broken a promise. I work hard not make promises that I can't keep.
6. Have you ever said the words to a prayer and not meant it? Yes.
7. Do you believe that anyone could be perfect? I think that perfection is possible in particular aspects, but other than George, no one is completely perfect. ;-)

Hope

1. Did you get everything you wanted over the last holiday season? Nope. A phone call would have been nice.
2. Regarding your future, what is the best thing you could hope for? Get my Master's Degree, find the perfect job, find the perfect relationship, and be financially stable.
3. Do you let yourself get your hopes up for something even if you know that there is a large chance of failure? Yes, way too often.
5. Have you ever bought a lottery ticket? Yes.
6. Do you gamble? Very infrequently.
7. Have you ever had something called off on account of bad weather, but then gone ahead and done it anyway? Huh?

Charity

1. What causes do you support? Quite a few, but the easy answer is humanity.
2. What causes have you given money or time to? Recently? Not too many, but back in the day, I was a volunteer-a-holic.
3. Have you ever worked in a soup kitchen or done another kind of outreach for the homeless? Yes.
4. Would you ever consider joining the Peace Corps, Amnesty International or another travel-inherent worldwide charity group? No.
5. Do you give money to the homeless on the street? Once in a while.
6. Have you ever helped out a friend with basic needs, like rent or food? No.
7. What's the greatest extent you've gone to help a friend in need? I wired someone $200 so they could avoid a ton of money in overdraft fees.

Fortitude

1. What are you most afraid of? Not making a difference.
2. What did you do today that was really brave? Got out of bed.
3. Who is your favorite superhero, and why? Batman, cause the show had a cool theme song.
4. Would you put your life in danger to rescue someone? Yes.
5. If you were to face the Wizard, would you want more courage, more brains or more heart? More courage.
6. Have you ever gotten stage fright? A little, but in a good way.
7. Do you consider yourself to be a leader or a follower? It depends on the setting. I am good at both.

Justice

1. Have you ever been summoned for jury duty? No.
2. If they reinstituted the draft (for both genders), would you go, or would you find some way out of it? I would probably be looking for any way out of it I could find.
3. Do you support capital punishment? Yes.
4. What should be legalized? Gay marriage. Gay guys already live together in neighborhoods around America, does it really matter to heterosexuals if they wear gold rings around their fingers? It's not like their lives would change at all. (This is the only answer in this entire survey that I just...stole from George. Why mess with perfection?)
5. Do you believe that Dubya is rightfully president? Yes, but that doesn't mean that I have to like it.
6. What was your favorite media circus trial? The Florida recounts for the 2000 election.
7. Have you ever written a letter to a politician? Yes, for a class in high school.

Temperance

1. What do you have the hardest time moderating yourself on? Sleeping.
2. Do you collect anything? M&M character items, gnomes.
3. Are you addicted to anything? Caffine.
4. Have you ever put anything on lay-away or used an installment plan? Yes.
5. What's your preferred method of paying for things? Cash. I've learned that lesson.
6. Tell us one thing you wish you hadn't let yourself do: Let myself set my heart on things I knew wouldn't happen.
7. Do you feel that you obsess over things? Yes.

Prudence

1. Who is the wisest person you know? Dan.
2. Have you ever participated in a vigil? No.
3. Do you take advice when it's given? Sometimes.
4. What area are you wisest in? Analyzing life.
5. Do you drive defensively? I haven't driven in a while.
6. What did you learn in the last past week? Sometimes, you just need to jump, and trust that there's something to land on.

New Beginnings Are Right Around the Corner

2004-02-14T00:37:00.000-05:00

It's Friday, and what a Friday it is. I got a lot done at work today, but it was one of those days that just flew by. I had meetings from start to finish, but they were productive. Then, right before I left my office, I checked my voice mail in my room. (Why I didn't wait three minutes until I went to my room? Who knows.) I had a message waiting from Pratt, saying that they want me to come to campus for an interview! I actually screamed after I listened to it. I'm so excited! I called back, but as it was already 6:00, they were gone for the day. I left a message to call me back on Monday, so I guess I'll take things from there.

Now I have to sit down over the weekend, and figure some things out. How much do I need to make, what kind of benefits do I need? What am I willing to accept, and what can I just not afford? I'm willing to take a pay cut to go there (I don't believe I just typed that), but it has to be worth it to me. My goal for doing this is that I want to get my Master's. If they can help me do that? I'm there.

In other news, it is officially Valentine's Day. Woo. How...utterly not exciting.