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DECEMBER The spirit being, "Snow Man",
brings the cold and snow for the earth to cover the high places
while the earth rests until the rebirth of the seasons in the Windy
Moon Anuyi. Families traditionally were busy putting up and storing
goods for the next cycle of seasons. Elders enjoyed teaching and
retelling ancient stories of the people to the young. |
Someone has
been
ELFED!
CELEBRITY
Dick van Dyke
|
I got up fairly early this morning. Fixed some soup, as usual. Took a shower, shaved and dressed for my interview. It was very cold today. Overcast, with some slight snow flurries. I headed out to the interview with Kelly IT Services around 9:00a. It was a long drive into Missouri. I did not realize how far it would be. Still, it was not as long in travel time as a daily trip to work used to be. I found the building after a couple of "over shots" ... using a combination of the instructions from Margo (the interviewer) and Yahoo Maps. I signed in to the log at the front desk and, to my embarrassment, I had to ask the young man you greeted me to direct me to the men's room! The soup and soda I had for breakfast were being VERY obtrusive! I did not want to find myself in a professional interview, squirming about in discomfort and unable to focus on the matter at hand, however. Anyway, I was about 10-15 minutes early and Margo had a phone interview that took her to about 10:10a before she could sit down with me, so ... no harm done.
I felt the interview went quite well. I know I am more than qualified for the job they have for me, and I think Margo picked up on this, but who knows. As far as I can tell, she is going to line me up with an interview with the actual employer, Normandy School District. The job is only a 60 day contract position, but that is fine. I need whatever I can get at the moment until somebody "discovers" me and sucks me back up into the mainstream of employment. This level-II position would normally pay around $20 per hour, and they are only paying $15 per hour, but I do not care. I am getting to the point of desperation. I was ready to take a job at $9 per hour... I am not THAT proud. I just need an income!
It's funny (or "ironic") that, despite all the problems and hassles that I am going through about getting a job, I am 110% confident in my skills. Whoever hires me, if they are astute, will realize that they have received more than they expected. Will this "matter to them? Who knows... but at least *I* know they will be getting a good deal. If they can't make adequate use of me, my skills, my experience, my creativity, and my versatility... too bad for them! (and... of course... for me too... <sigh>).
After my interview with Margo, I left and headed out to "Gateway Animal Clinic" to pick up Kira's Proin. I had to drive up and down the Westpoint Industrial Drive area a few times before I located "Progress Parkway" ... and "progressed" from there. I got to the vet's address, but did not know which side of the road he was on. It has been 2 years since I was there last and I think we came from the opposite direction. I was riding with Tad at the time...
...and speaking of Tad. He is in the hospital now and supposedly undergoing some kind of surgery. He has been sick, but I have no details, other than something about "something in his stomach."
I got to the vet's office with only minimal problem. I pulled into the wrong side of the road and had to cross over. Once again, I had to seek out their men's room! (How embarrassing!), but then I ran into Bruce and had a short conversation with him about Kira's condition. I mentioned putting her on an herbal supplement and he immediately asked, "Milk Thistle"? ... YES! That is exactly what I did! That was cool... I feel confident I am doing the right thing for her.
I ended up purchasing two bottles of Proin for her. The cost is painful, but she is my baby... what can I say?
I left the Gateway Animal Clinic, consulting my Yahoo Maps printout, headed home. Well... or so I hoped. The map did not specify which way to go and so (of course) I went the wrong way. Fortunately, the map say so go about 2.6 miles and turn... but I only got about 1.8 miles before the road ended! (Big clue... WRONG WAY!).
I turned around and headed back the other way and EVENTUALLY made my way toward home. Or so I thought. I thought I was going to cross over the Mississippi and the the Route 3 Cahokia exit, but suddenly I realized I was head South in Missouri. Not crossing the river! I am still not sure HOW I ended up goint the wrong way, but I got turned around and eventually found my way back onto 64 East, and home.
I stopped at Taco Bell and went through a drive through in my car for the first time today. (Big yippee!).
After getting home and pigging out on 3 Tacos Superemas, and one Pizza Mexicana, I got very tired and felt kind of puny. I ended up laying down for a nap around 3:30pm. I woke up (or "got up") around 5:30p. I found my cell phone laying in the floor in my office. (It had vibrated itself off onto the floor!). Skip had called a couple of times to see if I was going to give him a ride home from 5th&Mo. I called him back, but he was already on the bus. I volunteered to pick him up down at Q-Mart and I did so.
The first thing this morning, I got up and went into the bathroom only to find that Barnabas had ONCE AGAIN "sprayed" on the bathroom rug. This time I flipped out, rolled up the rug, and threw it at Barnabas, who was sitting at his feed dish in Skip's room. Barnabas freaked and ran. I did not see him for hours. I left the contaminated carpet on his feed dish. Let's see how HE likes his own smell in his food area!
I drove over to Schnuck's this morning and pulled out $300 dollars from the ATM. After bringing it home and adding it to WheresGeorge, I drove to Granite City (with Kira) and paid two payments in advance on the car. My next payment is due on December 31st.
On the way home, I stopped by the Creekpaum residence to check on Tad's condition. He is coming home tonight (or in the morning). Much of his condition is confirmed with me now. I need to have a long talk with him.
8:51p I finally got WinSCP working again and am getting my journal updated!
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9:23p Skylar just called. I am on the phone with him now. Ooops... we just got disconnected! 10:50p I guess he is not going to call back. I finished eating. and am off to bed. Skip wants to get me up early in the morning to drive him to the store to buy coffee! <sigh> ... here we go.... |
7:33a I slept horribly last night. First I was having more wild dreams, then Kira would get me up to go outside. I would get back to sleep and about an hour and a half later Kira would get me up again. I got up about 4 or 5 times to let her out last night, and at least twice I told her to lay back down. I finally got up a little after 7:00a to let her out again. I was daylight already. I noticed the smell as soon as I walked in the kitchen. Barnabas sprayed the kitchen carpet again! The bathroom carpet isn't even out of the wash yet! This is getting ridiculous. Skip leaves Barnabas out of his room all night, with no water, and then he sprays the bathroom and/or kitchen and I am left to deal with it. I filled the communal water container up and this time I set it in the spot where he sprayed. Maybe he will get the hint... but I doubt it.
Now I am to angry to go back to bed. Anyway, Skip wants me to take him to the store to get some coffee this morning. I suspect I shall NOT be a very pleasant chauffeur THIS morning!
7:46a Skip just got up. First he made a comment asking me if I was drinking beer (there is an empty can sitting next to me). NO! Gross! Ick! Beer in the morning is nauseating concept. I supposed it's just very rare that I do not properly dispose of my beer can into the recycling tub, pulling off the pull tab, which I save for some odd reason. The he asked why I was up so early (since I had indicated to him last night that I did not want to get up before 8:00a. I gave him an earful about my morning... and his cat. He put Barnabas in his room. That'll teach him <sarcasm>.
8:48a I ran Skip over to Wal-Mart so he could pick up some coffee and filters for the new coffee maker Darlene brought us. He has been in the kitchen trying to figure out how it works (since there was no manual with it). I put a pot of soup on. I am using the last of the asparagus. The tips were starting to get a bit slimy! So I put the entire 3rd bunch in this morning's soup. There wasn't all that much left after I washed and snapped them anyway. I should run over to Soulard and see if there's any more. Three fat bundles of fresh asparagus for $2 was a great deal.
8:49p LOL... 12 hours and one minute later: I watched the movie I rented last night with "Will Farrell" (ick) not my favorite actor. The movie was "Bewitched." It was interesting how the intermixed the old series with the movie about making a movie about the old series. That was quite intriguing, but the overall movie was a bit lame. I enjoyed watching it... but I am easily amused.
I managed to get my midi files to play again on my computer tonight. Earlier, I loaded my old BOGGLE game, but it caused the PC to reboot after a few seconds, so that one had to be removed. My computer drastically needs replacing! I got Adobe Acrobat Reader upgraded from 5.0 to 7.0 tonight. One more step toward "normalcy."
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We went to the Dollar Store this afternoon to pick up some eggs. The lines were so bad we put the eggs back and went to Schnuck's to buy them. In a moment of mental disparity, I offered and agreed to make egg rolls for supper! Stupid me. They are great ... delicious... but such a pain t make! I have pasted in here (to the left) an animated graphic I made of (the last?) another time I made egg rolls. |
8:59p Marty is on the way over to get the cans.
It has been cold (freezing) for the last few days, and I expect it will be so for quite a while now. Winter is upon us. Nature continues her relentless course.
I found a roller rink called "Fun Spot" in Belleville. They have "adult night" on Sunday. I *may* go tomorrow! I have not skated since... I think... 1993!
9:05p I think I will head to the kitchen now and start getting things ready for supper. A LOT of work!
10:08p Marty just left. I am working on making the egg rolls. Total chaos...
11:27p Egg rolls are done. A few casualties, but not *too* bad. It has been a while since I made any.
1:49a We just finished watching a movie ("Kingdom of Heaven") about the fall of Jerusalem to Saladin. Pretty good. Off to bed now.
11:53a I got up around 10:00a this morning. I slept pretty good. Kira didn't get me up once all night! (Amazing!). I made a delicious pot of soup for breakfast, and Skip figured out how to make coffe in the new coffee maker Darlene brought us.
I have spent almost all morning fight with Pinnacle's Studio 9 (which SHOULD be Studio 9 Plus!). I think I finally got it working... except for the extra keys I purchased. They are not important at the moment though. I will tackle that later. I did pay for them though, so I want them to work.
4:18p Skip and I went down to Shop-n-Save earlier. Well, he did. I went into the Family Dollar store next door. I considered buying some lights to decorate the house, but after mentioning it to Skip to see if he would go in on them with me, he wants to wait until payday. I should wait and see if I get this job too. I did pick up a couple of bottles of fuel injector cleaner for the car, and some Armor All. Then we went to Wal-Mart. I got some items for Kira, but the did not have even ONE container of condition in the pet section. I got some medicated shampoo which is supposed to be good for getting rid of dandruff, and then I to a simple bottle of conditioner with aloe vera. I will dilute that in a container and pour it over her. I hope it helps. Oh... and I got her a bottle of supplement for skin and coat. I used to give her that before. Maybe it will help her bad flaking condition some.
7:07p I went over to Tad's around 5:30p to see if I could trim Brandi's nails. However, they were so long, curled and thick, I had to give up. My clippers are not up to the task. I advised them to have the vet do it.
Mi parolis kun Tad pri lian kondicxon. Li estas tre malsana. Li konfermis ke li havas la aidoson kaj lia sangkompto estas suben al 15! Tial, mi oferis ke li rajdus kun min al Bethany Place hodiaux. Mi pensas ke li bezonas sian asistadon pli ol min.
9:44p I am off to give K-dog a medicinal shampoo and conditioning now...
Special
blessing for "Skye" 
who passed over to the next existence at approximately 12:00pm to day |
7:44a I got up (against my better judgment) at about 7:10a. Gave Kira her pills. She is so soft & fluffy this morning! No fleas! Smells nice! I hope fleas don't get as bad this next year as they did this time. 7:53a This is a rarity. I am having a cup of hot green tea this morning. My throat is all swollen (probably from snoring). The tea and breakfast should help. 8:48a Breakfast was a home made chicken patty, buttered somen, 2 eggs and tea. Time to get dressed and go pick up Tad. 8:59a The Detective just called about my monitor while Tad and I were trying to find the Bethany Place. He has to find out if the case went to trial. If it did, then he has to wait another 30 days before he can return the property to me. |
11:59a I just finished writing a letter to Guy Menahem, found for the Florida Esperanto League. I last saw him in 1995 until seeing him on the video tutorial, "Paspoto al la Tuta Mondo." The address I have is 10 years old, so it may not be valid any longer, but we will see.
9:06p I have been running back and forth to Tad's today, trying to get his computer functional. I pulled the broken CD-ROM drive out (it is BROKEN). I loaded his Kodak software for his new camera by copying the CD to my 1Gb flash card and installing it. I then tried to copy Office XP to the flash card so I could load it for him, but I goofed and copied the XP Pro CD to the card instead. Oops! That was wrong.
Damn... my computer just rebooted. I lost some commentary at this point. Oh well...
10:24p Supper is done. Hamburger Helper with a few modifications by me. I little bit more spicy than expected!
8:28a I had all kinds of disturbing dreams last night. They've left me with a feeling is mild despair or depression or some such this morning. The dreams were jumbled, but included the classic "being naked in public;" getting on the bus and discovering I had left my wallet; a small child using obscene language.
In one segment, I was at a party, trying to get into the kitchen, (of my own home?), but there were so many people there I could not get in (oh, and I was naked again). There was water on the floor, and some pet had left a smelly present (or two) in the house.
In anther scene, I was in some professional building and my cell phone rang. It was Marjanet Ford (who was Administrative Assistant to the City Attorney of Orlando before me). My connection was bad (as usual) and I had trouble understanding what she was saying, but I thought she said they her employer was hiring. I was like, "yay! A job offer!" ... but then I realized she was saying she had lost her job and was wondering if my organization was hiring.
The Old Orlando City Hall
being blown up. I used to be manager of the 4th floor.
Then there was a scene in some place like a pawn shop. I remember Hattie Williams name being mentioned (she was our secretary back in the old city hall before it was imploded. There were fragments of paper with pieces of pictures and/or writing on some of them. Some were folded in peculiars shapes, including one which was folded into an origami bird (the "finger" ... not the feathered kind!).
Obviously my employment status is really weighing on me for my dreams to reaching back into my memory in this fashion.
9:09a I have some breakfast (left over supper) warming up. I am famished for some reason this morning. I was laying in bed and my stomach was rumbling and complaining.
7:08p The day got busier! First, this morning, I submitted between 7 and 10 applications & resumes.
Later, Ricky called and asked me if I had some white out. I was filling out a job application and had made a mess of it. I told him to bring it over. He did so and I scanned in his three pages and reworked it. He was quite impressed... and I had a good time showing off my skills.
While I was working on all this, I got a call from one of my job prospects. I now have an interview with Whelan Security for an Administrative Assistant position! I liked the sound of this job. We will see how it goes....
About 4:00p, after a nice invigorating shower, I went over Tad's to finish loading his MS Office. His system was so messed up! I had to leave it running and leave to go drop off a movie at Block Buster and pick up Skip. I called Skip first, however, and he wanted me to take HIS movie back too, so I ran back to the house (well... "drove"), and got his movie. However, one of the cats had taken a dump in the living room (on the new white carpet... of course). I cleaned that up and got his movie and headed out. Forgot my glasses. Ran back in for them. Headed out again. It was now 4:57p, so I decided to pick Skip up first and stop back by Block Buster. I arrived at 5th & Mo at exactly the same time as Skip's train, but he did not see me and went to stand about 4 cars over from me to read his book. I saw him, called his cell phone and he finally caught up with me.
We stopped back by Block Buster and I went in. Tad said that the Fantastic Four movie was released today. It was, and I picked up a copy. I am very excited to watch this movie! The F4 have long been my favorite super heroes!
We got home and I headed back over to Tad's and finished entering the MS Office. He is going to buy a DVD burner (if he can afford it), so I will hold off doing any more work on his system until he gets that done.
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He really need more RAM and a system reload. His niece has frelled his system up but good. So, I came home and put some of Darlene's venison ribs in the oven to bake. I am leary about cooking venison carted across the US in the trunk of a car, in a black yard waste bag... but, my family grew up with such unconventional type food sources! |
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8:28p I don't know how the meat will really be, but so far it is smelling wonderful! I marinated it in a vinegar & brown sugar sauce which included minced garlic, oregano, salt, black pepper, a dash of sage, a little chili powder and some other seasonings. Lightly sprinkled with some roasted garlic granules. We will see. I am planning some rice on the side. A mix of wild rice and brown rice with yellow and red onion mixed in. I also have a sweet potato I am thinking I will peel, slice and fry (more Japanese style, but tasty if it comes out right).
8:33p Time to go back to the kitchen... with my camera.
9:39p Supper *seems* to be very good. I hope it is all as tasty as it smells!
11:53p OMG! ...Supper was FANTASTIC! ... and I started the movie FANTASTIC FOUR while eating, so wasn't that cool!?
| What a busy day! I got up about 7:30a. Fixed three eggs and some leftover fried sweet potato for breakfast (and it was really quite tasty!). I got showered and dressed, while trying to keep the cats, Barnabas and Chooga, from fighting. I heard a banging sound in the bathroom and went to check it out. Barnabas cam zipping out of the bath and I found poor, clawless, Chooga hiding behind the toilet. Chooga came running out of the bath and darted into my room under the bed. I really did not need all this on this particular morning! I let him set there for a bit, but decided to close my window. I had it crack open to let some of the chilled air in since it was too hot in my room (which causes Kira to keep drinking water all night, and the she wakes me up about every 2 hours to go outside). I tried to close the windows, but the condensation had trickled down into the track ... AND FROZE. |
The window was literally frozen open! That means I had to shut my bedroom door, since the heat is on. But don't forget... the cat is still under my bed and he would be stuck in my room (with no cat box) until I got home! I was about to start pulling my hair out by this time, but the dry weather was making it frizz out all over as it was. Pulling any out was not going to help!
Chooga finally came out on his own, but the window remained frozen. I thought about taking my hairdryer and thawing it out, but I was running out of time.
I headed out to my interview at Whelan Security, but I had a little trouble finding the last street, South Hanley. I actually got on South Hanley and passed Whelan once and did not realize it. Then, while searching for Whelan, Margo called me from Kelly IT and wanted me to attend another job interview at Normandy School District! I found Whelan finally, and officially arrived a few minutes early. They had me fill out the usual tons of paperwork, then I had to take a timed IQ type test. I was half way through all their aptitude tests when Margo called again. Time was running out. I made a decision then and asked the Whelan Staff if they would hold my test aside and postpone my interview until I could get back to them. They had no problem with that, to my relief, and I head out to try to find the Normandy School District. That went badly! I started off going exactly the opposite direction. I got lost several times. Margo eventually called me and "came to my rescue" (bless her!). She stayed on the phone with me and got me back on track. She also called the interviewer and explained my circumstances. I managed to be only 15 minutes late (by some miracle!).
My interview with Mr. T. Weakly went fairly well, and ... HE EXTENDED THE JOB OFFER TO ME! The job will be very challenging! I am more than a little nervous. I hope I have not bitten off more than I can swallow here. However, the pay is decent and it is in the IT field. These are both very good things. This is a temporary position for about 60 days, but it may lead to a permanent job. We will see. I hope I can satisfy their requirements, if not actually dazzle them!
It feels good to have some hope again and to regain a little of my self esteem.
I left the Interview site over on Lucas & Hunt Road and called Margo, but could not reach her. So, I drove over to her office (which I found with surprising ease!). My timing could not have been better. She had me fill out all the required paperwork (of which there was, not surprisingly, an abundance) and set me up to get finger printed for a background check at 9:30a tomorrow. I am then to report to Normandy at noon. I will be one of at least two people starting tomorrow. (The other person's name is Fred Rocket. What an interesting name!).
Finally, I could go home! It was after 3:00p by this time and I had still not had a chance to get lunch, or even a drink of water. I headed home, but had to get lost just one more time. I ended up go all the way to St. Charles (so that's where it is!) before getting turned back around and eventually finding my way home again. I stopped by Taco Bell on the way back and treated myself to some fast food.
I was feeling exhilarated and drained. Tired, but pleased. Skip called about 4:50p to see if I would give him a ride, but I asked him to take the bus today. I was still "catching my breath" after this fast paced day. It didn't take long though. I ate my tacos and "Stufft Burrito" while watching the remainder of "The Fantastic Four." Then at about 5:40p, Kira and I drove over to Q-Mart and picked Skip up from the bus stop.
7:05p I just finished catching up the events of my day. Finally I have something more interesting to write about than how many times I let Kira outside, what's on TV, last nights dreams, what I cooked and how many times I ate... Sheesh! I have been getting in such a boring rut!
9:50p Oh what a day this has been. And tomorrow promises to be just interesting, if not more so.
I have a pot of "venison soup" cooking made with leftovers from last night's wonderful meal. I had really intended to be in bed by now. I told Skip to fend for himself for food, since I had Taco Bell earlier. I offered to share the soup, but he is "not int he mood" for soup. Okay... hmmm... seemed logical to me, but... whatever. I'm a Klingon... not a Vulcan.
10:20p Mi ja trinkis pli ol mi kredas mi devus cxi nokte. Mi havos longan tagon hodiaux! Mi bezonas esti vigla!
10:28p I better eat, go to bed, and be READY for the morrow. I want to sit up like I have no responsibilities, but that has suddenly change. What a weird feeling! (I hate/love it!).
11:15p I had my soup for supper. Time for bed now. Busy day tomorrow!
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This was a long day! I got my Indentix finger printing done downtown, despite the heave snow. That was a fascinating process using electronic equipment and no ink. It took me 1½ hours to get from there to my new workplace. I could not find Interstate 70 and ended up going WAY out of my way again. I finally found the place though. We did a lot of physical labor... and not real computer support. I called Skip and offered to pick him up from work. I got so lost and trapped in slow traffic! We did not get home until after 7:00p!! |
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I took Skip to work this morning. I found my way to work with no problem. I pulled into the driveway at 7:31a ... just a tad behind schedule. I worked on Cisco stuff with Nick this morning. I was completely lost. He just graduated high school, but he knows all this stuff that is completely beyond me. I hope the don't expect me to do THIS kind of work, because I have NO clue. I went to lunch at the nearby subway shop. We were going to work on loading up laptops, but someone requested we move a desk down to their offices and it turned into more "moving equipment" and other manual labors. It seems to me they could have hired about 6 guys for simple, basic labor and gotten a lot more of this kind of work done. But, if they want to pay me to do this, I will take the money. If it doesn't hurt me too bad in the process. 11:49p We just ordered Pizza. Skip paid me rent, plus I have a little bit of hours logged with Kelly (about $187 worth). |
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I got to sleep in until a little after 8:00a this morning. I spent much of the morning chatting with Mel on line. Probably the longest most in depth discussion we've ever had. I discovered my webcam is not working and tried to load it up again, but it just messed up my computer to the point that it would not boot up. I had to boot up in safe mode and uninstall the webcam software. This computer is slowly going down hill.
7:49p I finally got off my butt around 5:00p and drove over to Wal-Mart. ("Drove" over... that still sounds odd!). I got dog food for Kira, cat food, and an ice scraper/brush to keep in the car for the next time it snows. Then I hopped over to Schnuck's and picked up a few items, including a pork roast, which I have in the oven now.
This has been a pretty boring day, overall. I need to get my material printed for my reading of "La Parvolo" at the Zamenhofa Bankedo tomorrow.
I made it through another day of work. Not as much physical labor today. I managed to get to 5th & Mo to pick up Skip before he arrived there.
6:36a I am hating getting up this early. It's already wearing me out.
6:43a I am off for another day of work. I did not get enough sleep. Skip called in sick.
5:45a I am home. What a long and strenuous day of work. I did not get enough sleep last night. I need to get to bed earlier tonight, but I have to cook food for tomorrow's holiday mean thing (which I would really rather not be involved in).
Another day of strenuous furniture moving. We did have a holiday lunch today though. That was nice. More furniture moving scheduled for tomorrow. Skip called in sick again today.
6:45a I had dreams of war on American soil last night. There were jets fighting in the air and a bomber dropped a huge bomb.
My Kelly co-worker, Fred, has been sick all day. I am glad I take all my vitamins!
6:10a Just got home a bit ago. Still getting situated.
6:00a My alarm goes off and I have a surge of panicky-disgust, knowing that I must get up and go to work. I got up in the middle of the night with my throat swollen painfully shut. And my stomach sent me racing to the toilet several times. I think I am catching whatever Fred has. I pressed the snooze button. I have nine more minutes.
6:08a Skip bangs on my bedroom door and asks if I am up. Okay... "yes" ... I am up. I just lost one precious and valuable minute of "laying in bed" ... but ... yes, I am up. (grrr!). So, I get out of bed and find that he is already in the shower. Whatever... I just crawled back into bed for a few minutes, with the light still on.
It was around 8:00a this morning that my photo goes off and the alarm system sends me a message that the alarm system is going off. This was a fiasco all morning. I called Skip; he suggested I called Tad; Tad was not answering; I called Skip back and he said he would call Hobi; meanwhile, my phone keeps ringing. I tried "listening in" using the monitoring feature, but I could not hear anything that made sense. Skip ended up calling the Police Department to make a check on our house, then Tad calls me back a bit later. He said he would check the house, but I never heard back from him. I was about 98% sure that it must have been Kira trying to get out of the kitchen where I had her blockaded. She probably knocked the motion sensor over or jarred it enough to set it off.
The day slowly passed. Fred and I went over to McDonald's for lunch. I got a quarter-pounder (which sure seems tiny these days) and a Big Mac, and a large order of fries.
1:00p Lunch is over and I began packing up the Dell SX280 that I was setting up this morning. A very nice system. We really did not accomplish much this afternoon, but I did get my own personal PC set up. We also got to leave early at 4:00pm. A holiday bonus. Oh... and I am starting to feel sick. I think Fred passed his bug on to me.
Skip called me and said all is well at home. It seems that Kira has managed to tear my old mirror to pieces trying to get out of the kitchen. Also, Skip let Chooga out this morning and failed to lock the back door back! I can't believe he could be so ignorant, but... he has proven me wrong. The Police came by to check out the house and just walked in the back door! Again... I wonder how Kira dealt with this? I am glad they checked on the house, but I do not see that they should come INSIDE my home to check it! That seems to have been a bit of over kill. Plus, they shut Skip's bedroom door and locked Barnabas in there with no access to water. That was not cool.
12:38p I got to sleep in until about 8:45a this morning! That was luxury after this past week!
1:58p I have spent a pleasurable morning simply going through email and piddling on the computer. It only took one week of work for me to remember what it is like to have days off!
11:31p Skip and I went to Fairview Heights today just to get away from the house. We ended up splurging on a WONDERFUL steak dinner at Long Horn. We both ordered the 12 oz. Rib Eye steak. Skip got his "medium" and I chose "medium well." We ordered an appetizer of skewered, grilled shrimp on a bed of jalapeρo French fries. We washed it all down with some glasses of "Mr. Pibb."
After a wonder meal, which cost us about $55 including tip, we went over to Lowe's to see about getting a partition of wood to create a blockade for Kira while we are at work (we are confining her to the kitchen during our absence these days, as I think I have mentioned). We had some Russian speaking dude and half his commune waiting in front of us. They seemed to be having there house cut out of plywood or something. After them was a Mexican couple who had a few pieces of wood to cut. The Russian commune seemed to have no end to their demands and eventually Skip and I (who only wanted one board with a 3-foot cut) gave up and went over to K-Mart. Oddly ... the K-Mart (a "Big K") had less goods than we were used to at the crappy little Wal-Mart in Cahokia! They only had a minimal selection of scented oils, no computers and no gaming section (which was a slap in the face to Skip!)
Marty & JR came over tonight and picked up the cans. I have been working on learning FlashCode, but it is going VERY slow!
Skip and I both just stayed at home all day and piddle on our computers. It was a dreary gray day. Skip got the plastic hung around the porch where he plans on working on the fence boards, but the wind is blowing them all away. Not much more to say about today.
I tried to sleep in late today, but Kira got me up. I have been answering emails all day long. I am glad not to be going to work, but glad I have work to go to. I really don't like working at this place, but maybe I just need to get adjusted and settle in. We will see. It's good pay though and has what could be a promising future.
3:10p I have been working on the translation for the JAlbum program.
7:27p I picked Skip up at 5th and Mo about 5:15p. Came home. Still working email!
I was fairly busy today. I drove downtown to deposit my 12.5 hour paycheck. It was a real hassle finding a place to park, and then I did not have any change for the meter.
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I took a risk and went in, deposited the check in the ATM machine and zipped back out. Fortunately, I was luck and did not get a ticket. Then I headed over to Jay International. I took a round about route, but I got there okay. I am slowly learning my way around. (Very slowly at times!). I got another bag of dried shallots. I enjoy cooking with them. More bean thread and saifun, Sriracha sauce, Knorr beef bouillon, a huge yucca root, and a few more items. |
Then I headed back to Cahokia and went to the Wal-Mart to get some vitamins for me and Kira. This evening I got busy and finally got some Yuletide cards prepared! A total of 38 cards. I printed out an insert for each card, printed out labels and affixed them, and wrote a handwritten personal note in each card. |
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Today was another productive, busy and expensive day. I got the cards finished up with my return address on them, sealed and such. Then (after the were sealed) I discovered that my "insert" had an error on it. I had recapped events of the past year and stated that I had changed my name from LEWIS to TERRELL. Oops! Backwards!
I had to re-load Sony's RecordNow and Memorex's exPressit programs on my PC this morning.
I headed out to the post office finally a little after 1:00p. I've been there before, but I had the most difficult time finding it! The flag was not flying and the building does not say "Post Office" ... but instead says it is the law offices of somebody or other. Of course, I found the place at about 1:38p and the were closed for (lunch?) from 1:30p to 3:00p.
So, I headed into St. Louis to deposit my second check (for a full 40 hours). This time I took some dimes with me for the parking meter. Parking was a little more full than it was yesterday, but I found a spot and put one dime in the meter (for 8 minutes) and made it in and out in about 6 minutes.
Then I head back to Illinois. I am getting much better at finding my way around downtown St. Louis and getting to/from Illinois. My next stop was to be a car wash. The car has been looking pretty rough with all the snow & salt road grime it has accumulated. I was finally able to use the "free" car wash that I got back win Darlene was visiting. I found out that the car wash was NOT closed. You have to punch in your code, and the door will open. Doh! I also discovered that my car's antenna is automatic. But it doesn't work right. I have to get out and "tweak it" and it will automatically retract. When I turn on the radio, it extends perfectly though. I think I will rub it down with some WD-40 to help with the free movement. However, I suspect there are some worn/stripped gears inside it that are the problem.
After getting the car washed (and it looked SO much better!), I went over to AutoZone to splurge on a little something for my car. I ended up getting an oil warmer for about $6 that fits in the cigarette lighter! That was enough of a splurge.
Skip called me while I was checking out at AutoZone. He wants me to pick him up and go to Costco tonight. We will see. I then headed back over to the Post Office and arrived at about 2:45p. There was already a line of 10-15 people and they were not even open yet. I got my box shipped out to RD, and 37 of my cards (I will hand deliver one to Tad & Deana.. and Ricky). The total was about $31 if I remember correctly.
After getting my Yuletide stuff in the post, I headed back home. I got home about 3:30p and fixed a snack to eat and watch the tail end of a ST:TNG episode.
I headed back out at about 4:05p to go pick up Skip.
4:29p I pulled in to the loading dock off Scott Street where I pick up Skip. I tried to call him several times to let him know I was waiting, but I kept getting redirected to his voice mail. I finally reached him and he was printing out directions to Costco.
Skip joined me and we headed out to find Costco. We were fine until we got almost to the location, then the directions went screwy on us and we drove around in Holiday traffic for about 45 minutes. I was a nervous wreck! We finally stopped and asked directions at a car lot and figured out where the Yahoo directions went wrong and, at long last, made it to Costco! The membership turned out to be $45 dollars rather than the $30 we had been told. We picked up some chicken and beef, paid the membership fee, and my total was around $77. I am spending WAY too much! I am going to have to move MORE funds from what is left of my dwindling savings! Woe is me....
The trip home from Costco ended up being fairly easy! We got back on 255 and drove about 14 miles in approximately 12 minutes and were (basically) home! However, once home, we had no cat food. So, Skip gave me $5 and Kira and I went to get the cats some dinner. I got some Q-Tips too, finally. I keep forgetting to buy them.
I found it annoying that Skip went right to his computer and started playing games. He could have put up some of the frozen goods we just bought, and could have set out some of the chicken to thaw that *I* will be cooking for supper. He is so egocentric sometimes. Oh well, I guess I can be too. He could be much worse and I am sure I annoy him in some ways at times too. <sigh> ... I try to understand.
10:00p So ... I have my journal fairly well caught up. I have other things I need to do, but I can't seem to squeeze out the time! It will only get worse when I start back to work full time.
11:29p I have supper prepared. Fried chicken striped, fried okra and a steam red cabbage & onion.
11:54p Supper was good... and now its time to crash!
9:23a I had a nice sleep in this morning, with the usual wild dreams. I around 2:30a, 5:30a and 7:30a to let Kira out. While laying bed at some point, I got to thinking about the dreams I have. I know they are induced by the medication I have to take. (I was warned about them). But I have always had some pretty wild dreams, just not as many. So what makes these dreams stand out and seem so different? I think I figured it out. Before taking the medications, my dreams would almost always be about something happening in my life. After the meds I think my brain gets access to MORE information to process than a normal sleeping brain. It not only can pull up information from obscure readings, stories, movies and such, but it has the ability to be "creative" and put these unrelated items into one dream and make them into my own little "world" in my head.
I think it was the night before last that I had a dream in which I was in a bizarre house with magickal properties and in the house were such fey folk as gnomes and elves. However, they were not "fictional" beings to me in the dream, but actual, real, and believable creatures. These are the dreams that can be the most difficult to remember because my way of thinking in the dream is so completely different than when I wake up. I remember the doctor saying that some people taking this medicine experience temporary schizophrenia. I wonder if this is related to the dreams in which I seem to be a completely different person? Hmmm... well, that's deep! 9:55a Neat. I just got an e-card from Fang and Cheng (of MIR). I sent them a thank you back in Chinese... |
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I slept in until about 8:30a or so, but got up when I started coughing again. This morning cough is becoming annoying. This morning I actually threw up after gagging from the cough! Of course, I had nothing in my stomach, so I was spared the usual gruesome experience, but I was still wracked by convulsive heaves that left my eyes watering and my hands trembling.
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I put on a pot of soup, my usual remedy, but did not get around to it until nearly 11:00a. By then I was feeling much better (and hungry). But, just as I sat down with my soup, Skip said he had contacted the vet and they were going to be open until 1:00p. So I just ate a few bites. Skip and I got dressed, then wrapped Barnabas up in a towel, and placed him in Skip's carry-bag, and headed out. Barnabas was very good during the ride, though he has not ridden in a long time. At the vet, it was was determined that Barnabas was slightly dehydrated, so he received an IV of liquid. He also got an injection of antibiotics and a vitamin B shot. He also got some oral suspension antibiotics to bring home (Amoxycil, I think). Skip decided to forego the blood test to save costs. H |
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We left the pet clinic, with Barnabas in his little red bag, and headed downtown. Skip needed to run by the bank and get some cash (and pay me rent money). We decided to go find some place to eat, but took Barnabas home first. We headed back on shortly thereafter and aimed back toward Costco again. The holiday traffic was AWFUL! We were literally trapped, sitting in traffic for minutes on end. I don't even know why I am calling it traffic since we were not moving. It was more like one giant parking lot! The gas tank was nearing empty and I finally made my to the Costco fuel center where I filled up the tank for $2.04 per gallon.
| Then Skip wanted to go to some fancy Mexican Restaurant that he had been hearing about, called "Qdoba Mexican Grill". We had to get back out in the so-called "traffic" and inch our way toward the place. Once we hit the parking lot, it became a grid lock and we spent possibly 30 minutes in the entranceway inching forward every now and then. We finally got to a point to where I could pull into a parking spot. Oddly, there was plenty of parking available. Everyone seemed to prefer to sit in the cars and waste gas rather than park! Once parked we felt "free" again and walk over to Qdoba's. I was a beautiful day! I even saw people driving their convertible with the top down. I work my light jacket, but mainly to carry my camera in the pocket. |  |
We were both a bit dismayed to learn that this "fancy" restaurant was yet another "fa[s]t food joint!" I had suggested going to Casa Gallardo, toward whence the traffic was (theoretically) less obstructive, but Skip really wanted to go to this new place. He ended up repeating the phrase, "live and learn," several times. The food was adequate, though the tortillas were overly steamed, rubbery, and stuck to my teeth. I said, "At least we did not end up with a $40 bill and a big tip!" Skip replied, "There is that!"
After eating, we wandered around the (very busy) Mall for a bit. I was enthused by a huge display of many wood carvings. The were of many different things, but the general theme seemed to be vehicles. There were planes, trains, automobiles, tanks, helicopters, and even golf carts!
I lost track of Skip and we reconnected using our cell phones. Such a handy device! We ended up on some place called "Earth, Wind and Beads" where Skip had purchased some magnetic hematite beads were amusing him no end. He would toss the in the air and the would link together making a buzzing, almost "electric" sound as they vibrated together. Very entertaining at first, but eventually becoming quite annoying for the observer! We wandered about this store for a bit and I took a few pictures before being accosted by one whom Skip labeled, "The Camera Nazi," and told that I was not allowed to take photos! This supposed "free country" ... <sigh>. Well, it was their loss. I would only share my pictures online and give them some excellent free advertising. As it is, they just perturbed me and even though they had some nice things, I was not inclined to give them any further business. Skip, however, decided to purchase a tacky beaded curtain to hand somewhere. After thinking about it, I hope it is in his room!
We came home to our usual routine of beer, computers, TV and I eventually fixed supper, consisting for fried chicken strips, mashed potatoes with shallots, gravy, and some left over red cabbage.
My nephew, Scott, contacted me on-line tonight. He was wanting to know if I could co-sign on a loan for him to buy his Mom's trailer. Of course, my credit history is messed up now, so I had to decline. He is going to be a Daddy soon! The mother's name is Rachel. I don't know if they are married.
7:15a I am up early this morning with another bout of coughing.
8:51a I just finished getting my journal caught up. the PC rebooted once just as I was getting to the end. I have some soup started and I am going to spend some "quality time" watching movies today. We have 5 movies rented and I've only watched part of one! They are (technically) due back today, so we need to watch them and return them. The movie I am watching now is "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" with Brad Pitt. I also have "War of the Worlds" (with Tom Cruise) and "Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory" (with Johnny Depp).
SUNDAY
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DECEMBER 25, 2005
Christmas Day
10:00a I got up and faced the world!
I spent most of the day watching rented movies, and/or working on the EASL website.
11:25p I am off to bed. Watched "War of the Worlds" to day and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." Went to Hardee's for lunch. Got more done on my EASL web site. That's about it.
I got up around 2:00a this morning with an awful case of acid reflux. I got acid in my lungs and they were on fire. I gagged and threw up. It was nasty. Skip was still up eating and watching TV at the time.
8:55a I had a lot of wild dreams last night. I got up a little after 8:00a and have already vacuumed and straightened up some the living room, fed Chooga, gave Kira and myself our pills, put on a chunk of yucca to cook, and straighten up some in the kitchen.
8:54p Skip and I went to Schnuck's and bought some groceries today and then to Subway and got a spicy Chipotle Cheese Steak Sub which we split. Then we came home and watched "The Island" ... which we both enjoyed much more than we expected. It was a bit long, but very good.
I am cooking supper now. A big pot of pinto beans with chunks of pork sirloin. I am frying some bacon on the side now, which will go into the jalapeρo cornbread. I plan to make a side of cabbage for some "green" vegetable as well.
9:37p Supper is nearly done.
3:45a I can't sleep, so I decided to get up and work on an idea for an animated rollover button. I should let Kira back in first though.
4:39a My animated rollover button worked like a charm! I will head back to bed now. I hope I can get to sleep. It is strange that I am so wide awake after drink a good deal of beer and then taking two pain killers for my arm (the on-going tendonitis problem). I thought I should be knocked out for the night.
I haven't seen RD on-line since the 24th. Nearly three days ago. I hope she' okay. Maybe this means *C* bought her a new computer and she's trying to get it up and running! (Or maybe her computer died... which would suck big time....).
I got up early due to my morning cough. I fixed some soup and got caught up in email.
RD reappeared this morning. She has been sick all through Christmas. What a shame... I know how much she loves celebrating this particular holiday. At least she's getting better now.
Later I tried taking a nap, but it did not go well.
I got up and managed to get some things done. I went to AutoZone and got new windshield wipers, an air gauge for the tires, and some antifreeze. I later oiled down the automatic antenna, and a added deicer to the window washer. I got most of the dishes done too. That's more than I expected to do today! I still need to take care of steam cleaning the carpet, and sorting out my pills.
I found my card to Tad and Deana and walked it over to them tonight.
Had a long conversation with RD tonight. I am not happy with what I am hearing. She is going through a bad time. I really hate those bad times. Don't we all?
9:58p I had a filling supper of beans & rice. (I feel my stomach bloating already!). Skip is watching "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" ... still. It was due back a couple of days ago. (Whatever... I got my movies back already).
10:01p Anyway... off to bed for me!
3:07p Skip over slept this morning and go me up around 7:00a to give him a ride to the Metrolink. I had been awake since about 3:00a and finally had managed to doze off, so I was not really happy about having to get up. I thought I would stop by McDonald's and get one of the breakfast burritos or something on the way back, but there was too much of a line in their drive through, so I just came home and fixed a piece of yucca and some egss.
I took a somewhat fitful nap later.
3:10p At the moment, I have "glop" in my hair, coloring it. I had such an ugly mix of cheap dyes with layers of gray, brown and dark brown. It has looked awful. I hope this evens it out some.
3:11p I haven't got much accomplish today. After I finish my hair, I am planning on driving out and making my car payment.
I got the car payment out of the way, and still had time to pick up Skip. I arrived at exactly the same time his train arrived in fact. Couldn't have timed it better!
This was a lazy day. Skip and I did about nothing. We went to Taco Bell and got some junk food, the sat and watched the new "Dukes of Hazard" movie. It surprised me. It was just as stupid as I predicted, but much more entertaining than I want to admit to.
Marty & JR came over this evening for the cans. I was a bit tipsy and shared a shot of Crown Royal with JR (Marty's driving of course). Then I let Marty drive my car over to Q-Mart for me and I picked up another bottle of Crown Royal so Skip will have something to celebrate with tomorrow night. I got 3 bottles of Champaign (the cheap $2.99 Andrι... but it will do).
6:48p Last day of the year! I was up at 4:00a this morning and lay in bed watching TV. I finally dozed off to sleep again between 6 and 7:00p. Of course, then Kira got me up to go outside. I went back to bed and slept until about 11:00a. That should be good, since I am going to be up late tonight.
Skip and I went over to Schnuck's and Wal-Mart this afternoon. I picked up ingredients to make a veggie tray, some chips and of course, the inevitable beer. I splurged on Bud Light instead of Bush Light since it is a special occasion.
The part was okay, but not many people showed up. Me, Marty, JR and Bill R. were about it, not counting other residents of the house.
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Barbara "Blanca" Terrell
Tom Murry
Scott Kuhr
Someone
has been
Debbie Rudder
Judy
Marie
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"Skye"
Who crossed over to the next realm on December 5, 2005. Survived by her life companion, Rob. Mourned by many in her passing. May she exhalt in glory in what comes next! |
