Feb 4th - The Fiddly Bits Never Cease to Move
Yeah, you guessed it: I spent today working on my place again. I still find it amazing that I can spend os much time for so little apparent result, but really it's all about organization.
Also, it's about relaxing after yesterday, I'm still pooped... averaged one customer every 3.5 minutes for 8 hours straight, plus phone calls and other daily duties... yeesh.
Also on my to-do list: fix my parent's laptop. Again. After resurrecting it from the grave this past summer and upgrading it to Vista( hi Dan! ), it's apparently decided to cough up a new problem, one that's OF COURSE hard to diagnose: the power LED flashes three times when the on button is pressed. That's it. No mention of this little problem anywhere that Google can find...
Feb 5th - Back to work
Yep, worked in the afternoon... and it was teeh-grindingly stressful. Apparently though I was insanely busy on Sunday, I managed not to do certain small things correctly and managed to tick off the store managed( more than I usually have so far ). Sad to say she's really sick this week as well, so she doesn't need the stress any more than I do. Seems I can't do much of anything right, as it results in doing two things wrong in the process, even with fiddly checklists to help me form proper work habits in the new branch. I went home feeling wrung out, tired and worthless as a long-term employee, not a good combo for someone in the business of money risk-assessment.
Feb 6th - Dah-dah-doh
Again, stress at work. Lovely people, teeth-grinding details I can't relate. I'm certain that Dante would have included these things as one of the 999 Layers of Hell if he was alive today. Sleep was a relief.
Feb 7th - Movies
Read the above. Nothing else worth mentioning, save that I'm keeping an eye out for either a) an explosion of grey hairs or b) a trail of hair falling out as I sleep. Neither of which appeals to me.
So instead, let's look at what I promised to list last week: my Fave Movies! Now, as some of you may already know, one of my all-time faves is Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray. I could watch that movie again and again, which may confirm some folk's more arcane theories about the soundness of my mind. Moving along: The Dark Crystal, which blurred reality and fantasy in the days before CGI; thanks Jim. Spiderman( heck, what kid doesn't want to be Spider Man? ), Forbidden Planet( some of the best sci-fi ever ), The Road Warrior( teeth-shaking post-apocalyptic road carnage! ), The Shawshank Redemption( beating the system ), The Star Wars Trilogy( 3-for-1 there! ), Aliens( bug-blasting action horror ), Metropolis( the benchmark for all SciFi films to follow ), The Matrix( yeah, I know, but it had KILLER W.O.M. before release! ), Blade Runner( so lovely it hurts to watch ), Donnie Darko( feeling trapped, anyone? ), The Princess Bride( my sense of humour 100% ), Brazil( the system beats YOU ), The Purple Rose of Cairo( how you can beat the system but lose anyway ), The LOTR Trilogy( one word: hobbits! ), Blade Runner( so good it deserves mentioning twice! ), Citizen Kane( hubris and so much more from the Forties ), 2001( a stunning visual work of art and mind ), Superman( we miss you Mr. Reeve ), and Life of Brian( laugh when it hurts ). This is by no means a definitive list, but as you can see it's long on Fantasy and SciFi, and quite short on romance, with a leavening of comedy tossed in. Horror, not so much, nor mystery, nor drama... I get enough of all three in my daily life, hence the somewhat escapist Movie List. *smile*
Feb 8th - Respite
My day off started fairly well, I went in early for an ultrasound to determine the size and severity of my gallstones. Hopefully I can work with my doctor on non-invasive treatments, as it's my firm belief that original equipment like a gall bladder should not be removed without thought being given to long-term health effects. I've managed to manage( hah! )that particular problem( among several I might add )without any painful relapses for almost three years now, through diet and exercise alone. I really don't want the thing chopped out if it's going to shorten my lifespan or do other things to me long-term; something to discuss with the doctor.
The remainder of the early morning and early afternoon I was out doing various things, when I received a call from one of the local stores: could I cover a shift for a sick co-worker? I said yes and so worked the evening shift at another store, and loved it. It was just me and the passing cars through the window. I had time to deal with the few customers( slow night! )and get ALL of my duties done properly, which was a huge relief especially being at an unfamiliar branch.
Feb 9th - Saturday Shopping in the crowds
Wow, talk about shopping 'till you drop. Skipping the AM cartoons( not much on of interest anyway ), it was out first thing in the parent's rental car, a nice Mazda3... stylish and comfy. Not taht there was a lot of exciting things happening, but we did end up with a full day and a full car: mostly storage boxes for me, bought on the cheap so I can store all the little bits and knacketts that I've accumulated. Since my new place is VERY short on closet space( where I usually stuff all the bits ), I have to put the boxes on the shelves... and since cardboard looks like crap, I went for tweed. Much better looking, and durable too. Heck, they were CHEAP, so I may stock up again on the next sale. Of course, I don't have a lot of room with all the books I have...
Feb 10th - a new laptop ... well, almost.
Sunday Shopping: once the bane of religious zealots everywhere, now nobody thinks twice about blowing hard-earned cash on materialistic gain on the Lord's Day. I certainly don't, and never did. That said, I was on the road again today with a specific goal in mind: laptop replacement. I had settled on a nice Toshiba model over at Staples, not too pricey and full of enough features to satisfy the less technically-inclined retired couple, such as my parents. The purchase wasn't helped by the sales clerk, who looked like he'd rather be back in ESL class; honestly, he did nothing to help the sale at all, aside from checking stock. And guess what? All they had was a 'restored' model, aside from the demo. I should have taken that as a warning sign, because sure enough, I set it up at my parent's place a few minutes later to discover a bright red stuck pixel smack in the middle of the screen. Stuck pixels: bane of my tech toy existence. So back it went to Staples within the hour for a rather smooth return... and then I discover that they won't credit my card until up to 48 hours later. So, no laptop for my parents today, or tomorrow... and all of this in the pouring rain. I tell you, when it wants to RAIN here, it does. Still doesn't quite match the ow-the-drops-are-raising-welts pounding that a good summer rainstorm in Florida will give you, but it's mean enough to soak you six times from sideways. Then the sun arrives to blind you with the wet glare on the roads, all within a few minutes. Yet... it's still better than snow. *grin*
I went out to the Irish Times Pub here in Victoria to listen to some Celtic music courtesy of Daniel Lapp and his bandmates. The pub was a great place, huge with two stories inside. I downed a Guinness while feasting on a great veggie burger, the only way I can get close to beef these days. I was out with some new friends from the building, and we had a great time; intellectual discourse was never so much fun when in a pub. I look forward to my next night out!
The late evening was spent working on a few projects, including a PAYING writing project that will be published in early summer - more on that as I'm allowed to release info. Deadlines... lots of fun when you work ahead of time on the things.
Thanks again to the Anonymous Poster on my last blog entry: it warms me to know that I'm on some folk's minds of late. Especially given the total lack of Punnage they've been blessed with in my absence. I can almost hear the brain cells rejoicing... miss ya folks.
