Tuesday 4 March 2008

Sunshine, white teeth and... bagels?

I've started making notes as my week goes by, so I have some interesting things to pop into my blog that I've recorded as they happened, day to day. Observances, little things that I find interesting, things like that. No podcast yet though, but I am working on it... trying to use my PDA as a recorded has met with limited success. Still, I'm trying it.

March 2nd - Working Sunday, ends in... turkey?

I worked at the Fort St. store today, by myself, so I stopped at the local Subway on the way in and picked up not only their new 'Stuffer' bacon breakfast sandwich, but another one for lunch... which I didn't end up eating. Why? It was another busy day, with a steady stream of customers from the word 'go' - so much so that I didn't finish breakfast until 2pm; yikes! At least it wasn't insanely busy, but I was still worn by day's end in the early evening. It was nice that my dad picked me up from work, as they'd rented a car again for the weekend; the thought of trying to connect with a bus to make it home in an hour's time didn't appeal to me. I also picked up a nice cooked turkey breast at the local Safeway for a song, so that made for quite the nice meal in the evening. I even caught an episode of Stargate: Atlantis that I'd recorded earlier, and it wasn't bad, covering some interesting points about honor and difficult choices. I'll say this for the show: they've learned some lessons over the last few years, so I hope they'll keep it up next season.

March 3rd - A Sale... $2.99?

I was browsing Amazon.com today( not Amazon.ca, as their selection usually stinks ), and I came across HD-DVD's... on sale for 50% off! My annoyance at the fact that I'd backed the wrong HD horse may well be tempered by the fact that I might be able to stock up on some great movie and TV titles in the next few months( I think I've already mentioned this )at Vastly Reduced Prices. Of course, this still means spending money, but still... Sale Prices! I spent some of the morning writing a new Nichneven story, which for some reason popped into my head as soon as I woke today. I guess it'd been percolating a while in there, as stories sometimes do. Check it out at Nichneven.com, if you have a moment. It's good. Really. :) After another decent day at work( still heavy on the taxes; is May here yet? )I caught the bus home and made myself some turkey dinner. Yes, it was deja-vu from last night, but the addition of some turkey gravy from the nearby corner store made ALL the difference. Amazing how a good meal can make your evening It also looks like my mailbox is a lost cause.

March 4th - Dentists, laundry, groceries... yawn.


Up early early today for a 7:45am dental appointment, just down the road. Amazing that I can walk to the dentist's in 10 minutes flat, at Cook St. Village. It was a good checkup too: my new dentist was very friendly and extremely knowledgeable, as the checkup he did was the most thorough I've ever had, using terms I've never heard any previous dentist use. He made a complete map of my mouth( insert puns here ), and told me that my teeth were in great shape, so much so that he'd gladly trade HIS teeth for mine any day. The usual admonishment to brush properly and floss followed, which of course I need to keep in practice with( don't we all? ). The morning was then spent lugging loads of laundry up and down the stairs, all done with the brilliant sunshine pouring in all the windows in this building. It's 10 degrees outside PLUS the warmth of the sun, so it's going to be a great patio day I think.

March 5th - Dazzling sunshine and outdoor relaxation.

Up again and working on the place. I got it FINALLY looking like I wanted, with the shelves organized and 95% of the clutter properly stowed. Now all I need are a few pictures, a little organization of shelf contents and I'll be happy. I was done all that by early afternoon, and a good thing too, as my dentist called with a cancellation and got me in ASAP for a cleaning. Very thorough too, I learned a few new things while I was there... and it was a simply GORGEOUS day out, so much so that I walked without a jacket there and back. I even changed into a t-shirt at 3pm to sit outside with some of my neighbours and bask in the blazing warmth of the sun for a while over coffee. I also had a glass tabletop delivered for my coffee table / kitchen table, so that means I no longer have to worry about damaging it through constant use. NICE. The glass guys did a perfect job too on the size, and next-day delivery too - great service.
I spent the evening working on articles, trying to catch up, but my heart's not in it this week... seems I'm missing some zing or something. I hope it comes back soon.

March 6th - Transferred !

I opened the main branch today, and was busy right up until I left for home. Everyone seems to be getting along fine of late, which is ironic as I learned today I( and another person )are being transferred to other branches next week as part of the area's policy to prevent boredom setting in from working the same branch all the time. I'm going to a slower branch, which is a little more remote by bus; I hopped on one after work and went out that way to Safeway again for a few more things. It was easier than I expected, and it was another lovely day out for walking.

March 7th - Energy?

I worked the mid-shift at Quadra today, where yet again every other person was doing their taxes. Of course, quite a few people who come in have problems with their taxes that they thing coming to us will avoid... which is not the case. Many times I have received looks of stunned disbelif as I tell people the various reasons why we can't discount their taxes but have to e-file instead... they likely heard the same reasons from the last tax place they walked out of. I don't know why they think they can 'escape' paying debts owed to the CRA, as every tax preparer links electronically to the CRA's website to work on the taxes. Probably just ignorant of the system, but they learn fast from what I've seen.
Just tried to relax tonight, nothing going on and I'm tired mentally. The good weather should have energized me, but not as much as I thought it would have. Seems I'll have to get that bike sooner than I thought, and work on improving my energy levels.

March 8th - Silly people

I was dropped off for the mid-shift at Quadra today by my parents, who seem to have taken to renting a car every other weekend of late. Not that I'm complaining, as it means less time spent waiting for a bus. A little less, anyway.
Work today only had two rude idiots, a new record low. I still can't understand how some people manage to get through the day by being nasty to everyone they meet; they must be dead inside in so many ways. Still, it's hard to pity someone who's in your face for no reason when you try to help them... *shrug*
I had dinner with my parents, not a whole lot of time spent visiting as I emptied out the storage area there of some remaining boxes and carted them back up the stairs at my place. I'll find room for them in the next week or so, as time permits.

March 9th - Day off? Where? It's gone.


Did a few things around the place today, storing more stuff in smaller places than I thought possible. At least it's all here now, so what's left at my parent's small storage unit will likely stay there for the time being.
I had coffee( well, tea actually... )with my next-door neighbour Ben today. He seems like a great guy, and his g/f seemed nice too when I met them a while back. We talked about the area and other things, and I learned a little more about the city. Looks like I've lucked in with two great neighbours here. :)
After a nice call from Rene( telling me about all the snow that Niagara just got )I spent the afternoon and evening writing and trying to overcome some writer's block that's been nagging me of late.

Monday 3 March 2008

There once was a man from Nantucket...

Quite a few links in this blog update, but then I'm always all over the place each week on my mental map: so many interesting things to think about, and so little brain power. No, wait, that's not right...


Feb 25th - Monday again?


I worked the evening shift today, after spending the morning waiting for the mailman to arrive... but I must have missed him by a matter of minutes. I wanted to see inside my mailbox, to get a good look at the locking mechanism. I have to replace the lock with a new one, and of course it's the old catch-22: I can't see the lock without a key, but I need to SEE the lock to get a new one. Ironic.

Feb 26th - The Watchmen

I didn't wait for the mailman today. Nope. Just worked in the evening again. The usual lines for taxes, as it's that season now. Oh, the joy... at least animals don't have to worrk about taxes, just the occasional filmmaker with access to a video editor and a wacky idea. I also read deeper into The Watchmen graphic novel I picked up last week, it's as engrossing as I expected. There's also a movie in the works, which I hope will turn out better than this one did, as I'd had high hopes for it.

Feb 27th - Middle O'Th'Week Day OFF !


I had the day off... so of course, I was busy. At least I wasn't working Welfare today, which was a nice change... those lines are seriously long, all day. I spent some of the day writing some articles, and the rest of it sort of blurred into the various Things That Need Doing on a Day Off. On a nice note, my tax return came in today, so that was a good thing. Only took 10 days, thanks CRA!
I've also been catching up on some TV shows here and there with my PVR, watching them when I can. One I've started to like again is Total Drama Island, which has interesting characters, nice plot twists and a spunky animated style - it has a catchy opening tune too. Along with Clone High, I've been catching up on episodes... also, Clone High features the voice of Nicole Sullivan, who has been in more shows than any five other voice actors combined, something that I might aspire to if I can get into that field of work.
I also put my old Cogeco Digital Cable box up for sale in the FaceBook Marketplace... wow! I had a dozen responses to the ad within 30 minutes, totally unexpected; apparently a lot of people were looking for these things. Too bad most of them wanted to cheap out on shipping, even though the ad SAID I was in B.C. .. just goes to show people don't READ things through, even simple and short ads. Ah, human nature...

Feb 28th - Holy Taxes Batman ...

I worked the mid-morning shift, which turned out to be The Day Of Ten Taxes.... whew! All I got, all day long, were taxes... person after person with problems too, all of which meant calling the CRA to get confirmation on one thing or another. By day's end I didn't want to see another tax file... just too many to do, one after another. Yeesh. I spend some of the evening online on NWN with some friends, which was nice and definitely NOT as taxing!

Feb 29th - Last Day Of Feb( duh )

I worked at our Quadra store on the mid-morning shift today. Again I was struck by the different crowd that comes to this store, compared to the Douglas St. location, which has a high count of folks hard up for cash... among other things.
Which makes this place look all the more appealing. Just step inside and shop, you'll always have time. Maybe I can find my ultimate salad bowl there too, for my usual fave Caesar Salad... but in a bowl made out of bacon!!
I caught some of Damnation Alley on TV in the evening as I was doing other things, and I recalled how much I loved the movie for one thing only: the ultra-cool post-apocalyptic vehicle it featured, called the Landmaster. Amazingly, the vehicle has survived into the present day, having been far more than just a duct-tape and balsa-wood movie prop. Have a look at it here.

March 1st - Four Months

A new month, and it seems like only a little while ago I stepped off the plane here in Victoria. Four months have passed since I last saw some of my friends, but I'm pleased that I've been able to talk to most of them since. Miss y'all folks.
Worked the closing shift today, typically. Things seem to have swung around the other way at work stress-wise: I'm managing to cope with most of the operational stresses of Paperwork, so that's making everyone else Happy. So that's nice.
I am still considering building my own home here in Victoria at some point, if I can find a small bit of land to build one of these on. I figure it would be all I'd need, won't be too costly and has a log cabin beat hands down.