Step 104: Introspection

Lately I've taken to thinking a lot. Not that I don't normally think, just that it's usually things and not Things that I'm thinking about. ("What's for dinner?" as opposed to "When am I going to move into my own place?") Recently it's been the other way around Dinner is decided at the last possible moment while moving out and making a life for the long term has been pondered and repondered.

What I've settled on is making short, mid and long term goals for myself, and then setting a time frame for each based on the oldest I want to be once they're accomplished.

I'll not list them all here right now, because that's kind of personal and for whateverreason when I set public goals I nearly always miss them out of some weird defiance quirk, I dunno. BUT! What I will do is announce when I've reached a goal, and reveal it at that time.

For now, the only goal I've reached is deciding to set goals. Meh, gotta start somewhere.

Also, here's our dog, Butch:

10, 0, 0.

Step 103: Picture Dump

Generally speaking I feel like picture posts are a kind of lazy man's wayout of really saying anything, but I've been meaning to post a couple photos for awhile, so now's as good a time as any, being that I've nothing else to report.

Missy


My Awesome Desk


Toes, Showing Me Exactly How He Feels About My Reading Rather Than Snuggling


Toes Being Picturesque. And My Nephew's Stuff Ruining It Sort Of.


My Keyboard In Nice Lighting And Interesting Focus


Just five, as that's all tinypic lets me upload at once and I'm too lazy to upload more.

10, 0, 0.

Step 102: An Endless Night

Last night I volunteered to take the dog, since the previous night my sister didn't get much sleep. I'm not really feelin' the whole hairy details thing, but suffice it to say that I was up until 4, back up a 5:45, and then back to bed at 8, until about 12:30. The last bit was my favorite part. As much as I put off actually going to bed, once I'm there, I love sleeping.

In fact, as I was waking up, I snuggled into my blankets and decided to take my time waking up, because the bed was warm and the night was long. It was nice to be awake without really being awake.

I tend to have a lot of lucid dreams in that state. This morning it was something about being able to kill zombies by simply pressing their foreheads. Apparently zombies had become a normal thing, so insteda of handshakes, people began touching one anothers foreheads as a greeting. The zombies wer exceedingly stupid, and none of them seemed able to remember that a human's touch in that spot would kill them, so they always fell for the "Let's be friends, see?" gesture. ANYWAY. It was a funny dream, if you'd been there.

Beyond that, I've not much to report. Things are still chaos around here with all the people, I'm still unemployed, blah blah blah...

Oh! I did enjoy about an hour of quiet solitude this morning. Mom, M and L had all left for the day, Sister and Brother-in-law and T and Butch were all sound asleep, and I was alone in silence for an entire hour. It was wonderful. No snotty breathing from a crib across the room, no footsteps overhead, even the heating system saw fit to stay quiet. I suppose I could've gone to bed then, but I stayed up to relish the hush. Then Brother-in-law got up, and I left him in charge of Butch while I went to bed.

10, 0, 0.

Step 101: Deep Breaths

It seems like so much has been going on around here recently, but now that I'm sitting here, ready to type it all out, every detail seems to have left me, and I'm left with the simplest of them to say: We got a puppy.

I suppose that's a good place to start. On Friday, after days of searching for a dog, I stumbled across a link to a dog that seemed to be what everyone in the family wanted.

My mom wanted a bichon frise (WHICH I feel obligated to point out is pronounced BEE-shawn free-ZAY, but is more fun to pronounce as bitchin' frizzy). My sister wanted a schnauzer. Nephew wanted a boy dog he could name. Eldest Niece wanted a small dog (she's not a fan of large animals). Youngest niece was just excited about getting an animal that would love her back (the cats do NOT). Brother-in-law didn't care one way or another, so long as he didn't have to be responsible for it.

Me? I didn't really want a dog at all, as I've got Toes, but whatever we got, I knew I'd be in charge of grooming, so I wanted something young that I could mold into a model groom dog. (Coincedentally, if you get a puppy, get thee to the groomer post haste. None of this waiting until it's a year or six months nonsense. POST. HASTE.)

Enter Beethoven. He's a boy, 11 weeks old, a schnauzer/bichon mix that will top out around 20 pounds, if he makes that. Perfect. So now, he's here, and currently snuggled down in his crate until The Pooping Hour, which I'm told is around 3 am. I volunteered to take him for the night, since my sister didn't get much sleep last night.

He's cute, I'll admit, and so far a good fit for us, as he's slightly submissive and therefore eager to please, and therefore nearly housebroken after only being here three days.

Anyway, beyond the new dog, I suppose the "a lot" that's been going on is mainly introspection and reading. Since Butch came home, I've read three books and started a fourth the first two were my niece's, from her book fair. I read them because they were there.) Smile, My Life in Pink and Green, A Great and Terrible Beauty, and now I'm working on Wicked. The introspection is a direct result of this renewed interest in reading, as I always think about the books I've just read, and what I can take away from them.

So far I've learned that I belong in my own apartment with Toes and a published novel or five under my belt to pay the bills. I know it doesn't show here, but I am a rather accomplished novelist when I want to be. The trouble is in wanting to be. I've determined that when I don't have a job, I feel guilty for writing. ANd I don't think that's a bad thing. I'm not sitting here right now thinking "I need to stop feeling guilty." because no, I don't. I DO need a job. Once I have one, I'll begin writing in earnest. In the meantime, however, I'll keep a sporadic blog and sneak in a few paragraphs while the household sleeps.

10, 0, 0.

Step 100: True Blood

I have spent several of the past few nights watching episodes of True Blood. I'd only ever seen one episode before (the season 2 finale), but my sister hapened to have every episode on their PS3, so I've been watching.

FIRST, there is a lot of naked on that show, but after awhile you get desensitized to it. After all, it's an HBO show, so...there's that. SECOND, the cliffhangers, were I watching weekly would drive me insane, and probably will once the new season picks back up. And THIRD, I'm totally addicted.

In other news, this week marked the beginning of the Applying for Jobs process. I hate this part, because it can get a little on the disheartening side when you keep applying for jobs and no one calls you. But I do turn in a lot of "Just in Case" applications where there aren't actually any openings but I turn in an app anyway. What I'd love is for something cool to just fall in my lap, but in the meantime, I'm going it the hard way. Feh.

10, 0, 0.

Step 99: Dragon Bookends.

We went shopping today. Our first stop was a thrift shop (WHICH I've become addicted to. Who knew you get so much cool stuff for so cheap?! Don't answer that.) Anyway, we were supposed to be looking for end tables. We found none, but I did find a trunk similar to the one I have that I pointed out to my sister (because she is mad jealous of my trunk). She snatched it up and plans on painting it black.

I, on the other hand, was fairly bored until I turned a corner and looked to my left and there, sitting perfectly at eye level were the most epic bookends I have ever seen. They were in the shape of dragon heads guys! I wanted them. And needed them, as I don't have bookends, but I do have a lot of books. The only real obstacle was obtaining the funding for them. I'm scraping by with less than $20 left in my account. The bookends, while awesome, are also not necessary, so I couldn't justify the purchase.

Mom?! *pleading eyes*

No! Those are awful!

Please... *PLEADING EYES*

No, they are ugly.

*sadface*

I did not get the bookends. YET.

After the thrift store, we went to the furniture store so mom could pick out new furniture to match the (BEST EVER IT'S AWESOME AND COZY AND SOFT) rug she just got. She picked out two chairs and a coffee table. So, while she was riding on her high over finding furniture she loves for cheaper than she'd expected, I asked again.

Are you SURE I can't have the bookends?

*sigh* Fine, but I'm not going in to get them.

*elated* You don't have to!

We pulled back up in front of the shop, I marched in purposefully and took hold of the Dragons that would be mine. I paid, and on the way to the car, Victor and Steven told me their names. I DID name my bookends. Judge me, I don't care. I have dragon bookends.

10, 0, 0.

Step 98: Fall Down the Stairs

I fell down the stairs today. I was carrying my laundry, and overstepped the first stair. My foot slipped and I slid down several more stairs and briefly thought I might die before stopping on the 6th step of a 14 step staircase. My ankle still feels tweaked, and I pulled a sliver out of the back of my thigh, but I'm okay. My ego didn't even have to suffer any real bruising, as the only other people home at the time were napping.

Mom made it home safely from her business trip.

She ordered a giant rug for the fmaily room. It came today, and it looks remarkably like a polar bear rug, minus the head and legs. It's awesome.

Tomorrow (finally) begis the search for a new job. I'm still hoping for something super cool and not lame.

I did get paid for the work I did a while back. I did a couple hours worth of data entry for my mom's old job. They paid me $50 an hour to do it (inorite?) and I ended up getting $175. I gave it back to my mom though, to help her pay for the outrageously overpriced room painting we had done. The dude charged $480 in labor. It took him 10 hours over the course of two days. That's $48 an hour to paint a square room. And most of one wall is taken up by a fireplace and a doorway that he didn't have to touch. Robbery, I say. Anyway, it's certainly the last time we hire him, and we'll do our best to discourage others from using him as well. He might have made $500 for the day, but he lost thousands in the future by charging that much. Stupid move.

10, 0, 0.

Step 97: A Challenger Appears

Oh what a day. Today was a day of running after T and repeating myself 800 times, just to have to run after her anyway. There was also some reverse psychology.

T has reached the stage in our relationship where she's begun testing me. I knew it was coming, and so far it's been hilariously frustrating.

Lesson's she has learned:

1. We do NOT chase the cats. Once they run away, we leave them alone, because it means they're done. (This is especially important with Toes, as he WILL bite if he's pushed too far.)

2. The unfinished and there fore unsafe for a baby back staircase will not be used by anyone under the age of 9. If such shenanigans occur, the underaged person in question WILL be escorted back from whence she came post haste.

3. There will be no strangling of the cats, no matter whether they are running or not.

4. One lollipop is plenty. You can't "just have emmyems" instead.

5. I will always be more patient than you about nap time. You will always succumb to the back patting and silence.

6. You better run, I'm gonna getchoo!

Lessons I learned:

1. A three year old caught doing something she knows is wrong is fully capable of making something up. For example, if she's caught using the back staircase, she WILL tell you she was "just trying to get the baww" even though you know for certain the ball in question was in her hand the entire time she was headed toward, started down, then came scrambling back up the Forbidden Staircase.

2. If you tell her to put her slippers on, and she says no, try telling her she'd better NOT put them on. This also works with her dinner, picking her toys up, and just about anything she initially refuses to do. Reverse psychology is your friend. For now.

3. It's a good thing toddlers don't weigh much, because physically removing them from situations will be necessary more than a few times a day.

4. You better run, I'm gonna getchoo!

5. Sweet, sweet bedtime.

Anyway, as I said, she's just testing me, and I've been consciously consistent with my reactions, so she's catching on that I mean what I say, and I will follow through. I'll still be glad when this part is over, I don't like having to Set Boundaries and Uphold House Rules every second. Sometimes you CAN eat six wowwipops in a row, dangit. >:|

10, 0, 0.

Step 96: Guy Man, Man Guy, Bro, Dude Pal.

Today was fairly uneventful. I spent it playing Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, making and then eat spaghetti for dinner, straightening L's hair, and watching B play Uncharted 2. So...video games and food mainly.

The kids go back to school tomorrow. Reminds me I have to fix L's nails...ANYWAY.

The funniest part of today was when we were all watching B play Uncharted 2. Toes came back with us, and decided that it was man time with B. He sat in his lap, for a while he slept with his head in B's lap, then he rolled around...it really did seem like he was trying to start a rad bromance with B. It was hilrious to witness, though difficult to blog about effectively.

Anyway, slow day around here. I'm off to bed until it's time toget up and help get this kids off to school. Yay early morning. (I'm so napping once they're gone.)

10, 0, 0.

Step 95: Some Semblance of Normal.

Ever since I got to the new house, I'd been putting off unpacking "my room" and setting things up. A lot of it was because I was busy helping set things up in the main part of the house, and was too tired by the end of the day to do much in the basement beyond sigh deeply and go to bed. The rest of it was simply not wanting to do it.

For me, things like setting up a home are nigh to impossible for me to just get done. There has to be a moment when something in my consciousness click into place and I'm "ready" to get it done.

It took a couple weeks for me to finally be ready to set up the basement, and I got it done in just under three hours. (Plus the time it took for me to assemeble my bookcase and desk, but whatever, those are separate events.)

Speaking of my desk! It is fully assembled and I still love everything about it.

It's been nice to have my nice, clean space all set up, but there is one minor drawback. I decided it'd be a good idea to set up a play area for my nieces (Nephew is too old for toys, being all of 16 years old and whatnot). I failed to realize that while I'm a 10 am or later kind of kid, the girls are 8 am or earlier types. So I've not been getting to sleep in lately. Poor ickle me, ne?

It's been nice to have the kids around, all in all. They're big fans of their aunt Sarah and tend to monopolize my attention all day. T likes me to chase her through the house saying "I'm gonna getchoo!" L likes me to do girly things for her like straighten her hair and paint her nails and M likes to talk video games and wisecracks. They're cool kids.

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Step 94: So Tired.

My sister and youngest niece moved in today. My niece was totally amped to be here and have the undivided attention of three people, especially her Aunt Sarah. I spent the evening running after her and answering a million questions from "Can you get me some water?" to "Why is Toes taking a bath?"

I am drained. But T is fun.

10, 0, 0.

Step 93: 12? Really?

Today was my birthday. And it was good. It was quiet, and I stayed in my pajamas most of the day. Professional painters came and painted the family room, and it's nice to know I'll not have to do it now. I wasn't stoked about getting up before 8 am, but I lounged on the couch while they painted, so who cares?

The oddest part of the day was when we went out to dinner and the hostess asked me if I was over 12, and if she was kidding, she is spectacularly good at deadpan, because not once during the exchange did she crack a smile or hint that she was doing anything but asking a serious question. And when I said, "Actually, I'm 27 today." she gave me a perplexed look like she thought perhaps I ought to crack the "Only joking." smile.

I've always looked younger than I am, but 12? Really? Really? I mean, even the harshest critics I've encountered have put me as at least 20, more likely 22 or 23. I hope, for the hostess's sake, she is just that good at keeping a straight face.

Tomorrow I'll go pick my sister and the baby up from her mother-in-law's house. She'll be joined by everyone else this weekend. Mostly I'm looking forward to some bonding time between my iPod and I. (If I look at it that way, I won't think about the two hour drive that is still a bit of a terrifying prospect after...YOU KNOW.)

10, 0, 0.

Step 92: Build a Bookcase

So, my weekend was okay. Valentine's Day came and went and all I can really say about it is at least my car stereo didn't get stolen. That happened a couple years ago. All I got for Valentine's Day was a gaping hole in my dash where the Awesome Stereo I'd gotten as a birthday gift exactly two years prior had once been.

Speaking of birthdays! It's been mine for 35 minutes! I'm torn about it, really. The biggest part of me is excited because it's my birthday and yay me! But there's another part of me that's a little sad I haven't made much of myself these past 27 years. I suppose everyone has the Magical Age where they feel like they'll finally be an Adult, and for me that age was 27. And now, here I am, just hours from being That Age, and... :\

But, I'm ever the optimist, so I think that rather than Being There already, my 27th year will be all about Getting There. Who knows what that means, but we'll find out, yeah?

I got a fantastic L-shaped desk for my birthday, and I'll spend part of tomorrow putting it together. My old desk got moved to my nieces' room, and now I'm using a card table. The new desk is glorious and I love everything about it. There will be pictures when it's set up.

I spent part of today putting together a bookcase I've had for months now. I bought two of them, but only put one together, and today I finally resolved to put the other together. Fortunately for me, my two-year-old niece, T, was available to help. Each piece was marked with a letter, so she found them as I needed them (A-M), and then put the wooden dowels in the right holes for me. I don't know what I would've done without her! Needless to say, it was adorable, and I'm exponentially cooler in her eyes because I let her do a "big girl" job.

Still waiting of the money from the job I did. I expect it'll be here either this Friday or next.

Ten, 0, zero.

Step 91: Get Roommates

Today is an interesting day around Our House. As I type this a U-Haul is being emptied into the storage areas of the house and office add-on of the house.

Evidently things have reached critical mass at my brother-in-law's mothers house, and so to avoid the impending nuclear war, my sister, her husband and their three children are moving in with us.

It makes sense on several levels, the main one being that B's mom has 1000 square feet for seven people to live in where as we have 3500 square feet. Also, apparently B's mom hasn't let go of the idea that just because they live there it doesn't make them children, so she's weirdly controlling. And finally, B has a much better chance at getting a job in our area than he does there. (The whole reason they don't have their own house is because he got laid off as part of a downsizing...thing...at his old job.)

As for me, I'm indifferent about it as far as the Having Five Extra People In My House aspect goes. I still have my own space, so it makes no difference to me. And I'm glad to have Them Specifically here, because I like them. I mean, like any family, we have History that means we have plenty of dirty laundry, but it's all water under the bridge because...we're a family.

Anyway, just wanted to make sure I got something posted, even if it wasn't even a little interesting. Heh.

10, 0, 0. (Though the earned zero should be changing soon, as I've earned a bit of Cash on the Side recently. Will post the amount when I receive it.)

Step 90: More Babbling

So I was just sitting here and thinking about what I ought to post today, since I'm still a vastly uninteresing person, but I did...sort of...commit to this blog, and somehow my thoughts wandered to Someday When I'm a Famous Author, and I'll be required to give speeches about my writings.

This morphed into me making up a speech as I went along, while blinking through crappy high school stage lights and trying to distinguish between the faces of the teenagers who are mostly only glad they got out of fourth period to hear this whozit blather at them.

The speech I was giving in my mind had nothing to do with any of my stories, and had instead to do with the fact that I was giving a speech, and how it really didn't seem to match up with who I am. A transcript of this speech, more or less:

See, the thing you need to remember about writers is that we are a deeply introverted people. Our lives literally consist of spending hours, alone, observing the goings on of the characters in our heads. Even in our imaginations we're prone to people watching rather than joining in (unless we're writing in first person, which doesn't count, because then we aren't ourselves, we're someone else). So, for me to stand up here and try to talk to all of you...at once...alone...is a little uncomfortable.

I mean, I was a thespian in high school, I see you giggling jocks, I said THESPIAN with a T-H and a P, not an L and a B. So, as a th--member...participant in my school's speech and theater team, I got used to having to speak like this, but it still feels unnatural.

I have learned, however, that the trick is to just keep forming words and vomiting them out. Verbal diarrhea is a good thing, in a public speaking environment. It's also important to remember that anyone younger than you is considered a "kid" and kids think words like "vomit" and "diarrhea" are funny, so you should try to use them in your speech as well. More than once, if you can. Vomit and diarrhea.

Anyway, back to what I was talking about with the writing. Writing is one of those things that is fun when you think you're doing a great job, but stressful when you think you're doing a terrible job. Writers are a little masochistic, because most of the time you're going to be absolutely certain that you're doing a terrible job. And also most of the time, everyone is going to agree with you. Especially if they intend to make money off you. They're going to want your goth character to wear a pink tank top and white short shorts, because everyone wants the goth kid to turn mainstream just once. They're going to want the bitchy, popular despite her being a jackass cheerleader to fall on her face, tear her skirt and flash the whole school, because complete humiliation is the only thing that brings those girls down a notch. And they aren't going to care that your goth character isn't secretly dreaming of the day she can don Barbie's wardrobe. They aren't going to care that your cheerleader, in your mind anyway, is a thinking, feeling human being and that her outward asshattery has more to do with a volatile home life than with some innate jerk gene.

And sometimes, despite your best arguments, you're going to have to give the publishers what they want. And it will hurt. But you'll keep writing. Because, as I said, you have to be sort of masochistic to be a writer.

I should note that it's also a good idea to throw a few mild swears into any speech you give to teenagers, because it shocks them a little, and sometimes makes them pay attention to you, instead of to the time and whether the speech they aren't listening to will also get them out of fifth period History. Vomit and diarrhea.

...SO YEAH. That's the speech I gave in my head, at least up to the point where I decided I'd blog it instead of keep wandering back and forth across an imaginary stage.

I imagine it would have continued in that vein, ending with the pre-established inside joke, "Vomit and diarrhea." Then they'd all clap, and there would be a question and answer session that involved mainly questions from the teachers, and perhaps a couple from the overachievers. The bookish kids would be dying to ask me something brilliant, but their introversion would keep them silently in their seats hoping and praying a teacher would read their mind and ask for them. (They wouldn't.) And then there'd be the special treat of everyone who wanted one getting a signed copy of my book, if they'd just line up. And pretty much everyone would want a signed copy, because either they liked me, or they liked my book (which their English teacher will have ordered them to read the week before my speech), or they wanted to cut into 5th period History class a little more.

Right. This post was aptly titled, I think. And I'll be shutting up now. kthxbye.

Ten, nada, zip.

Step 89: Just Thinking

The other day, while perusing the blogs I always peruse, I read in The Hayleylujah Chorus that the author, Hayley (duh), keeps journals and blogs and things because somewhere in her she feels like she's a character in a novel.

This struck me in two ways. The first, and most important, being that I totally understood what she was saying. I identified with it.

The second was in the realization that someone who is nearly a decade younger than me was able to define the indescribable "why" I've been trying to find for ages.

I, too, fancy myself to be the main protagonist of some deeply fascinating novel. And even were I to type out "But I know I'm just plain old Sarah." without the quotes, I wouldn't believe it. It would be something "My character" would say. Because part of being a good protagonist is believing that you are ordinary, unspecial, and comepletely overlooked. Then, when the climax of the story comes, it's that much more amazing that it happened to Plain Old Sarah.

So, despite the realists of the world that would tell me I'm not going to learn I'm the princess of a dying civilization, nor am I only hours away from inheriting millions from an eccentric great-uncle who drew my name from a hat, I'm going to keep believing that I am a character in a best-seller. THE character in a best-seller.

Now all I have to do is wait for my birthday, because the Real Hogwarts Letters come when you turn 27.

Ten, zero, zero.

Step 88: A Recap

I was browsing through the past couple entires to see what I've talked about recently, and I realized I forgot to mention the calamity that was the day I actually left South Dakota. In between the minor and major catastrohpes there ought to have been a calamity. (Is Mercury in retrograde or something? I dunno.)

Anyway, I think the old spook house tried it's best to keep me there the day I left. It pulled out all kinds of interesting tricks.

First, the night before the movers came, I found myself struggling in vain to paint my green walls back to white, with primer. You know, paint that made specifically to cover obnoxious paint colors? The first couple walls went beautifully, and I was able to cover them in just two coats, but when I moved to the third and fourth walls, things went bizarre. For some strange reason, even after FIVE COATS of primer, green paint was still showing through, like the walls were just drinking in the primer. Finally, when the 5th coat still proved ineffective, I gave up.

The next day, the movers came to pack our things. The lead guy, also the driver, decided he'd take on the kitchen, while the other three guys took the rest of the house. AS they worked, the lead guy seemed to be getting nowhere in the kitchen, filling box after box, while the rest of the guys were breezing through everything else. Since they really couldn't start loading the truck without the driver's direction, him being in the kitchen was inconvenient. It seemed like there were about 15 boxes of kitchen goods, and yet once they got here? Only six. But everything is here and accounted for.

As the day went on, the electricity in the house started to blink in and out, at first for less than a second, but by the time the truck was being loaded, it was blinking off for two minutes at a time. It wasn't a big deal, except that the guys were trying to pull things out of the windowless storage room, and it was impossible to see in the pitch dark.

Then, once everything was moved to the garage, the garage door randomly started to come down on it's own. It happened to be as one of the guys was walking through it, and his foot kicked through the sensor to stop it closing, but it was that point at which the guys all really believed my casual stories about a "ghost" in my house.

Finally, the truck was loaded and all that was left was to round up the cats, sweep through the house to pick up the big garbage (a friend of mine did the scouring and scrubbing for us once I left), and hit the road. Toes was an easy catch as 1, he likes to be held and 2, he likes car rides. Missy, on the other hand, is always a challenge as she HATES being held and she LOATHES car rides. And of course, she'd chosen the windowless storage room to hide in.

I should remind everyone that I am a dark-o-phobe, and more than a few seconds exposure brings on the full song and dance, feeling like I'm going to die, heart racing panic attack associated with most crippling, irrational fears.

So, I go down to the basement and flip on the lights. I wait a few moments to ensure the electricty is steady, then I head into the storage room. I go over to the scary under the stairs place where Missy usually hides, and right as I peek in to look for her, the electricity shuts down with a POP! Naturally, I flee back out to the main room in the basement (that has a window, and therefore light, and breathe deeply while trying to tell myself it's just weird timing and the rain outside (though it's just a light drizzle, and not even freezing at that...). On a whim, I simply call to Missy, hoping she'll come out of the dark on her own, and to my utter amazement, she does, and right to me! Excellent. I put her in the car, and I'm free!

I should mention that I'd done the garbage sweep before getting the cats, and my car was already backed out of the garage, in case of anymore garage door shenanigans. /clearing up confusion

So, the house is locked up, no going back now, just fill my gas tank and get on the road.

Except that since I forgot to keep the kennel out, and the movers didn't even realize we had cats, both of them are loose in the car (not ideal, but they usually settle down and stay put after the first half hour or so). I go to pay for my gas and grab some road munchies and an energy shot (which I tried for the first time, and would recommend for anyone looking for a one-time, but certainly non-habitual energy boost, as it made me just feel like I Was Not going to fall asleep at the wheel, without making me feel like I was also going to spaz out and start twitching). When I get back to the car, Ican see Toes at the window all "HI, MOMMY! 8D 8D" But I figure Missy's back in hidey-hole land and I'll not see her until I get to the new house. Guess who was incorrect?! Guess! ME! I WAS!

I'd barely opened the door wide enough for her to fit went a flash of grey darted out of the car. I held onto the very tip of a tail before the hairs came off in my hand and Missy was no longer visible.

Awesome. I'll now spend the next twelve hours trying to get her out, in sopping wet, cold weather that's only supposed to get worse as the night falls.

Fortunately, The House's poweres were weakened from that distance, and a fantastic young couple helped me get her out by crouching on one side of the car and crackling candy wrappers while I called to her from the other side, and she came right to me for the second (perplexingly uncharacteristic) time that day. After that it was smooth sailing, and as far as the new house goes, it is fantastically devoid of any paranormal activity, good bad or just weird.

I love this house, which is good, being that we closed on it on Friday, and it is now Ours Until Further Notice.

Tensandaire, zero, zero.

Step 87: A Major Catastrophe

So, I've been gone for a bit, but with good reason. I moved, and no longer live in South Dakota. I live in Missouri now, and so far I really really like it! We're closing on our house tomorrow and I'm excited about it, even though it's technically not my house. I'm excited for my mom, I guess, because she's wanted her own house for ages, and now she's got a perfect one.

Anyway, once I got here and helped get some semblance of an organized home set up, I took off to Minnesota to visit one of my BFF's, J and her husband, D. It was a great time once I got there, but not so much on the way. See, I had the brilliant idea to just print off driving directions and go, without also checking the weather. By the time I got to Des Moines, the snow was falling so heavily on I-35 that 45 mph was living on the edge speed-wise. It was stressful, but I managed to make it most of the way without incident.

Then, about 40 miles from my destination, disaster struck. I was on MN-109, a road that Rand McNally told me I should take, and also a road that, if it was plowed, it was by the new guy who didn't know how to put the blade all the way down. The road surface was entirely white, and I was driving down the middle of it, because I couldn't see any lines to know where my side ended. All was well for quite a ways, until there was an oncoming car. I slowed down from 45 to 30, and moved over to let it pass. I moved over a shade too far, and my tires slipped off the road. The wheel-jerk that happened as a result of the startle reflex was enough to set my car fish-tailing, then a chunk of ice sent it spinning, and then careening backward into the ditch.

When my car stopped, I uttered a profanity, realized that I was fine, and so was my car, other than now being stuck in two feet of snow.

Enter The Oncomer. Turns out it was a Very Awesome Dude who not only dug my car out, but flagged down two more Awesome Dudes to help push it out of the ditch and back onto the road, where the last 40 miles of my trip took three hours to drive, with me anxiety-ing all over myself the whole way. Also, I called my mommy and had a break down once it was all over.

It was totally one of those moments like when you're a kid, and you get hurt, and you act like it didn't hurt at all, until you see your mom, then you become a big sopping mess of IWANTMYMOMMY. Here's how it went.

Me, to myself: "I'm fine, I'm cool, I'm just gonna let her know what happened."
*phone rings*
Mom:"Hello?"
Me:"...MOMMYYY!?!!?!"
Mom: "WHAT?!"
Me:"I'm fine, but I went in the ditch and three guys pushed me back onto the road and my car's fine, but I needed to call my mommy and have a breakdown and cry a little."
Mom: "You're okay?"
Me: "Yeah."
Mom: "Do you want to stop, and I'll come get you?"
Me: "No, I'm only 40 miles out."
Mom: "Are you sure?"
Me: "I'll be fine, I just needed to cry to my mama."
Mom: "Okay, well, call me if you want to stop, or when you get there."

Which, how awesome is my mom for offering to come get me when I'm on mile 360 of a 400 mile trip? XD Anyway, once I got there J hugged me and I felt better, until I went to bed and began dwelling on all the thousands of things that could have happened and while I'm aware that I should feel lucky that all it took was three guys and some digging, I'm still dealing with "what if" anxiety. I think it's all part of processing the traumatic event.

The next night, J's dog had a moment and wound up biting me in the face (I'm not even a little mad at him, and infact feel worse for him and how bad he felt than I did for myself and my face). Actually, the bite didn't even hurt, though the skin under my eye tore and needed a butterfly closure and will likely scar (COOL!). I think by the time the adrenaline wore off, it was done hurting. Now it just feels bruised when I push on it.

The day after that, though, was awesome, as we spent it at the Mall of America. I grew up going every weekend, as we lived in the Cities, but it's fun to go back and see how it's constantly changing. We visited the Aquarium, incuding a behind the scenes tour, I pwned the mirror maze (and even had to go in backward to help J and D find their way out). There was shoe shopping and Godiva chocolate and meals at both Fuddrucker's and Ruby Tuesday, and it was nothing but a great day. The only downer was having to come home early because another snoowstorm is set to wreak havoc tomorrow, and I didn't want to be a part of it.

So yeah. That's where I've been.

I earned nothing, spent about $50, and am a tensandaire.

Step 86: A Minor Catastrophe

So, there's this thing people often talk about, called a "Self-Fulfilling Prophecy." I've always believed in them, because to my knowledge, they've always come true.

Today was no exception.

As part of the whole moving process, I have to paint some walls back to white where there had been some polka dots and still is some bright green (I'm not done yet, don't judge me). So, I dutifully filled a paint tray with white primer, and carried it over to the wall with the spots. I set it down on a small end table, then went to move the lamp that was also on the end table, so it wouldn't be knocked over.

To my surprise, both the lamp shade and buld came off the lamp, leaving the base dangling by the cord. As I'm grappling with it, I start to think "Oh God, this is about to be a catastrophe. Something bad can only come of this. An accident waiting to happen. Catastrophe!" And then, right when I had the lamp under control, the accident I'd been expecting happened.

The entire tray of freshly poured primer upended itself and landed all over what had been pristine carpeting. AWESOME.

So, as I'm scooping primer up with my bare hands and praying that I could scrub hard enough to avoid any permanent staining, it occurs to me that the spill is all my fault, because had I not expected it to happen, it wouldn't have.

So today's life lesson is that you get exactly what you expect to get, be it good or bad. So when you're dealing with a tray full of primer, expect only smooth sailing and cleanliness.

Everything's the same.

Step 85: She's Cracking Up

OKAY. It's been THREE DAYS now, since I left the house. Well, technically I left today and deposited a check in the bank, but that was a ten minute trip, and really doesn't count, when you consider it's been 71 hours and 50 minutes of the inside of my house.

I am dying, I think. Or at minimum I've got some seriou cabin fever. Go out, do something, you say? I live in Podunk, South Dakota! Nothing is open, except the bars, and I'd rather be bored than drunk. Just sayin'.

BUT! Tomorrow I get to go out into the world, because I ran out of milk. I have deemed that a valid reason for abandoning the Chore List for a little while. I need milk. DO NOT ARGUE WITH ME ON THIS. WHo am I yelling at?

My crazy is showing. I should go.

TEN! ZERO! ZERO!

Step 84: Crunch Time

I did not have a hangover the other day. I just felt the need to let the world know. Though, by the relative coherence of my last post, I'd think that was obvious anyway. Actually, there were fewer typos in that post than there are when I'm entirely sober. ANYWAY.

My mom left for her new job yesterday, leaving me here and in charge of getting the house ready for the movers to come. I get to do all sorts of fun things like pack books and linens and paint walls back to white. I know people would be jealous if they knew.

As for everything else...hmm. The thing with my sister, I'm still trying to work out. As much as I like for life to be cheery and happy, we've all got issues that make it less so. Generally speaking I think being happy is about choosing to be happy, but sometimes that's a hard choice to make. Knowing myself, though, by the time I see her, I will have chosen it, and everything will be fine.

Though I need to clarify that I'm not talking about repressing anger and sadness. That's what I mean about the choice. You have to face those emotions head on and ask yourself if they're still really worth the effort of feeling. If they are, you confront whoever is the source, if they aren't, you let it go. So far in this situation everything has been worth letting go, especially seeing as there's an apology behind all of it.

I suppose one might think a simplistic view like that makes me naive, but I'm happy, so am I really all that naive?

Right. So there's Sarah's Theory on How to Be Happy. Just choose it.*

Current Status: Tensandaire
Money Earned: $0
Spent: $3

*Assuming one has no chemical imbalances that make emotional control impossible. Like chronic depression or PMS.

Step 83: Hee!

Okay, so I *might* be a little bit drinky right now. I should explain that. I heard once that some language doesn't have a word for drunk, so they use a word that translates to "drinky."

Anyway, my status is as such because, being that it was my last night at work, and I worked with A, she insisted that I go out and have a couple drinks with her and her friends. So I did.

It was a fun time. We sang songs loudly and poorly, and I didn't pay for a thing. I do that a lot. Go out and have PLENTY to drink without paying for it. Win? I dunno.

So, couple things. FIRST! I set up a few small pranks at work tonight. Nothing big, but as little things, they'll add up to a "Sarah, you little sh*t!" moment for Manager in the morning. THe list:

1. I put my key on the chair in the office, then saran wrapped the chair, then clipped my nametag to the saran wrap.

2. I switched around the most popular brands of cigarettes so that what is usually and automatic reach to a certain spot will now require some extra thought.

3. I only did five drops. Backstory: Usually when we get more than $100 in our drawere, we're supposed to drop some cash into the safe. On a normal night you'll have between 12 and 15 drops. The MINIMUM you can do is 5. Top safe ($100), Rolled Coin ($120), Checks (Varies), Drawer (($10 - $15), and Cash (Usually $100 - $200 at a time). The last drop, for Cash, was $1,079, all at once.

4. I swapped several grocery items so they make no sense. For example, rather than having spaghetti next to the spaghetti sauce, there is Kleenex. And rather than having Jelly next to the peanut butter, there is Tylenol.

5. I cleaned out the chip rack and replaced it with bread.

6. I hid the bucket of cleaning supplies for the bathrooms.

I think that's it, I don't remember. Anyway, as individual things, they're not much, but all together they're funny. So I think anyway.

OTHER big thing that happened was my sister called. Long story short: We didn't talk for a couple years because she was a jerk. Anyway, she called and is evidently sorry. We'll see, though if I'm being honest I'd like to forgive her and have her back, but that might be because I'm not sober. Who knows?

Sorry, code and spellcheck elude me right now. I earned the usual and spent about $200 on the light bill and that makes me a tensandaire.

Step 82: I Don't Even Know

I'm not really sure what my problem is lately with keeping up here. You'd think that in cutting back on Other Internet Things, I'd have time for this, but alas that be not true.

I think a lot of it has to do with not having much that is either interesting or relevant to write about, and the rest of it is in putting all the boring irrelevant stuff in my hand-written journal, because only I will see it. Run on sentence.

Anyway, I think what I'll do is just tell random stories from the day and toss the tallies at the end for good measure. Which is what I do anyway, but it makes me feel better to announce that that's what I'm doing, so there.

Also, I got Sandy back from the mechanic, and she runs beautifully now. She ought, as it cost $600 to get her that way. :\

Today's Story: The Obnoxious Hutterite

Okay: backstory. In the area where I live, there is a colony of Hutterites. I don't really know much about them other than they all speak with German accents and dress kind of like the Amish. And they annoy the crap out of me with their constant haggling. I do not work in a store where haggling happens. Ever. Pay up or get out.

Also, this month our pizza special is a large single topping for $9.99.

Enter Scott. The Obnoxious Hutterite. Apparently R had a difficult time with him on the phone telling him that ONE topping means ONE topping, not two. He was convinced that the pizzas COME with one topping, so in adding another, he shouldn't have to pay the extra $1.75.

He ordered a beef and onion pizza.

He comes to my register to pay for it, and, because the order has the onions marked, crossed off, then marked again, I am unsure which it is. So, I'm about to ask, when his phone rings. Not only does he not ignore it, or answer it and say "Let me call you back in a minute." but he holds his hand up to be in a "Shut up." gesture, and proceeds to take the call.

No, you didn't.

"Does that have beef and onions on it?"
"*phone conversation*"
"Your total is $12,50."
"*ends conversation*"
"I thought it was $9.99."
"That's for a single topping, does that have beef and onions on it?"
"No, it comes with one topping, so I don't have to pay the extra."
"That's not what I asked, does it have beef AND onions on it? It's a yes or no question."
"Well, yes' but it comes with--"
"No, the only topping your pizza comes with is cheese. Your TWO toppings are beef and onions. And it's $12.50."
"*phone rings again, and he answeres it, and proceeds to talk*"

At this point, I've got a line of customers behind him, and being that my last day is tomorrow, the Shortimers Syndrome has made me gutsier than I usually am. So, I took his pizza, and set it on the ice cream cooler.

"If you need to take that call, I need you to step put of the way, and I'll ring you up after these people. *voids out his transaction and smiles at the next person in line*"

Anyway, as it happens, I won, and Scott was pretty much flabbergasted that I put him in his place. But honestly. Don't come into MY store and first try to steal from me, then try to manipulate me, then waste my time, then get in the way of my other, nice customers. Just don't do it. Or I'll take your pizza away and make you stand in the corner.

With my last day being tomorrow, I find myself feeling rather less humorous toward the stupidity that I encounter at my job. Normally I laugh it off and go on about my business, but tonight everything kept making me more and more irritable until I finally locked the door and then it all went away because I was free for the night.

Except tomorrow it all starts over again. I have a good feeling the last night shenanigans will be fun, though, so I'm not worried.

Status: Flat BROKE.
Earned: $52.50 - taxes
Spent: $230 (Bank of Mom loaned me the rest)

Step 81: %*&@#

I am trying VERY HARD to maintain calmness and not freak out on someone who really doesn't have it coming, BUT!

I am really very frustrated. My car, which I have been waiting on since Tuesday is STILL not ready. Even though the part for it is in the shop, and all they have to do is put it on. Also, my mom's car is STILL in the shop because they can't firgure out what's wrong with it, and she refuses to believe it was a fluke (which it WAS for crying out loud).

To add to this, the rental car that we've had for a week now apparently absolutely MUST be returned TODAY, because it's getting to expensive to keep. It must be returned to Sioux Falls. An hour away.

And I have to be to work in less than two hours.

The repair shop that has my car? The guy's super busy and can't come to the phone.

The repair shop that has my mom's car? Mum's the word.

My mom? In a meeting.

And me? Sitting here hands tied needed to know whather I'm going to be late for work, or if I need a ride to work or WHAT?!

I NEED ANSWERS AND NO ONE WILL GIVE THEM TO ME.

Edit: I just called and my car will be done in about 5 minutes. I still don't know whether this means I'm late for work or need a ride (this time to pick my car up), but at least it's PROGRESS.

My statuses are the same as yesterday, only I didn't spend $3 today. *still too irritated to type it all out*

Step 80: Psychic

Okay, I meant to post about this the other day, but I forgot so I'm posting it now.

Last Sunday night I forgot to take the dumpster out to the curb before I went to bed, so when I woke up spontaneously at 5 am, I remembered and rolled out of bed to take it out as the truck was pulling up to our block. Whew. Close call.

When I went back inside, I decided that I just didn't want to trudge back down the stairs to my bed, so I settled in to the couch (when I'm barely awake, EVERYTHING seems like too much effort, even going down a flight of stairs). I grabbed my phone and set the alarm for 7:45, with the thought that I'd get up then and take my mom's car to the mechanic (the battery's acting funny again). At 7:44 and maybe 56 seconds, I was startled awake by what I thought was my mom saying "Sarah, your alarm's about to go off." I was so sure, that I sat up straight and looked around for her. Then, less than 5 seconds later the alarm DID go off. Coincedence. I decided that I was still too tired to be awake, and my mom hadn't called to tell me they had an opening, so I decided to go back to sleep until she did.

A couple hours later, I woke up to what I again thought was my mom saying, "Sarah! Phone's ringing!" I sat up and not two seconds later the phone DID start ringing, it was my mom telling me to go ahead and take the car in. But now this is getting weird.

So, I took the car in, came home, ate breakfast and decided I needed a shower. So I gather my things and hop into the shower and while I'm in there, I think I hear the phone ringing again, but it's faint. Still, I grab my towel and walk out into my living room and listen. It's silent, so I think maybe I just missed the call. As I'm turning around to re-enter the shower, the phone rings. It's my mom.

"What'd the mechanic say?"
"Did you just try to call?"
"No, why?"
"I thought I heard the phone ring, I was showering."
"Oh. So what did the mechanic say?"

I finish that conversation, and decide that this is one too many coincedences, and I MUST have missed a call. I went upstairs to check the phone with caller ID...I did not miss any calls.

So either I was having some kind of psychic experience or a paranormal one...I don't know, but everything stopped once I went to work.

Anyway, I haven't got anything interesting from today, other than to note that this is the first laundry day since the last time I posted about it (on 11/18, yes I DO have that many pairs of socks and underwear because yes I DO hate laundry day that much).

Current Status: Multi-Hundredaire
Money Earned Today: $52.50 - taxes
Money Spent Today: $3

Step 79: Make an Awesome Dinner

In an effort to be a little healthier this year, I've started franken-cooking each night to find new, leaner recipes that are also delicious. Tonight I found one.

I made chicken wraps, with spicy baked chicken and spinach. There may or may not have been some cheese involved, too. >_> NOT MUCH THOUGH! And I had chips and salsa as a side dish. I gave my mom her plate first while I finished up putting mine together (psh, table schmable, we eat on the couch), and by the time I went in to sit down, she had half hers gone and said, "You could not make these any better." So that's a win!

Sandy's still at the mechanic, though it's sounding like it's really not going to be that expensive. He said comforting words like "spark plugs" and "brake pads" which are two things I know to be inexpensive.

There's another blizzard happening. I hate snow.

Other than that I've not much to say still. Except I took an extra shift this week to earn a little extra money before I'm jobless again.

Current Status: Multi-Hundredaire
Money Earned Today: $0
Money Spent Today: $0

Step 78: Weight Loss TV

Tonight was the premier of the new season of The Biggest Loser; I watched it. So far I don't really have a favorite. All I know is that my favorite will NOT be the person who comes up with 75 excuses why they can't do whatever it is, and it will also NOT be whoever cries every ten seconds.

Anyway, there are few reality shows that I can appreciate, because most of them make me roll my eyes in disgust. This one however, where it follows people losing weight after they've hit rock bottom and the only option left is The Ranch or die is inspiring, I think. I dig it.

I took Sandy to the mechanic today. When I called for a status update they said they had to order parts and that they'd be in tomorrow. Still crossing my fingers on it not being an expensive job. And that I get her back and she drives like a dream. The first thing I'm going to do when I get her back is pull her into the garage and clean her out. There's not any garbage, just "stuff" that doesn't really need to be in there, and also she's pretty dusty.

My mom signed the paperwork on the house today! Now all we have to do is move in and start making it home. We were discussing color schemes for the upstairs tonight. Personally I think she should paint the dining room the rust color she likes so much and let the living room be the gold color, but she's leaning toward painting them both the same color. We'll see.

So...that's all I got for today. I'm kind of boring, I know, but I blame it on Winter.

Current Status: Multi-Hundredaire
Money Earned Today: $0
Money Spent Today: $0

Step 77: Buy a House

We bought a house! I am so excited because now I can start mentally decorating and designing and all that fun stuff! YAY!

So far the resolutions are going quite well and I've every confidence in keeping it that way.

In other news (and yes, this is gonna be a short post) tonight at work was hilarious in it's calamity. Between dropping baking pans, getting maced in the face with butter spray, nearly knocking a clock onto my head, spraying myself from head to toe with water and trying to throw Mountain Dew at ourselves, it's a good thing we closed at 11:00. I think another hour and both A and I would be in hospital.

But it WAS hilairous.

Current Status: Hundredaire
Money Earned Today: $52.50 - taxes
Money Spent Today: $2

Step 76: Resolve

So it's been an hour since the new year began, and I've already enacted the first of several New Year's Resolutions I've made. I took a picture.

Among other things this year I vowed to take a picture each day, print it and put it in the handwritten journal I'm also going to keep each day. No real reason for this other than to develop a habit of consistency. Or routine. Something like that.

A lot of people I know don't make resolutions, actually most of the people I know don't, but I like them. Everyone has goals and things they envision themselves being and doing "someday" and New Year's day provides a splendid opportunity to stop waiting for someday and to make it happen. No one just wakes up one day with a book ready for publishing when the day before they only had a hazy memory of what a word processor was. Likewise no one wakes up a svelt 130 pounds one day when the day before they were 250. Why not use January 1st as the starting point for bringing your goals to fruition? I hope to succeed with my goals this year, and honestly, I've not set myself anything unachievable, so we'll see where I've gotten on December 31st, 2010!

In other news, my evening was quiet. We watched the replay of the ball drop and toasted with our mimosas. Both my mom and I remembered to wear our red underwear (an Italian tradition we picked up from our exchange student years ago). Anyway, now, two mimosas in I'm pretty sleepy, so I'm off to bed.

Current Status: Tensandaire
Money Earned Today: $0
Money Spent Today: $0