I am excited about the next few days and I cannot wait to get out of work so that I may share my great mood with the world. Well, with my world, anyway. Which consists of Dave, three cats and two dogs. Oh, puppies, I have so much to tell you!
Here are 5 things that I am excited about:
1) February is almost over. And you know what that means...it's almost spring, baby!
2) I have two new (used) cds on order and should be holding them in my actual hands early next week. Also, they are shipping to me at work, so Dave does not even have to know! (Unless he reads this...then I'm busted. But still happy!)
3) I am cooking up a plan that is good for me and may even increase my productivity at work. Stay tuned for details.
4) I have discovered Bookmooch. And I have just requested my first two books. (Thanks, Craige, for introducing me to this!)
5) I am planning to get my permit to drive a motorcycle. And I will be negotiating the use of a scooter similar to this bad boy with my Dad, who owns two like this and has mentioned teaching me how to drive one. My commute to work is pretty easy for Atlanta, (I don't have to get on the interstate) but it is still 30 minutes one-way and if gas prices continue to increase the way they are increasing right now, then a scooter or smaller motorcycle may be just the thing.
This weekend, is going to be fun, I just know it. I have a mission from Baby Catie to do something really fun before the week is out and I get bonus points for not spending any money. Catie, mission accepted. I think it's time to go exploring around Atlanta. I may even talk Dave into giving geocaching a try.
If it makes you happy, it can't be that baaa-aaa-ad
My will to work is missing
I seem to have misplaced my will to work this week. I am not very motivated and would really like to go home, curl up on my couch with a comfy blanket over my lap, a cup of coffee on the table beside me, and a really good book and maybe a cat or two to keep me company. It is raining outside and that just makes my idea all the more perfect.
I'm not sure that it is just the weather that is making me feel so under motivated. I really think it might have more to do with the fact that I am very much, without a doubt, over this job. My review a few months ago was ridiculous -- the biggest complaint per my supervisor? I go to lunch too often with one of my male coworkers and it "doesn't look right and people might talk." So now I am no longer allowed to go to trade shows with this person. We're talking once or twice a week and usually it was in an effort to conserve gas, not because we were going to rent a room for an hour at the Hampton Inn down the street. And I work in a department with all guys, so go figure (with the exception of my new assistant who was hired after my review).
I have also not been given a raise, though I was told during my review that the paperwork was on the CEO's desk for approval. I guess that's kind of like the saying "the check is in the mail." Plus, after discovering I make a lot less than my male predecessor and that the inexperienced new sales associate is making about 20k more than me, I made the mistake of confiding my feelings about all of that to someone who did not keep what I told him confident. Another reason why it is time to move on.
I love change and I have a feeling that bigger and better things are just around the corner!
Because I am not smarter than a Fifth Grader
I have been busy! (and lazy) And that is why there has been no updating.
We had a Chinese businessman and his translator visit at work last week. And we decided it would be a nice gesture to offer them tea while they were here. So I went shopping for a teapot.
Have you ever tried shopping for one specific item that you know you have seen almost everywhere you have shopped in the past, but when you actually need to purchase said item yourself, it becomes elusive? That's exactly what happened.
After hours of searching, I finally found a beautiful tea set in Pier One, along with matching platters that I just had to have. And you know what? No visitors drank any tea.
This weekend, I rested. I was beginning to get a little weary from all of the traveling and excitement that has been occurring in my life lately. So I decided to try and do As Little As Possible this weekend. I think I may have been relatively successful! Dave and I had a nice day Saturday, driving around the area where we live and trying to find boutiques with handmade goods. We failed on that count, though we did discover a plethora of junk at a couple of antique shops. We were competing to find the weirdest thing and I really regret not having brought my camera, because those places are treasure troves for the Strange and Bizarre. I found a published book called something like "A Book About My Cat" where you actually fill in the pages with facts about your cat. Like a baby book. There were places for pictures and even a place for a little bit of fur. It was very disturbing. We found insect candle holders that you hang on the wall, a pillow with a picture of a pug's head on a human body that was dressed like Louis XIV, a religious painting depicting heaven and hell as two opposite worlds bridged by a cross. We may have to go back just for documenting purposes. My brain got too full after a while so we decided to head home. Dave played more of his favorite video game while talking to himself and occasionally yelling at his virtual persona, while I lounged on the couch and read one of my sex books. (That's what Dave calls the romance novels I enjoy reading.)
Sunday, we headed to an open area near Dave's gym where he likes to practice throwing his heavy Scottish-Highland-Games-Competition weights. I do not usually accompany him, but he said he needed "coaching" and he also wanted me to film him so he could see what he was doing wrong. He is very hard to coach because he wants to be perfect and he gets So Angry when he is not. And he yells at himself. But I think progress was made, though I suggested that he start filming himself every time. We need to get a camcorder and a tripod so he can set it up near him and just record his entire practice. And I can stay home.
Last night, we played some of our new game on the XBox. It is the Simpsons Game and it is muy raro. Each character has a separate skill set and you have to work together to complete the levels. At the end, it shows the time it took us to complete the level along with the time it "should" have taken. I think my favorite was when it took us 53 minutes to complete a level that "should" have taken 8. We have decided it is because we are OLD. And this game was written at a 5th grade level. Therefore, as Jeff Foxworthy would point out, Dave and I combined are not smarter than a fifth grader.
Feelin' Sore, But Lucky
What I learned this weekend: tiling is hard work, friends. And it makes your body HURT!
About a year ago, my mom decided to do her allergies a favor and get rid of her 30+ year-old carpet (vintage!) and replace it with tile. She bought all of the tile. She bought the grout. Dave and I offered to install it for her. After putting it off too long and with mom hinting that she "just might hire someone else", we finally began the installation process over the long weekend.
Dave drove down to Florida on Thursday to start the process. I drove down to join him on Friday and to assist. We only got the living room done, so we will be repeating the process on Dave's next three-day weekend in March. But it's lookin' good! When I arrived on Friday night, Dave had gotten this far:
On Saturday, we finished laying all of the tiles in the living room, and it looked like this:
The entire time we worked, the dogs stayed in my mom's teeny tiny backyard, watching us through the window with their noses pressed against the screen. I kept saying they were our supervisors.
I had to leave on Sunday, since I am not lucky enough to have President's Day off from work. But I WAS lucky enough to avoid the severe weather that hit Florida right after I left and had hit my travel route a few hours before. I like to think it was my Jedi-Janet mind tricks that kept it to the east of me the entire way.
Alas, it is Monday and I am back to work. Dave will be home tonight and maybe we'll finally celebrate us a little Valentine's Day. Though we might decide to catch up on sleep instead. We are just that romantic.
And the sunshine echoed with laughter
I feel like I should write this post in stream of consciousness because that is what the memories of this past weekend feel like to me:
The plane touches down where the sun is shining. I begin to shake and wonder "is this wrong?" as I let them know I have arrived. A red bag. Wheeling toward the unknown. Strangers all around. I've never done something like this. Never been this daring. A warm bench. A cool breeze. Waiting. Watching. Wondering. I remove my jacket and feel the wind on my arms. Nervousness. Cannot sit still. What if? A shiny car. Friendliness. A new beginning. The intangible becoming real. Driving surrounded by mountains, conversation, sunlight. A new place. So many faces. Second guesses, Hesitation. Then, laughter. Surrounding me like a soft blanket. Hugs. Calzones. The doubts float away like dust motes. And then there is love. Sharing. Intelligent conversations.
Smiles. So much laughter. Easiness. Cats and sunlight. Food and cool drinks. The color pink. A celebration of someone special. Magical. The reason we are here. The universe is smiling. I think "Where is the drama?" And there is none.
A long table. Beautiful people. Cameras everywhere. Fresh sushi and endamame and miso soup. The low buzz of conversation. Operatic singing. Sated and sleepy. Trees with white lights. A hotel room. Yellow walls. Games and more laughter. An open window. A warning delivered meekly. Attempted hushing. A crescendo of noise. Singing. Drinking. Carousing. Sleep.
A new day. A beautiful breakfast. Strong coffee. Multiple cups in saucers. Paper plates decorated with cupcakes. Shifting the focus. Surprise and tears. Hugs and comfort. Passing around tissues. Weeping dissolves into laughing. A flurry to gather supplies. Moving to another gathering place. Glue and scissors with the alphabet as inspiration. To adorn a baby's room. L and R, M and C are taken. 14 spectacular results. Night falls. Dinner is paella and sangria. My brother arrives late, but safe.
A trip to the airport. The first goodbye.
Games and more laughter. More goodbyes. Then sleep. Morning. Dress warm. Riding behind my brother. I am scared, but won't show it. I trust him implicitly and ride perched behind him. Don't fall. Speeding down the freeway. The wind whistling. A beautiful coast. 10 foot tall dinosaurs welded out of metal. Camera trouble. New card, continue on our way. Driving through the city. It is cold and overcast. Surrounded by fog and cars.
A huge cable bridge spanning the bay. A famous prison. I take lots of photos. At least for me. I am beginning to ache as I realize it's time to go back. Perched for what seems like eternity. Burning between my legs. I hold on. Stopping to say "We're allmost there." Understanding.
Dinner in a small space. Good food. A smaller group. More games. A sense of melancholy. Knowing it will soon end. Heading to the Anchev house. Comfortable and homey. A cat jump into a basket. More sharing. My brother opens up about our dad and for a moment I am sad. Back to the hotel. Everyone is sleepy. Worried about his ride home, I fall asleep.
Packing. Waiting for a ride to breakfast. The mood is subdued. We know we are leaving. Laughter, eggs and coffee. Then alone time with Catie. Decompressing from the excitement. A ride to the airport. Hugs goodbye. Too tired for tears. Feeling small and alone as I wait for the plane. Four hours airborne. A shaky landing. A hug from Dave and I'm home.
Whew, what a day
It has been one of those days. I spent the day trying to figure out why my email software client was being blocked by the servers of some of the customers that are on our email newsletter list at work. After scratching my head for several hours, I finally called my brother, Mike, who is a computer networking administrator and Unix / Linux expert. He was able to diagnose the problem pretty quickly. 1) our IP address had been blacklisted with www.spamhaus.com and 2) stupid me had been sending out my email newsletter without a throttle, meaning WAY too many emails were being pushed through a Cbeyond SMTP server WAY too quickly. I was essentially making myself look like a spammer.
One of the ways to resolve the issue was to use a different SMTP server to send the messages. Which required a phone call to my company's web hosting company. Whose customer service is less than stellar. The guy I talked to treated me like a stupid female who was wasting his time by asking all these technical questions that he felt didn't pertain to the real issue. So he decided to grill me about how my brother and I had reached the conclusions we had. He was a real a--hole, and after taking his shit for a few minutes, I finally decided to start flinging it right back. I hate to fight fire with fire, but sometimes it works.
Anyway, I finally got what I needed from Mr. Helpful, and I think the problem is resolved. For now, anyway.
In other news, I am SO EXCITED about my pending trip to San Jose. A group of us are getting together to help a friend celebrate her birthday and I think we're all going to have a blast. I'm also going to get to see my other brother, Chris. And ride on his motorcycle for the first time ever. Here's hoping he drives safely!
