We are officially a dog-less family today. I woke from a nap today to my Mom knocking on my door. "We're taking Oreo. Do you want to say goodbye?" she asked. She didn't have to say where; I knew. I went and took pictures and a video of Oreo before we left. My parents, William, and I took him to Animal Control. When you hand a dog over, it has four days to get adopted. After the four days, they euthanize the animal. On Wednesday, he'll be dead.
Here are the pictures of him from today:
After taking Oreo, my parents had some errands to run. We dropped stuff off at Goodwill and then took a box of books to the used bookstore. We all took some time to look around the bookstore. I bought three books written in German (to help me learn through sort of immersion). The first is called Alle Meine Träume by Rona Jaffe; the second is called Die Buben der Frau Opterberg by Rudolf Herzog, published in 1931 (though the copyright date is 1920); the third is Neuester Lieder-Kranz für fröhlidje Sänger & Sangesfreunde, indistinguishable author. Die Buben der Frau Opterberg was very interesting to me not only for its age, but also for the fact that it is written in old script (the Olde English style letters), which will be interesting to decipher. The song book, Neuester Lieder-Kranz, is also written in old script and looks to be the eldest of the purchased books.
After we went to the bookstore we took the books that the store didn't buy to Goodwill, then we went to Catfish King and ate crappy catfish.
A classmate of mine reminded me last night that my history teacher has set Monday as the due date for our next four page paper. Similar to the last one we had to write, she has not taught on the subject whatsoever. What is different from the last paper is that the class is about 20 years past this subject, which means that we will all have to teach ourselves everything that we need to know to write this paper. This only adds to the frustration of everything this week.
I had to take my car into the shop on Friday, but I couldn't get it in until noon and they got really busy after I called them at 9:00. They said they would call if they were able to look at my car that afternoon and I didn't receive a call. This means that they won't even look at my car until Monday, which means I will be dependent on Lara for a ride to and from school and on my Dad for a ride to work.
All-in-all, this has been the worst spring break of my entire life.
Something positive: I got a new television. I bought it with my own money. I've been saving for a while and now I finally have it. I got it set up Wednesday. It looks nice in my room. It's a 24" widescreen LCD television. It was on sale at the JCPenny Outlet Store in Grapevine Mills mall. I am so glad that I am able to buy things like this and save most of my money at the same time.
Samstag, März 24, 2007
Montag, März 19, 2007
Frustrated
I am extremely frustrated with my mother. I am sick of her selfish attitude and her incessant whining and complaining. It never stops! The thing that has made me angry today concerns our dog.
Our dog Oreo is an elderly dog with severe arthritis problems and allergies. I have come to the realization that his life isn't going to continue for much longer, because my parents can not afford to give him the proper care that he needs. I want to make the rest of his life as comfortable as I can. He hasn't been bathed in months and his fur is full of mats and hasn't been brushed on a regular basis. I had brushed him out almost completely a couple of weeks ago, but was waiting for warmer weather so that I could shave his coat to one inch in length and give him a bath. Well, now it's warmer and I set everything up to shave him and bathe him.
My mother helped me get the shaver set up and she stood there watching as I tried to shave him. She tried for a minute or two and gave up. I thought that maybe we could take him to a groomer and suggested it. She said that she doesn't want to spend any money on him. She said that if I was going to take him to a groomer, I might as well take him to Animal Control and let them put him down. I said that I am tired of treating our dogs like crap and that I want to make him as happy as possible until he goes. She shot back by saying that she found my bird with zero water in his bowl. This was either made up or it happened last week, because I check Sarah's food and water daily. I checked it the day I left for my house sitting job last week and had asked the family to make sure he was taken care of while I was gone. She tried to say that I hadn't changed the paper in his cage in months, but that is also false because I changed it the week I left to house sit. She had nothing else to try and pin me with, so she left the room, leaving me with the dog.
I spent 30 minutes brushing out one side of Oreo's coat (he was laying on his side because he's terrified to be in the kitchen) so that the shaver wouldn't get stuck in his fur quite as bad. I was also having to hold his head down by leaning my arm behind his skull so that he couldn't bite while brushing and attempting to shave him. He had snapped at my mother when she tried shaving him because she wasn't being very gentle. The shaver was still having a hard time and I needed two hands to get the fur to go through the shaver properly, so I called to my mother for help. No answer. I tried again a few minutes later. No answer. I got so frustrated that I let the dog up, picked up all the fur I had brushed out/shaved off and threw it away.
I realized that since I can't to this by myself and that my brothers are to impatient to stay with me and help and my mother is her, that maybe it would be worthwhile to take Oreo to a groomer and pay whatever is necessary to get him shaved and bathed. Then my experience in the veterinary clinic kicked in. Dogs are not allowed at the groomers if they haven't had their shots recently. Oreo hasn't been to the vet since he came into this house. This means that either I take him to the vet and pay about $80 for a well exam and shots and then pay however much it is to get him groomed and bathed, or I do the best that I can with what I have, no matter how horrible he looks when I'm done, or I just leave him the way he is, looking miserable and pathetic. I haven't figured out what to do yet. I don't want to leave him the way he is, but I don't want him to look bad, either. My mother told me not to spend money on him, but it wouldn't be her money that's spent, it would be mine. Besides, with the way she's been acting, the defiance of taking the dog to the vet and groomer would be satisfying, although I'm desperately trying not to let that influence my decision. I'm leaning towards taking him to the vet, but I'll talk to Josh about it and see what he thinks. Maybe I'll ask my Dad and see what he thinks.
Our dog Oreo is an elderly dog with severe arthritis problems and allergies. I have come to the realization that his life isn't going to continue for much longer, because my parents can not afford to give him the proper care that he needs. I want to make the rest of his life as comfortable as I can. He hasn't been bathed in months and his fur is full of mats and hasn't been brushed on a regular basis. I had brushed him out almost completely a couple of weeks ago, but was waiting for warmer weather so that I could shave his coat to one inch in length and give him a bath. Well, now it's warmer and I set everything up to shave him and bathe him.
My mother helped me get the shaver set up and she stood there watching as I tried to shave him. She tried for a minute or two and gave up. I thought that maybe we could take him to a groomer and suggested it. She said that she doesn't want to spend any money on him. She said that if I was going to take him to a groomer, I might as well take him to Animal Control and let them put him down. I said that I am tired of treating our dogs like crap and that I want to make him as happy as possible until he goes. She shot back by saying that she found my bird with zero water in his bowl. This was either made up or it happened last week, because I check Sarah's food and water daily. I checked it the day I left for my house sitting job last week and had asked the family to make sure he was taken care of while I was gone. She tried to say that I hadn't changed the paper in his cage in months, but that is also false because I changed it the week I left to house sit. She had nothing else to try and pin me with, so she left the room, leaving me with the dog.
I spent 30 minutes brushing out one side of Oreo's coat (he was laying on his side because he's terrified to be in the kitchen) so that the shaver wouldn't get stuck in his fur quite as bad. I was also having to hold his head down by leaning my arm behind his skull so that he couldn't bite while brushing and attempting to shave him. He had snapped at my mother when she tried shaving him because she wasn't being very gentle. The shaver was still having a hard time and I needed two hands to get the fur to go through the shaver properly, so I called to my mother for help. No answer. I tried again a few minutes later. No answer. I got so frustrated that I let the dog up, picked up all the fur I had brushed out/shaved off and threw it away.
I realized that since I can't to this by myself and that my brothers are to impatient to stay with me and help and my mother is her, that maybe it would be worthwhile to take Oreo to a groomer and pay whatever is necessary to get him shaved and bathed. Then my experience in the veterinary clinic kicked in. Dogs are not allowed at the groomers if they haven't had their shots recently. Oreo hasn't been to the vet since he came into this house. This means that either I take him to the vet and pay about $80 for a well exam and shots and then pay however much it is to get him groomed and bathed, or I do the best that I can with what I have, no matter how horrible he looks when I'm done, or I just leave him the way he is, looking miserable and pathetic. I haven't figured out what to do yet. I don't want to leave him the way he is, but I don't want him to look bad, either. My mother told me not to spend money on him, but it wouldn't be her money that's spent, it would be mine. Besides, with the way she's been acting, the defiance of taking the dog to the vet and groomer would be satisfying, although I'm desperately trying not to let that influence my decision. I'm leaning towards taking him to the vet, but I'll talk to Josh about it and see what he thinks. Maybe I'll ask my Dad and see what he thinks.
Sonntag, Februar 25, 2007
Time is Lacking
I really wish there were more hours in the day so I could get more stuff done.
I went rollerblading yesterday afternoon with my brother. The wind was so constant and strong that the sky turned orange with dust. There were wind gusts of up to 65 mph. Needless to say, I got knocked over by the wind once. I hit the grass really hard and skinned up my knees really bad. I hit the ground so hard I had grass stains. It was fun though. Good workout.
Work is going ok. I'm going to apply at Starbucks on Monday. They give their employees good insurance, which is what I'll need when I take off school next year. I might end up going for an associate's if NCTC has one that corresponds with my major, but if they don't then I'm screwed for insurance. If I don't take 12 hours of school, my parent's insurance company(ies) won't cover me anymore since I'm over 18. There are a lot more pro's, but I don't feel like writing them out. There are only a couple of con's, which makes the idea that much better.
I get to see my boyfriend this weekend. I'm outrageously excited about that. Nana is even letting me cook on Saturday. I'm making my Spicy Chicken Spaghetti for them. It's going to be awesome!
School is going well. I'm really enjoying math. I learned how to do Karnaugh maps from Josh and now I feel really smart. I'm really enjoying my history class, though I do wish there were more than 3 tests in the class for the whole semester. My education class (Intro to Teaching) is going ok. I haven't started my observation hours yet. I have to do 16 before the end of the semester and I'm worried that I won't have enough time to get them all in.
I forgot about the observation hours. I may start Starbucks in the summer.
I have homework to do. It's not due until the end of the week, but if I do it now, that means more play time during the week. Tschüss!
I went rollerblading yesterday afternoon with my brother. The wind was so constant and strong that the sky turned orange with dust. There were wind gusts of up to 65 mph. Needless to say, I got knocked over by the wind once. I hit the grass really hard and skinned up my knees really bad. I hit the ground so hard I had grass stains. It was fun though. Good workout.
Work is going ok. I'm going to apply at Starbucks on Monday. They give their employees good insurance, which is what I'll need when I take off school next year. I might end up going for an associate's if NCTC has one that corresponds with my major, but if they don't then I'm screwed for insurance. If I don't take 12 hours of school, my parent's insurance company(ies) won't cover me anymore since I'm over 18. There are a lot more pro's, but I don't feel like writing them out. There are only a couple of con's, which makes the idea that much better.
I get to see my boyfriend this weekend. I'm outrageously excited about that. Nana is even letting me cook on Saturday. I'm making my Spicy Chicken Spaghetti for them. It's going to be awesome!
School is going well. I'm really enjoying math. I learned how to do Karnaugh maps from Josh and now I feel really smart. I'm really enjoying my history class, though I do wish there were more than 3 tests in the class for the whole semester. My education class (Intro to Teaching) is going ok. I haven't started my observation hours yet. I have to do 16 before the end of the semester and I'm worried that I won't have enough time to get them all in.
I forgot about the observation hours. I may start Starbucks in the summer.
I have homework to do. It's not due until the end of the week, but if I do it now, that means more play time during the week. Tschüss!
Dienstag, Januar 30, 2007
Wow
Time flies when you're busy...or something.
I regret not having more time to spend whining about my life, but it's probably best for your sanity that I don't. There's so much that's been going on lately. I could write for an hour and still not be able to tell you everything on my mind/what's been going on. Maybe I can find time sometime soon. Not this weekend though because I have to pick Mom, Dad, and John up from the airport (they're returning from Haiti this weekend) and I have to get William from Grandma's house. I'm going to be so sick of the car. :P
I just set up a facebook account. I'm pretty excited about that one.
I'm nodding off as I type, so I think I'll head to bed. 8 o'clock classes demand sleep. Gute nacht.
I regret not having more time to spend whining about my life, but it's probably best for your sanity that I don't. There's so much that's been going on lately. I could write for an hour and still not be able to tell you everything on my mind/what's been going on. Maybe I can find time sometime soon. Not this weekend though because I have to pick Mom, Dad, and John up from the airport (they're returning from Haiti this weekend) and I have to get William from Grandma's house. I'm going to be so sick of the car. :P
I just set up a facebook account. I'm pretty excited about that one.
I'm nodding off as I type, so I think I'll head to bed. 8 o'clock classes demand sleep. Gute nacht.
Sonntag, Dezember 03, 2006
Things on my mind...
NaNoWriMo
National Novel Writing Month. Founded by a man named Chris Baty, it is a contest of sorts to write a 50,000 word novel in just one month, worst case scenario, 30 days. He wrote a book about it called No Plot? No Problem! which gives advice to those wishing to attempt the feat advice on how to find time, how to prepare, and a week by week this-is-what-you'll-be-going-through-and-how-to-fix-it section. I'm reading the book to prepare and get ideas and support. NaNoWriMo is usually in November, but since I found out about the last few days of November, I'll have to choose my own month. I would have done December, but it's already three days into the month and, according to plan, I should have 5,001 words written and I have nothing so far. I'm choosing January to be my NaNoWriMo, that way I have time to prepare and warn everyone where my free time (ha!) will be spent. We'll see what happens. Maybe I'll just start writing down ideas and I'll be able to run with it. Who knows?
Flute
Tonight I was hanging out with some friends of mine and between the three of us the piano, recorder, and flute were played. My friend, Ruth, who has played flute for 8 years and currently teaches flute lesssons graciously offered me her flute and taught me how to play it. I had been complimenting her and saying how I could never quite get it down when I had tried before, so she taught me how to do it. I played three notes, high and low, and I even trilled! Ruth was telling me how amazed she was that I "found my spot" (the place to hold your mouth to make the sound) and held it rather well, something that she couldn't nail for a year and her current student is still having problems with. She said I was a natural. After that and watching her play with Jordan, who plays the piano, and her boyfriend Ryan, who also plays the piano, makes me want to learn how to play the flute. I'm actually seriously considering taking lessons from Ruth like she so casually suggested to me. We'll see.
Living Arrangements
Apartment or On-Campus Housing? This is the question that has been rolling around in my mind for the past week or so. I see benefits and disadvantages to both. If I were to move into an apartment, I would want at least two roommates, but finding a third person is proving to be tricky. That and I have to convince the already "roommate" to allow a third person. Living on-campus (in Arlington) would give me the dorm experience, plus the convenience of not having to cook/buy my own food, wake up way, way early in the morning just to make class, the saving of gas by not commuting, etc. The disadvantages are, one, not knowing who I'd room with. Private rooms are available, but that wouldn't give me the complete "dorm experience." If I did start taking flute lessons, it'd be a heck of a drive. Two, I'd be living in Arlington. It's not known for it's safety, I can tell you that much. I haven't visited campus yet to know how protected it is, IF it is. Three, I'd be farther away from my friends, so I'd have to make trips to go see them. Four, I wouldn't be able to use the dishes and kitchen things that I've already bought for the apartment.
The advantages of an apartment would be that I have my own space, I choose which town I live in, I'd be closer to my friends and church, I wouldn't have to bother my parents by coming home every weekend to go to church, and such other things. Disadvantages would be having to pay bills every month, having to commute to school, having to cook and buy groceries, clean up (vacuum, mop, dust, etc.), and such things related to having an apartment.
I know that if I do get an apartment that it will be very unlikely for me to live on-campus ever. I'm having a very hard time making up my mind about this. I could handle either one, no doubt, I just have to decide which one I want. It's a tough decision. Plus I don't want to hurt the feelings of my friend whom I'd get an apartment with, though I'm trying not to let that sway what I want. It's hard.
Those are the main things that have been on my mind recently. Those, and I wish I were only a few years older so that my dream could finally come true. Once again, we'll see.
Have a great day, everyone, and I will talk to you all later. Tschüss!
National Novel Writing Month. Founded by a man named Chris Baty, it is a contest of sorts to write a 50,000 word novel in just one month, worst case scenario, 30 days. He wrote a book about it called No Plot? No Problem! which gives advice to those wishing to attempt the feat advice on how to find time, how to prepare, and a week by week this-is-what-you'll-be-going-through-and-how-to-fix-it section. I'm reading the book to prepare and get ideas and support. NaNoWriMo is usually in November, but since I found out about the last few days of November, I'll have to choose my own month. I would have done December, but it's already three days into the month and, according to plan, I should have 5,001 words written and I have nothing so far. I'm choosing January to be my NaNoWriMo, that way I have time to prepare and warn everyone where my free time (ha!) will be spent. We'll see what happens. Maybe I'll just start writing down ideas and I'll be able to run with it. Who knows?
Flute
Tonight I was hanging out with some friends of mine and between the three of us the piano, recorder, and flute were played. My friend, Ruth, who has played flute for 8 years and currently teaches flute lesssons graciously offered me her flute and taught me how to play it. I had been complimenting her and saying how I could never quite get it down when I had tried before, so she taught me how to do it. I played three notes, high and low, and I even trilled! Ruth was telling me how amazed she was that I "found my spot" (the place to hold your mouth to make the sound) and held it rather well, something that she couldn't nail for a year and her current student is still having problems with. She said I was a natural. After that and watching her play with Jordan, who plays the piano, and her boyfriend Ryan, who also plays the piano, makes me want to learn how to play the flute. I'm actually seriously considering taking lessons from Ruth like she so casually suggested to me. We'll see.
Living Arrangements
Apartment or On-Campus Housing? This is the question that has been rolling around in my mind for the past week or so. I see benefits and disadvantages to both. If I were to move into an apartment, I would want at least two roommates, but finding a third person is proving to be tricky. That and I have to convince the already "roommate" to allow a third person. Living on-campus (in Arlington) would give me the dorm experience, plus the convenience of not having to cook/buy my own food, wake up way, way early in the morning just to make class, the saving of gas by not commuting, etc. The disadvantages are, one, not knowing who I'd room with. Private rooms are available, but that wouldn't give me the complete "dorm experience." If I did start taking flute lessons, it'd be a heck of a drive. Two, I'd be living in Arlington. It's not known for it's safety, I can tell you that much. I haven't visited campus yet to know how protected it is, IF it is. Three, I'd be farther away from my friends, so I'd have to make trips to go see them. Four, I wouldn't be able to use the dishes and kitchen things that I've already bought for the apartment.
The advantages of an apartment would be that I have my own space, I choose which town I live in, I'd be closer to my friends and church, I wouldn't have to bother my parents by coming home every weekend to go to church, and such other things. Disadvantages would be having to pay bills every month, having to commute to school, having to cook and buy groceries, clean up (vacuum, mop, dust, etc.), and such things related to having an apartment.
I know that if I do get an apartment that it will be very unlikely for me to live on-campus ever. I'm having a very hard time making up my mind about this. I could handle either one, no doubt, I just have to decide which one I want. It's a tough decision. Plus I don't want to hurt the feelings of my friend whom I'd get an apartment with, though I'm trying not to let that sway what I want. It's hard.
Those are the main things that have been on my mind recently. Those, and I wish I were only a few years older so that my dream could finally come true. Once again, we'll see.
Have a great day, everyone, and I will talk to you all later. Tschüss!
Montag, November 13, 2006
Needing Advice
Is it possible to be good friends with an ex-boyfriend? Details are extensive and certainly play a giant role in my thinking, but I wanted to see the answer to the general question. Please, if you have anything you want to ask about this, please, please call me - I really want to know your thoughts and any advice that you might have.
Donnerstag, November 09, 2006
It's Been A While
Wow. Two months. Too long for me to be gone. So much has been going on. Life is hectic, proven by how often I have time to update this thing. We'll try going through each catagory of life for me and see what happens.
School is going ok. I'm tired of this semester. It's not going anything like I expected it to. I expected my favorite classes to be English and math and for me to have to drag myself to government and biology. As it turns out, biology is my favorite class, work-wise. My English teacher, Donna Souder, still holds the title for favorite teacher. I am sad that I won't be taking any of her classes next semester - they're all literature classes (aside from the Comp II class that I already took) and this semester in World Lit II has proven that I do not do well with literature, that writing is most definitely my strong point. I'm not doing terrible grade-wise, but then again, I don't have my grade for government yet. >:|
Work has been alright. I talked with Ed about Rob staring at me and checking me out and he had a talk with him and Rob actually treats me like a person now. It's great! I found out yesterday that two of my co-workers have put in their two weeks notice. One of them I was surprised about; I hadn't expected him to quit. He's a good worker and a great guy. It'll be tough without him.
Joshua is doing wonderfully. His school is going well for him and we've had several opportunities to visit each other since he went off to school. He and I as a couple are doing fantastic. It'll be two and a half years on November 16! It feels like it's been longer than that, but that's usually how it goes, right?
I got to meet Joshua's grandparents, his mom's mother and her husband, last week. They are so cute! His grandpa always called me "Miss Julie" and loved talking to me. The cool thing was that he remembered what I said I was interested in. He'd ask me questions and then tell me something later that related to my answer. For instance, I told him that I was interested in being a verbal translator for German when he asked me what I was going to do with my German degree. An hour or two later, during dinner, he told me about this author who wrote letters while he was in prison in Germany during World War II. This guy had lived in America and when he heard that his family was being persecuted, he went into Germany to try and help them. He found himself in jail and it was interesting because he could look outside the window and watch buildings explode from bombings. The only problem is that the author's name has escaped my memory, so I can't buy the book. I'll have to have Todd (Joshua's dad) e-mail Grandpa and get that author's name from him.
Something interesting happened not too long ago. My ex-boyfriend, T.J., messaged me on instant messenger. I hadn't heard from him in over a year. It was shocking to me for him to contact me because last I talked to him, he was quite bitter still. He said that he remembered my screen name and figured he'd see how I was doing. That and he wanted to confess. Apparently when we were going out he had felt up and made out with one of my friends. It took him a long time to get over his guilt, which looked like bitterness to everyone else. The only reason I believe him is because 1: he had never lied to me before, 2: if he was trying to get an ego boost from his little story, he ruined his opportunities to get ego boosts several times throughout the conversation following, 3: if he was lying, he would have told me the story when I broke up with him, just to hurt me, 4: if the story was made up, why was he so guilty (it took him forever to finally tell me) about something that never happened? It's interesting because after he told me he's been messaging me and converses relatively easily. He told me all about this girl that he's interested in, all about her life story and such things. I even got to talk to her and T.J. at the same time; we did so for about three hours while I was working on a paper for government.
I'm not sure what to think about me talking to him though. I always wait for him to talk to me first and I am very alert to what he says and to what I say. It's weird though because he talks to me like we've been friends for years. I'm not the type of girl that hates all men after a break up. If my ex and I can be friends still, go for it, if you can't, then oh well. I'm just not sure if I should follow my own advice anymore. I'm going to talk to Joshua about it as soon as I can. I haven't yet because we've both been busy and haven't had the time for a good conversation. We'll see what he says.
Apartments are still up in the air. The complex Lara and I were wanting to move into turns out to be a bad one, told to us by someone who used to live there. I'm not sure where we'll go yet. I thought about trying to find some apartments in Carrollton, since they're cheaper over there. The only problem is, I don't know if that would be a central enough location. I suppose it's better to drive a little further to get a cheaper/better apartment, but still. I haven't spoken with Lara about the apartments recently. Now that my hours have been cut back at work, I'm not making as much money as I used to, so I don't even know if I can afford to move out at all. The thought saddens me, but what's a couple more years at home? The worst case scenario is that I'll live on campus at UTA and visit home every weekend and save my money so that I can move out whenever I can afford it. *shrug* I'll figure something out.
I've been pining for Germany recently. I just want to go so badly. I want to be there to see the people, to hear the language, to learn about the culture, to be engulfed by the scenery of the mountains around me... The longing in my heart grows stronger the more I think about being there. I dreamed of being in Germany and Austria last night; it was beautiful. I really want to go. I'll get my chance soon enough.
Well, I have a paper to write for English, so I'd better go. Sorry it's been so long since I updated. I'll try and update more frequently. Have a great day! :D
School is going ok. I'm tired of this semester. It's not going anything like I expected it to. I expected my favorite classes to be English and math and for me to have to drag myself to government and biology. As it turns out, biology is my favorite class, work-wise. My English teacher, Donna Souder, still holds the title for favorite teacher. I am sad that I won't be taking any of her classes next semester - they're all literature classes (aside from the Comp II class that I already took) and this semester in World Lit II has proven that I do not do well with literature, that writing is most definitely my strong point. I'm not doing terrible grade-wise, but then again, I don't have my grade for government yet. >:|
Work has been alright. I talked with Ed about Rob staring at me and checking me out and he had a talk with him and Rob actually treats me like a person now. It's great! I found out yesterday that two of my co-workers have put in their two weeks notice. One of them I was surprised about; I hadn't expected him to quit. He's a good worker and a great guy. It'll be tough without him.
Joshua is doing wonderfully. His school is going well for him and we've had several opportunities to visit each other since he went off to school. He and I as a couple are doing fantastic. It'll be two and a half years on November 16! It feels like it's been longer than that, but that's usually how it goes, right?
I got to meet Joshua's grandparents, his mom's mother and her husband, last week. They are so cute! His grandpa always called me "Miss Julie" and loved talking to me. The cool thing was that he remembered what I said I was interested in. He'd ask me questions and then tell me something later that related to my answer. For instance, I told him that I was interested in being a verbal translator for German when he asked me what I was going to do with my German degree. An hour or two later, during dinner, he told me about this author who wrote letters while he was in prison in Germany during World War II. This guy had lived in America and when he heard that his family was being persecuted, he went into Germany to try and help them. He found himself in jail and it was interesting because he could look outside the window and watch buildings explode from bombings. The only problem is that the author's name has escaped my memory, so I can't buy the book. I'll have to have Todd (Joshua's dad) e-mail Grandpa and get that author's name from him.
Something interesting happened not too long ago. My ex-boyfriend, T.J., messaged me on instant messenger. I hadn't heard from him in over a year. It was shocking to me for him to contact me because last I talked to him, he was quite bitter still. He said that he remembered my screen name and figured he'd see how I was doing. That and he wanted to confess. Apparently when we were going out he had felt up and made out with one of my friends. It took him a long time to get over his guilt, which looked like bitterness to everyone else. The only reason I believe him is because 1: he had never lied to me before, 2: if he was trying to get an ego boost from his little story, he ruined his opportunities to get ego boosts several times throughout the conversation following, 3: if he was lying, he would have told me the story when I broke up with him, just to hurt me, 4: if the story was made up, why was he so guilty (it took him forever to finally tell me) about something that never happened? It's interesting because after he told me he's been messaging me and converses relatively easily. He told me all about this girl that he's interested in, all about her life story and such things. I even got to talk to her and T.J. at the same time; we did so for about three hours while I was working on a paper for government.
I'm not sure what to think about me talking to him though. I always wait for him to talk to me first and I am very alert to what he says and to what I say. It's weird though because he talks to me like we've been friends for years. I'm not the type of girl that hates all men after a break up. If my ex and I can be friends still, go for it, if you can't, then oh well. I'm just not sure if I should follow my own advice anymore. I'm going to talk to Joshua about it as soon as I can. I haven't yet because we've both been busy and haven't had the time for a good conversation. We'll see what he says.
Apartments are still up in the air. The complex Lara and I were wanting to move into turns out to be a bad one, told to us by someone who used to live there. I'm not sure where we'll go yet. I thought about trying to find some apartments in Carrollton, since they're cheaper over there. The only problem is, I don't know if that would be a central enough location. I suppose it's better to drive a little further to get a cheaper/better apartment, but still. I haven't spoken with Lara about the apartments recently. Now that my hours have been cut back at work, I'm not making as much money as I used to, so I don't even know if I can afford to move out at all. The thought saddens me, but what's a couple more years at home? The worst case scenario is that I'll live on campus at UTA and visit home every weekend and save my money so that I can move out whenever I can afford it. *shrug* I'll figure something out.
I've been pining for Germany recently. I just want to go so badly. I want to be there to see the people, to hear the language, to learn about the culture, to be engulfed by the scenery of the mountains around me... The longing in my heart grows stronger the more I think about being there. I dreamed of being in Germany and Austria last night; it was beautiful. I really want to go. I'll get my chance soon enough.
Well, I have a paper to write for English, so I'd better go. Sorry it's been so long since I updated. I'll try and update more frequently. Have a great day! :D
Freitag, September 29, 2006
An Ego Boost
For English class we were given an assignment. We had to mimic either Jonathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal" or Alexander Pope's "The Rape of the Lock." I chose to mimic Jonathan Swift, simply because I couldn't figure out for the life of me what Pope was saying. I only knew what his piece was about because Mrs. Souder had told us. Anyhoo, I've been rushed with homework all week this week, so any assignment that was due on one day was completed the night before. I started thinking of my ideas at work when I was bored (which is a lot) and ran through most of the paper in my head. I got home, typed in up in only a couple of hours, and sent it in, just 30 minutes before the due time. I hate having to do that, but when it's necessary, it must be done. Anyway, Mrs. Souder liked it so much that she read it in front of the class as an example. She told the class that it was the closest possible thing to actually being the real work and that I displayed all of the elements of satire perfectly. Of course, my ego was swelling with every word. Here's the piece if you should like to read it, that and I'd like to show off a little bit. It's not every day that I come up with something like this. It also gets some frustrations with work made a little more inconspicuously public.
Work has been going relatively well. I've been able to be upstairs instead of downstairs by myself with nothing but the mundane chore of hard drives to do with no one for conversation except for my own mind, which gets a little scary after a while. Jason, Torey's friend and "the new guy," who has been up there for about a month, has created the knickname of "Knob" for Rob. The funniest part about it is that Jason can call him Knob to Rob's face and he still doesn't realize that Jason isn't using his real name. We all think it's hilarious and we know we shouldn't laugh, but it's just so funny.
I'm managing to be polite to him, though I do try to avoid him as much as the others do. He's been better about not looking at my chest ever since I brought it up to him by way of conversation. He had asked me to lunch, "for business reasons" and could only take me by myself (without any other co-workers) because I am female and he doesn't want me to get offended. His words, not mine. I turned him down flat and told him that since he wanted to ask me questions about work, he could write them on a piece of paper, hand it to me, and I would turn it in to him the following morning. I have not yet seen a piece of paper with questions on it.
Anyhoo, he had brought up that he had taken everyone out to lunch except for me "because you're afraid" and Jeff and Chuck. At first I said that I wasn't afraid, but then I changed my answer and said that I was. He responded with, "Oh no! He's going to hit on me!" in a mock voice. I told him that that's wasn't what I was afraid of, that I was used to him doing that all the time. He doubted, so I did nothing but look at his chest and say that he had never ever spoken to me the way I was speaking to him, looking at his chest the whole time, only flicking my eyes up to his face infrequently. He said that if he had done that, it was unintentional, blah, blah, blah. For about a week after that he avoided looking at me if at all possible. It was awesome! He'll actually look at me now when he talks, but he very rarely glances.
School has been going. I've been bombarded with homework for the past week solid. It hasn't been fun. I've been up until midnight every night except for last night. It's quite exhausting.
I got a PS2 and DDR this week. It's so much fun to play. I'm so happy that I can play DDR at my house, just the fact that I can say that I have DDR. I've been wanting to own DDR for about three years. Now I finally have it and it feels great. Now I can work out whenever I want to and get better at DDR! Woohoo!
Have a great night, everyone!
A Simple Proposition
By Julie Hawkins
Inspired by “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift
A cure for the disease which plagues the majority of those who work for a living, also promoting a healthy working environment to benefit the health of those involved.
It is sad to say that when the people on the streets of
There are approximately 297,000,000 people living in the
When the workplace is visited, the worker bees work daily with tired eyes, a sore head, and muscle pains from not only working overtime, but also from daily, unavoidable conversations. The worker bees grow physically sick because of stress alone, stress they acquire at their places of work. These are all typical symptoms of the disease that has swept the nation.
The disease is, in short, is insufficient bosses, managers, the higher-ups, the management. They are insufficient, not because their numbers are small, but because they either lack intelligence, friendliness, the ability to lead others in a way that benefits the company as a whole, the ability to do whatever work is needed of him to help the company to prosper financially and to keep those under him as content as possible, and also lacks the ability to limit self desires in order to make the company the smoothest-running and most prosperous company that he can. This is not to say that females are not allowed in management, they can most certainly make excellent leaders and developers of the company as well.
Having spoken with a friend from
My proposition is that there will be a standardized test written, called the Management Qualification Assessment Test, or the MQAT, covering nearly all information that a person in management would ever need to know for any type of situation, no matter how realistic, plausible, or feasible. Before taking this test, the candidates will take a brief informational course on what the test covers, so as to be fair to all who take the test. The candidates may only take the MQAT once every six months at a given location. The score after taking the test will determine the status of that person’s job.
If the candidate makes a score of 50 or lower, they will be pushed down the stairs in front of everyone in the company for even thinking that they were management material. This candidate is then given the option of either staying at the current company at his current position, or he may choose to leave the company to try and make management elsewhere.
If the candidate achieves a score between 50 and 79, this candidate will be allowed the lowest level of management possible. Their poor score will be rewarded with two dollars an hour less than every one of the worker bees below him and he will receive a half-hour lunch break while his workers have one-hour breaks for lunch. If any opportunities to promote managers in his position arise, he will be overlooked and not considered for promotion because he did so poorly on the MQAT.
If the candidate attains a grade between 80 and 94, the candidate will be awarded with the lowest management position, as all managers start at the bottom. However, he will be allowed a one-hour lunch break, just as those below him. He is also guaranteed to make three dollars more per hour than the position directly below him, be they worker bees or another manager. He will be considered for any opportunities of promotion, in which he will be alerted, take the MQAT once more and if his score is acceptable in the same way, he will receive a promotion and a pay raise.
If the candidate accomplishes a grade between 95 and 100, he will be shoved down a flight of stairs in front of all of the company and will be physically picked up and thrown out of the building, no longer having a job there. No one is that close to perfect and any manager with that high of a score will have an ego to go with it and treat his workers in a condescending manner. This behavior is not at all tolerable, hence his being let go from the company.
I have spoken with worker bees themselves about which they would rather have put in place, this proposition, or have the current managers and all after them to be assessed monthly, in the work they complete themselves, in the way they treat those below them, and how they please those above them. If they are disagreeable in one or all of the categories, a suggestion is made for behavioral change, and, if after three months, the same problems arise, a new manager will be trained for his position. Every worker bee chose my proposition, thus proving to me that this proposition will be quite prosperous in the work place and also achieving a more constructive and productive work environment. Fewer sick days will be needed by the worker bees from a less stressful environment, increasing the ability for happiness and production throughout the company. The work put forth by the worker bees and the managers themselves will be whole-hearted and sincere, making the workplace, and weekends, that much more desirable and healthy.
Work has been going relatively well. I've been able to be upstairs instead of downstairs by myself with nothing but the mundane chore of hard drives to do with no one for conversation except for my own mind, which gets a little scary after a while. Jason, Torey's friend and "the new guy," who has been up there for about a month, has created the knickname of "Knob" for Rob. The funniest part about it is that Jason can call him Knob to Rob's face and he still doesn't realize that Jason isn't using his real name. We all think it's hilarious and we know we shouldn't laugh, but it's just so funny.
I'm managing to be polite to him, though I do try to avoid him as much as the others do. He's been better about not looking at my chest ever since I brought it up to him by way of conversation. He had asked me to lunch, "for business reasons" and could only take me by myself (without any other co-workers) because I am female and he doesn't want me to get offended. His words, not mine. I turned him down flat and told him that since he wanted to ask me questions about work, he could write them on a piece of paper, hand it to me, and I would turn it in to him the following morning. I have not yet seen a piece of paper with questions on it.
Anyhoo, he had brought up that he had taken everyone out to lunch except for me "because you're afraid" and Jeff and Chuck. At first I said that I wasn't afraid, but then I changed my answer and said that I was. He responded with, "Oh no! He's going to hit on me!" in a mock voice. I told him that that's wasn't what I was afraid of, that I was used to him doing that all the time. He doubted, so I did nothing but look at his chest and say that he had never ever spoken to me the way I was speaking to him, looking at his chest the whole time, only flicking my eyes up to his face infrequently. He said that if he had done that, it was unintentional, blah, blah, blah. For about a week after that he avoided looking at me if at all possible. It was awesome! He'll actually look at me now when he talks, but he very rarely glances.
School has been going. I've been bombarded with homework for the past week solid. It hasn't been fun. I've been up until midnight every night except for last night. It's quite exhausting.
I got a PS2 and DDR this week. It's so much fun to play. I'm so happy that I can play DDR at my house, just the fact that I can say that I have DDR. I've been wanting to own DDR for about three years. Now I finally have it and it feels great. Now I can work out whenever I want to and get better at DDR! Woohoo!
Have a great night, everyone!
Dienstag, September 12, 2006
Small Update
I have two new names that Rob gave me. The first is "Juliekins" and the other is "Julieness." His favorite is Julieness, though. It's better than Jill, I suppose. Speaking of work, we've all gotten to the point where we just put up with Rob's stupidity; we've given up hope on him. He's learning, though, which is good. He's getting to the point that my mom was at: Ed says this, reality is that, he's stuck in the middle. He's not sure what to do. Sometimes he follows Ed, sometimes he doesn't. He has made some good changes since he's been here, so that's good.
Lara and I are going to work out on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, that should be fun and productive for both of us. We're doing good on getting furniture already...Lara's friends have donated a twin bed with mattress and box springs included, a couch, a coffee table, an end table, and a desk. On top of the furniture that I'll be bringing from the house, we'll only have to buy a dining table and chairs! God works when you least expect Him to.
It's still sad coming home to only one puppy face. I miss Sandy, though I'm glad that he's not suffering anymore. I'm sure his mouth hurt him bad. I often times wished there were something I could do for him, but there wasn't anything. My poor puppy. I miss him.
I went to Barnes and Noble after work to buy some things for school and I realized that I had to pull myself out of the store. I could spend hours in there looking at all sorts of different books. I never realized that I enjoyed that store as thouroughly as I do...interesting. *shrug* You like what you like, right?
My schedule is quite busy and I haven't been sleeping well lately, regardless of the number of hours I allow myself. I'm not sure why I can't sleep well, I've done everything I can to make myself comfortable. Maybe I should physically wear myself out before I go to bed. How? Besides playing DDR (which I don't have yet), I can't think of anything. Any ideas on how to sleep better?
Speaking of sleeping, I need to do some. I have a lab quiz tomorrow - yuck. Sleep well, you guys! Gute nacht!
Lara and I are going to work out on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, that should be fun and productive for both of us. We're doing good on getting furniture already...Lara's friends have donated a twin bed with mattress and box springs included, a couch, a coffee table, an end table, and a desk. On top of the furniture that I'll be bringing from the house, we'll only have to buy a dining table and chairs! God works when you least expect Him to.
It's still sad coming home to only one puppy face. I miss Sandy, though I'm glad that he's not suffering anymore. I'm sure his mouth hurt him bad. I often times wished there were something I could do for him, but there wasn't anything. My poor puppy. I miss him.
I went to Barnes and Noble after work to buy some things for school and I realized that I had to pull myself out of the store. I could spend hours in there looking at all sorts of different books. I never realized that I enjoyed that store as thouroughly as I do...interesting. *shrug* You like what you like, right?
My schedule is quite busy and I haven't been sleeping well lately, regardless of the number of hours I allow myself. I'm not sure why I can't sleep well, I've done everything I can to make myself comfortable. Maybe I should physically wear myself out before I go to bed. How? Besides playing DDR (which I don't have yet), I can't think of anything. Any ideas on how to sleep better?
Speaking of sleeping, I need to do some. I have a lab quiz tomorrow - yuck. Sleep well, you guys! Gute nacht!
Freitag, September 08, 2006
A Tribute to Sandy
At 6:15 this morning my mother woke me up. She said, "I know it's kind of early, but...Sandy's dead." When my Dad found him with his head resting on William's shirt in the floor of the laundry room, he was already stiff. He died in his sleep, the best way to go. My educated guess is that he died because his teeth were so bad (we couldn't afford to get them cleaned) and all the bacteria from his mouth got into his blood stream and rotted his organs; mainy the liver and kidneys are affected.
I found out this afternoon that he didn't eat his food yesterday morning. My Dad put Sandy's soft food in his bowl for him and he sat pretty for it (that's what we called it when he sat up straight and tall), but he didn't eat it. He just looked at it. My opinion is that he knew he was going to die.
It's still so surreal. I got home from my friend's house and he wasn't there at the door. I realized that I would never see him again. I would never pet him, hug him, be hugged by him (he'd wrap his paw around your leg), I would never be able to tell him to go away because his breath smelled bad, I would never be comforted by him ever again. He was eight years old.
This is my tribute to a great dog and a wonderful companion.
I found out this afternoon that he didn't eat his food yesterday morning. My Dad put Sandy's soft food in his bowl for him and he sat pretty for it (that's what we called it when he sat up straight and tall), but he didn't eat it. He just looked at it. My opinion is that he knew he was going to die.
It's still so surreal. I got home from my friend's house and he wasn't there at the door. I realized that I would never see him again. I would never pet him, hug him, be hugged by him (he'd wrap his paw around your leg), I would never be able to tell him to go away because his breath smelled bad, I would never be comforted by him ever again. He was eight years old.
This is my tribute to a great dog and a wonderful companion.
Goodbye, Sandy-Dog. We'll miss you.
Donnerstag, August 31, 2006
Great News
I have some absolutely wonderful news, everyone! I just found out this afternoon that everyone at work gets a three day weekend!!! This is truly "the greatest thing since running water" as my math teacher, Dr. Kern, said this morning. I am so pumped...I get to spend the whole weekend with Josh!
Speaking of Dr. Kern, she is the funniest math teacher ever. She's what some would consider mean, in that the remarks she makes could be taken as cutting by themselves, but the way she says them is not at all offensive. She always has un upbeat tone of voice and she says cool a lot. She's an older lady, probably in her late 40's or in her 50's and she reminds me a lot of Aunt Mary, my mom's aunt. She's a sweet lady, she really is.
Here's my schedule of classes, for those of you that would like to know:
Montag, Mittwoch, und Freitag (MWF):
900-950: American National Government with Mrs. Hooper
1000-1050: General Biology with Mrs. Decker
1100-1320: General Biology Lab with Mrs. Gay (Wednesdays only)
Dienstag und Donnerstag (TR):
800-920: World Literature Two with Mrs. Souder
930-1050: Intermediate Algebra with Mrs. Dr. Kern
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are my least favorite days, but the classes are shorter and it's only for a couple of months. If I was thinking, I could have taken government and biology during the summer and get it over with. Or "Rip it like a band-aid" as Donna (Souder) was saying this morning.
Things at work are going ok. We're all getting used to Rob's idiocy, but that doesn't make it any less annoying. We're learning to cope, but it's going to take a while before we get used to him and can cope with him more easily. The revolt last Saturday worked; no one showed up for work and Ed and Rob were dumbfounded. They didn't do much of anything because they didn't know how to. It was great.
I've got a lot of reading to do before Tuesday, but I want to get it done now so I don't have to worry about it over the weekend. Josh is coming in town, plus with a three day weekend, I'll get to sleep in! Talk to you all later. Bis später, meinen freunden!
Speaking of Dr. Kern, she is the funniest math teacher ever. She's what some would consider mean, in that the remarks she makes could be taken as cutting by themselves, but the way she says them is not at all offensive. She always has un upbeat tone of voice and she says cool a lot. She's an older lady, probably in her late 40's or in her 50's and she reminds me a lot of Aunt Mary, my mom's aunt. She's a sweet lady, she really is.
Here's my schedule of classes, for those of you that would like to know:
Montag, Mittwoch, und Freitag (MWF):
900-950: American National Government with Mrs. Hooper
1000-1050: General Biology with Mrs. Decker
1100-1320: General Biology Lab with Mrs. Gay (Wednesdays only)
Dienstag und Donnerstag (TR):
800-920: World Literature Two with Mrs. Souder
930-1050: Intermediate Algebra with Mrs. Dr. Kern
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are my least favorite days, but the classes are shorter and it's only for a couple of months. If I was thinking, I could have taken government and biology during the summer and get it over with. Or "Rip it like a band-aid" as Donna (Souder) was saying this morning.
Things at work are going ok. We're all getting used to Rob's idiocy, but that doesn't make it any less annoying. We're learning to cope, but it's going to take a while before we get used to him and can cope with him more easily. The revolt last Saturday worked; no one showed up for work and Ed and Rob were dumbfounded. They didn't do much of anything because they didn't know how to. It was great.
I've got a lot of reading to do before Tuesday, but I want to get it done now so I don't have to worry about it over the weekend. Josh is coming in town, plus with a three day weekend, I'll get to sleep in! Talk to you all later. Bis später, meinen freunden!
Mittwoch, August 23, 2006
Part 2
I know what I worte before sounds ridiculous. I don't know why such a tiny thing set me over the edge. I've been trying not to let it ruin my day, but apparently it's stonger than my will is. It bothers me that I'm bothered by such a small thing. He didn't know that I drew those, he didn't know they contained such sentiment to me. But then I think, why am I defending this loser?
Today Ed and Rob brought up two pallets of flattened cardboard boxes. Each pallet (and contents) are about waist high. The thing worth mentioning is the two pallets were literally stacked on top of each other. The whole thing in height stood taller than Torey, the tallest man on the Mezzanine. It was close enough to the railing that if it fell the right way, it could have fallen off the Mezzanine and injured not only the workers below, but the computers as well. It was definitely NOT worksite safety. Two of the guys unloaded the top pallet and un-stacked them, so everything's fine now. If I can get the picture from my phone onto here, I'll post it for you. Break's over, gotta go.
Today Ed and Rob brought up two pallets of flattened cardboard boxes. Each pallet (and contents) are about waist high. The thing worth mentioning is the two pallets were literally stacked on top of each other. The whole thing in height stood taller than Torey, the tallest man on the Mezzanine. It was close enough to the railing that if it fell the right way, it could have fallen off the Mezzanine and injured not only the workers below, but the computers as well. It was definitely NOT worksite safety. Two of the guys unloaded the top pallet and un-stacked them, so everything's fine now. If I can get the picture from my phone onto here, I'll post it for you. Break's over, gotta go.
Rob
I've finally broken. The soft exterior covering the true hard feelings beneath has been worn down. I could handle his annoying, cheesy little sayings and his constant conversations with my chest, or the fact that he's a mini Ed, he doesn't sweat details, and he has no idea what he's doing. He "cleaned up" his little work area. He destroyed all the fun things we had up there. We stuck little rubber feet on the edges of the monitor to make it look like a face, we had different sticky feet on the edge of the printer, all to make the work place a little more fun in Green Light times (where we're in a rush and the environment gets extremely stressful). He wadded up and threw away the post-it-note pictures I had drawn and my Mom kept up there when I was going to throw them away. I got them out of the trash can as soon as I knew they were in there. The hardest one to recover from the wad of post-its and tape was my Mom's favorite one, the one depicting a family/work joke. I don't know why, but it brought me to tears. I've had it with this guy. We all want him gone. We all want Carol back.
Samstag, August 19, 2006
200th Post
Well, folks, this is my two-hundredth post here on Guin's Mind. Thanks for sticking with me.
Since my last post a lot has gone on in my life. First of all, there's a new work situation. The night I returned from vacation, Josh took me home and stayed to talk with my parents and brothers (and to play with the dogs and Sarah). I had text messaged my Mom that morning saying that I was very tired and that I didn't know if I'd be at work the next morning (this was a Thursday) and the only response I got from her was, "We'll talk when you get home." It sounded troubling, but I thought either she was in a bad mood or there was something I needed to know, but I knew I'd find out which was the answer when I got home.
Anyhoo, Josh and I are sitting in the living room and Mom is telling me about the situation that had risen the past Monday. Mom's boss, Ed, came to her that Monday and asked her to come to his office. There, he told my Mom that she wasn't working on the Mezzanine anymore, that she'd be working with Richard on deliveries (he's the boss-guy for all the computer deliveries to schools). The next day, the new guy started upstairs.
I found out that this guy used to work for the cable company (not sure what position, but it wasn't management) and he is a Sergeant in the army. Basically, this guy had no idea what he was doing up there and he's supposed to be in charge of about six people. Ed fired my Mom because he made outrageous promises to the owner of the company and his two vice-presidents and ended up not meeting them over and over again. The three aforementioned importants started complaining to him that he wasn't meeting what he promised. Therefore, he blamed everything on my Mom by saying that she wasn't working the crew hard enough to produce his outrageous promises. He also didn't like the fact that she thought logically and would tell him when he was telling her to do something that wasn't productive. So he fired her and hired someone who has no idea what to do.
Everyone I talked to about the new boss, Rob, thought he was an idiot and hated him. All of us wanted him to go back where he came from and most of us wished Mom back in position. Prediction number one: met as expected. At first he had this arrogant air about him; he obviously thought he was hot stuff. After a couple of days, (he'd been there for a full week before I started back after vacation) he'd seemed to lose his arrogancy for the most part, and was more open to observation. At the end of the third day, he came up to me and told me that since my Mom had made things to run smoothly and since everyone already knew how things worked except for him, that we should just keep working like we were and he'll pretty much keep things the same, only making a few minor changes here and there.
A few things bother me about him. He won't stop calling me Jill. He never calls me that to my face, but whenever referencing me to other people, he calls me Jill. I've overheard him doing it three times. It's even funnier because he came upstairs and screamed, "JULIE ANN!" I figured he had just come from talking to Ed because he only knew our names if he talked to Ed, he'd never ask us what our name was. Anyhoo, after he screamed my name, he told me that his eaughter's name is Julie Ann and then whipped out a picture of her. He still calls me Jill.
Another thing that bothers me is when you have a conversation with the guy, you almost always hear something that you never needed to hear. Too much information doesn't exist for this guy. He doesn't hold back. It's gross.
He's not the best flatterer either. When he first met Seanathan (who is a bit overweight) he told him to get a haircut and to lose 50 pounds. You don't say that to someone you know, much less a complete stranger, that's just rude.
*sigh* Anyways, I'm in Austin right now visiting Josh's grandparents with his family. Nana's birthday is on Monday. We drove down this morning and made pretty good time. Josh's Aunt Kim came, too. Uncle Kyle stayed with the dog and had work to do. Josh's cousin Jeff is a doctor in an emergency room and had a shift tonight. Small party, but we all had fun and got to see Josh's pictures from Germany (which makes me sad that I can't go for a while) and Austin, Josh, and I took turns playing DDR.
Lara and I will be hitting the books again in October to see what finances will be like then to further develop the apartment situation. She just got a new job which will put her at the same income as me, so that's fantastic. We should move in sometime in January. We're going to go ahead and wait until then to give us time to adjust to our school and work schedules and such things. Besides, you can't go shopping for furniture overnight!
Josh is begging me to play cards with him, so I'd better go. Austin and Lindsey are kicking each other in mock Ninja Turtle fights. It's funny. Bis später!
Since my last post a lot has gone on in my life. First of all, there's a new work situation. The night I returned from vacation, Josh took me home and stayed to talk with my parents and brothers (and to play with the dogs and Sarah). I had text messaged my Mom that morning saying that I was very tired and that I didn't know if I'd be at work the next morning (this was a Thursday) and the only response I got from her was, "We'll talk when you get home." It sounded troubling, but I thought either she was in a bad mood or there was something I needed to know, but I knew I'd find out which was the answer when I got home.
Anyhoo, Josh and I are sitting in the living room and Mom is telling me about the situation that had risen the past Monday. Mom's boss, Ed, came to her that Monday and asked her to come to his office. There, he told my Mom that she wasn't working on the Mezzanine anymore, that she'd be working with Richard on deliveries (he's the boss-guy for all the computer deliveries to schools). The next day, the new guy started upstairs.
I found out that this guy used to work for the cable company (not sure what position, but it wasn't management) and he is a Sergeant in the army. Basically, this guy had no idea what he was doing up there and he's supposed to be in charge of about six people. Ed fired my Mom because he made outrageous promises to the owner of the company and his two vice-presidents and ended up not meeting them over and over again. The three aforementioned importants started complaining to him that he wasn't meeting what he promised. Therefore, he blamed everything on my Mom by saying that she wasn't working the crew hard enough to produce his outrageous promises. He also didn't like the fact that she thought logically and would tell him when he was telling her to do something that wasn't productive. So he fired her and hired someone who has no idea what to do.
Everyone I talked to about the new boss, Rob, thought he was an idiot and hated him. All of us wanted him to go back where he came from and most of us wished Mom back in position. Prediction number one: met as expected. At first he had this arrogant air about him; he obviously thought he was hot stuff. After a couple of days, (he'd been there for a full week before I started back after vacation) he'd seemed to lose his arrogancy for the most part, and was more open to observation. At the end of the third day, he came up to me and told me that since my Mom had made things to run smoothly and since everyone already knew how things worked except for him, that we should just keep working like we were and he'll pretty much keep things the same, only making a few minor changes here and there.
A few things bother me about him. He won't stop calling me Jill. He never calls me that to my face, but whenever referencing me to other people, he calls me Jill. I've overheard him doing it three times. It's even funnier because he came upstairs and screamed, "JULIE ANN!" I figured he had just come from talking to Ed because he only knew our names if he talked to Ed, he'd never ask us what our name was. Anyhoo, after he screamed my name, he told me that his eaughter's name is Julie Ann and then whipped out a picture of her. He still calls me Jill.
Another thing that bothers me is when you have a conversation with the guy, you almost always hear something that you never needed to hear. Too much information doesn't exist for this guy. He doesn't hold back. It's gross.
He's not the best flatterer either. When he first met Seanathan (who is a bit overweight) he told him to get a haircut and to lose 50 pounds. You don't say that to someone you know, much less a complete stranger, that's just rude.
*sigh* Anyways, I'm in Austin right now visiting Josh's grandparents with his family. Nana's birthday is on Monday. We drove down this morning and made pretty good time. Josh's Aunt Kim came, too. Uncle Kyle stayed with the dog and had work to do. Josh's cousin Jeff is a doctor in an emergency room and had a shift tonight. Small party, but we all had fun and got to see Josh's pictures from Germany (which makes me sad that I can't go for a while) and Austin, Josh, and I took turns playing DDR.
Lara and I will be hitting the books again in October to see what finances will be like then to further develop the apartment situation. She just got a new job which will put her at the same income as me, so that's fantastic. We should move in sometime in January. We're going to go ahead and wait until then to give us time to adjust to our school and work schedules and such things. Besides, you can't go shopping for furniture overnight!
Josh is begging me to play cards with him, so I'd better go. Austin and Lindsey are kicking each other in mock Ninja Turtle fights. It's funny. Bis später!
Sonntag, August 06, 2006
It's comforting to know that somebody misses you. Thanks, Lori, for making me feel special.
I've found the place I want to live. It's beautiful, well kept, the office staff seem really nice, although from what I've heard they always do before you move in. The apartments themselves are incredible. You walk in and you feel like you're in a tiny house - it doesn't feel like an apartment at all.
Lara and I want to be roommates, but she can't move in until she gets her own affairs sorted out, which probably won't be until January. I was wanting to move out between the end of August to the end of September, somewhere in there. I'm not sure if I should hunt for a different roommate until Lara can move in or if I should just wait to move out. It'd be a lot of money, but I can afford it and I think it would be a very liberating experience. I probably won't be moving out anytime soon - I have to get the whole roommate thing situated, if I want to live in these apartments. I could find something within my price range and live alone, but I think it'd be fun (for now) to have a roommate. Besides, if someone else is living with me, we can get a nicer apartment since we're splitting the bill.
Vacation has been great so far. We're sunburned even though we used sunscreen. We only put it on once yesterday and today we put it on twice and it was cloudy for the last half of the day and we're more sunburned from today than from yesterday. Go figure.
I'm learning how to program right now...gotta run!
I've found the place I want to live. It's beautiful, well kept, the office staff seem really nice, although from what I've heard they always do before you move in. The apartments themselves are incredible. You walk in and you feel like you're in a tiny house - it doesn't feel like an apartment at all.
Lara and I want to be roommates, but she can't move in until she gets her own affairs sorted out, which probably won't be until January. I was wanting to move out between the end of August to the end of September, somewhere in there. I'm not sure if I should hunt for a different roommate until Lara can move in or if I should just wait to move out. It'd be a lot of money, but I can afford it and I think it would be a very liberating experience. I probably won't be moving out anytime soon - I have to get the whole roommate thing situated, if I want to live in these apartments. I could find something within my price range and live alone, but I think it'd be fun (for now) to have a roommate. Besides, if someone else is living with me, we can get a nicer apartment since we're splitting the bill.
Vacation has been great so far. We're sunburned even though we used sunscreen. We only put it on once yesterday and today we put it on twice and it was cloudy for the last half of the day and we're more sunburned from today than from yesterday. Go figure.
I'm learning how to program right now...gotta run!
Sonntag, Juli 30, 2006
Sorry For the Wait
Hey guys. Sorry it's been so long. I haven't had much time recently to get on and blog. At least I know there are four of you out there... :)
Russia was great. I miss it already. We had the debrief two weeks ago. The slideshow that Kelley, Angela, and I made turned out well on the big screen. The movie was killing people of boredom, but that's the only thing that "went wrong" so to speak.
Yes, Lori, you were right. Friday was the big day. Josh came home that afternoon and even though I was forty minutes early, I still missed him walking into the baggage claim. Needless to say, I was extremely upset about that. Dealing with terminal D at DFW is mayhem. Anyhoo, Josh came in and his family and I went out to eat at Love and War in Texas. Really cheesy Texan pride restaurant. I can't say whether I liked it or not because I didn't eat anything. I've never done that before, go to a restaurant and not eat, but I really wasn't hungry. As far as the atmosphere goes, I hated it. I'm not a big fan of the western decor style. Everyone else seemed to like their food, so I'll just take their word for it.
I'm glad Josh is back. Vacation is in five days...yay! Josh is going back to Austin on the 14th to get in a forty hour week at work before school starts. Selfishly, I don't want him to go back so soon since it's been so long since I've seen him, but I understand why he wants to go back, and I'm not going to be a typical girl and whine and complain because he's doing something that I don't like. At least I'll be able to visit him and talk on the phone with him this time!
I went apartment shopping with my Mom this weekend. I found an apartment that both my Mom and I are happy with. She seems excited for me. I'm not sure if I'm going to commit to it or not. I haven't signed a lease for it yet and the floor plan that I want on the floor that I want (second) won't be available until sometime in September. I don't mind because I really don't know if I want to do it or not. The rent is $519 per month plus utilities (we found the cheapest apartment we could without it being crappy) which I can afford, but it is a lot of money every month. I'd live alone; it's a one bedroom apartment. I don't have a problem with living alone, I just don't know if I could handle finding an elecric company and things like that. I like the fact that I'd be living on my own, separate from my family but not so far that I can't visit, I can keep my area clean and it'll stay that way, I can have friends over at any hour for any length of time, but at the same time it's cheaper to live at home, my parents cook most of the time, I'd have my dogs with me (even though Sarah would be coming to the apartment with me), laundry is free, things of that nature. I'll just have to mull it over and pray about it. Maybe it's just cold feet. Maybe I should just wait until UTA to move out. I don't know. We'll see.
I have to go see about lunch plans...maybe pop in a movie. I'll talk to you guys later. Tschüss!
Russia was great. I miss it already. We had the debrief two weeks ago. The slideshow that Kelley, Angela, and I made turned out well on the big screen. The movie was killing people of boredom, but that's the only thing that "went wrong" so to speak.
Yes, Lori, you were right. Friday was the big day. Josh came home that afternoon and even though I was forty minutes early, I still missed him walking into the baggage claim. Needless to say, I was extremely upset about that. Dealing with terminal D at DFW is mayhem. Anyhoo, Josh came in and his family and I went out to eat at Love and War in Texas. Really cheesy Texan pride restaurant. I can't say whether I liked it or not because I didn't eat anything. I've never done that before, go to a restaurant and not eat, but I really wasn't hungry. As far as the atmosphere goes, I hated it. I'm not a big fan of the western decor style. Everyone else seemed to like their food, so I'll just take their word for it.
I'm glad Josh is back. Vacation is in five days...yay! Josh is going back to Austin on the 14th to get in a forty hour week at work before school starts. Selfishly, I don't want him to go back so soon since it's been so long since I've seen him, but I understand why he wants to go back, and I'm not going to be a typical girl and whine and complain because he's doing something that I don't like. At least I'll be able to visit him and talk on the phone with him this time!
I went apartment shopping with my Mom this weekend. I found an apartment that both my Mom and I are happy with. She seems excited for me. I'm not sure if I'm going to commit to it or not. I haven't signed a lease for it yet and the floor plan that I want on the floor that I want (second) won't be available until sometime in September. I don't mind because I really don't know if I want to do it or not. The rent is $519 per month plus utilities (we found the cheapest apartment we could without it being crappy) which I can afford, but it is a lot of money every month. I'd live alone; it's a one bedroom apartment. I don't have a problem with living alone, I just don't know if I could handle finding an elecric company and things like that. I like the fact that I'd be living on my own, separate from my family but not so far that I can't visit, I can keep my area clean and it'll stay that way, I can have friends over at any hour for any length of time, but at the same time it's cheaper to live at home, my parents cook most of the time, I'd have my dogs with me (even though Sarah would be coming to the apartment with me), laundry is free, things of that nature. I'll just have to mull it over and pray about it. Maybe it's just cold feet. Maybe I should just wait until UTA to move out. I don't know. We'll see.
I have to go see about lunch plans...maybe pop in a movie. I'll talk to you guys later. Tschüss!
Montag, Juli 03, 2006
I Have Returned
Got back from Russia last night. It was great.
Not going to Germany at all. I hurt.
I don't feel good right now. Update later.
Tschüss.
Not going to Germany at all. I hurt.
I don't feel good right now. Update later.
Tschüss.
Sonntag, Juni 18, 2006
Off I Go to the Motherland
Four days 'til Russia!!! I'm so excited! I'm all payed off, I have appropriate clothing, and although the shopping isn't done (I still have snacks and minor things to buy), I'm ready to go. I can't believe I'm going to Russia - this is so exciting!
I'm also going to Germany, just not when I was wanting. I'm going to go the last full week of July, Josh's last week there, then we can fly home together. I'm not sure how it'll work just yet, but I have an idea and hopefully it'll work out. The worst that could happen is we would be on the same carrier, but different planes and we'd only see each other at the layover times. That would suck, but at least we'd get home together. We'll see.
Russia and Germany are about the only things on my mind right now. And work. Until further notice, the entire Mezzanine staff at work is supposed to put in 10 hour workdays and working on Saturdays is a must. I don't mind working that much, I guess. It'll be hard, but the overtime will be killer! It's going to be great when it's over.
That was really all that was on my mind. The past few entries haven't been happy ones, so I figured I could post a happy one. I'll talk to you guys later. Pray for me while I'm in Russia!
Bis später!
I'm also going to Germany, just not when I was wanting. I'm going to go the last full week of July, Josh's last week there, then we can fly home together. I'm not sure how it'll work just yet, but I have an idea and hopefully it'll work out. The worst that could happen is we would be on the same carrier, but different planes and we'd only see each other at the layover times. That would suck, but at least we'd get home together. We'll see.
Russia and Germany are about the only things on my mind right now. And work. Until further notice, the entire Mezzanine staff at work is supposed to put in 10 hour workdays and working on Saturdays is a must. I don't mind working that much, I guess. It'll be hard, but the overtime will be killer! It's going to be great when it's over.
That was really all that was on my mind. The past few entries haven't been happy ones, so I figured I could post a happy one. I'll talk to you guys later. Pray for me while I'm in Russia!
Bis später!
Donnerstag, Juni 15, 2006
Bittersweet News
Russia Trip plans are going well. I only have $365 left to raise, though I have to have it by Monday. I'm really excited about going. It'll be fun, I'll learn a lot, probably grow some, too. You know, usual missions stuff.
I had the opportunity to travel to Germany and visit Josh. I was going to go, I could afford it, my parents were ok with it, everything was great. On the Lufthansa website, the price for flying from Houston to Frankfurt was $526. That's by far the cheapest deal out there. I was all excited to go, plans for sleeping arrangements and everything were made. Then someone read the fine print. It turns out that the $526 was the one-way price based on a round trip ticket. In other words, 526*2+taxes+fees=$1,200-1,300. This was the straw that put Lufthansa on my bad list.
So my dreams of travelling to Germany, getting to visit Josh, all shot to hell because I can't afford a $1,085 ticket (the cheapest one out there) to Frankfurt. As it stands, if I save every penny I make, I can go, but that's waiting until the last minute to purchase the tickets. If there were a way that I could put a deposit on the ticket and then pay the rest later, that'd be nice. However, I doubt that's feasible.
I have to run to work. If any of you read this anymore and have any ideas, please call me and let me know.
Bis später.
I had the opportunity to travel to Germany and visit Josh. I was going to go, I could afford it, my parents were ok with it, everything was great. On the Lufthansa website, the price for flying from Houston to Frankfurt was $526. That's by far the cheapest deal out there. I was all excited to go, plans for sleeping arrangements and everything were made. Then someone read the fine print. It turns out that the $526 was the one-way price based on a round trip ticket. In other words, 526*2+taxes+fees=$1,200-1,300. This was the straw that put Lufthansa on my bad list.
So my dreams of travelling to Germany, getting to visit Josh, all shot to hell because I can't afford a $1,085 ticket (the cheapest one out there) to Frankfurt. As it stands, if I save every penny I make, I can go, but that's waiting until the last minute to purchase the tickets. If there were a way that I could put a deposit on the ticket and then pay the rest later, that'd be nice. However, I doubt that's feasible.
I have to run to work. If any of you read this anymore and have any ideas, please call me and let me know.
Bis später.
Montag, Juni 05, 2006
What do you do when the one who holds you isn't there to hold you when you need them to?
I left Bible study. I searched for a cat that wasn't to be found. I sat outside, alone, which is what I wanted. I realized that I am helpless. I cannot those I want to help, even myself. The only question that comes to mind is, why? Why did I have to be born to the family that I'm in? Why did my parents have to be stupid with their money when I was a child? Why haven't they been able to get out of the rut that they put themselves in? Why do I have to suffer the consequences of their mistakes both financially and emotionally? Why is it that you can't call a foreign country without costing the one you're calling? Why is it that when you need someone the most, no one comes? Why is it that when you want to be alone everyone comes to check on you? Why do mission trips cost so much? Why can't I afford to be with him in Germany? Why can't I help him even though I try? Why does Germany have to be seven hours ahead? Why do I take everything so seriously like a stupid girl? The only question left is, why does life have to be so hard?, but I'm glad it's hard because if it wasn't, life wouldn't be fun. It would be meaningless. Meaningless. Lifeless. Dead.
What do you do when the one who holds you isn't there to hold you when you need them to?
What do you do when the one who holds you isn't there to hold you when you need them to?
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