Reading: Still Sedaris. I've made minor progress, but the mailman decided that I was reading too much and dropped off both Car and Driver and Popular Science in consecutive days. I've already motored through C&D and I'm exploring Pop Sci right now. See what I did there? Anyway, I'm still pretty certain that I'm going to read An Age of Turbulence when I'm done with Sedaris, but I recently fell off the wagon and blew $60 at Borders. I still very much prefer Barnes and Noble, but Borders is closer and I'm lazy. I had to go to pick up price guides for sports cards as my mom brought me a bunch of my old ones and I need to sort through them, however, while I was there I also picked up a couple of other books. Oil! by Upton Sinclair, a book of Garrison Keilor poems, and a gigantic biography of Albert Einstein that I'm unnaturally excited to read. I have a fascination with Einstein. When I showed Virginia she informed me that he had experimental surgery. She's currently on her Vascular Surgery rotation and while there learned that Einstein had an aneurysm that surgeons wrapped in cellophane. Crazy.
Listening: Everything. We painted this weekend and I put my iPod on shuffle and just listened. There's nothing major to note other than the fact that I really don't even know what I have on my own iPod. Songs would pop up that I'd never heard before, which is sort of sad. I am the ultimate consumer.
So, I've been really busy. Work has been hectic as I've been trying to wrap things up at my current job while also preparing for my new one. I'm going to miss my coworkers and yes, even most of my doddering old customers. A couple of them have sworn that they are going to come out to my new branch to have me help them but it's so far that I doubt I will see most of them again. At home we spent the weekend painting and doing small projects in preparation for Virginia's sister and her husband who will be visiting us this weekend. The next weekend her dad and his partner will be out to visit, so there won't really be any down time for us for a bit. We painted the pink room today so it is now the brown room. In the process we discovered that we should hire things out whenever possible because I am a douche and assume the role of foreman automatically. I am a condescending foreman. There was a confounding factor in my defense. Trivia question: Who has ten toes but only nine toenails? If you answered Bret, you would be correct. The big toenail on my right foot has been messed up since I broke my ankle so it had to go. It wasn't excruciating, but it has felt like somebody has been standing on my toe for a couple of days now which isn't fun. At least it gives me an excuse to take the Vicodin I have left over from my ankle surgery. Hooray! It also gives me an excuse to wear a sandal and a sock on my right foot and a regular shoe on my left in public. Yep, stole that one out of the short bus playbook. Oh well, yet another chapter in my life. That's all for tonight.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Reading/Listening, Promotion, Virginia
Reading: When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris. It's a pretty funny book. I'm trying to pile on the humor before I plow through The Age of Turbulence. I'm about 150 pages through the book so far which is just under halfway. There was an absolutely hilarious story about a particularly bitchy woman that Sedaris sat next to on a flight. One of those people who thinks that YOU are an ass because you don't do exactly what THEY want you to do. I hope the lady read the story but I know that didn't happen because people are that way because they think books are for nerds and that their time is too important to waste on enlightenment.
Listening: I've been obsessed with two songs this last week. The first is Wish I Didn't Miss You by Angie Stone off of the album Fatboy Slim:Late Night Tales. The thing I hate about the song is that it is only 2:24 long. After listening to it, I understand the junkie's craving. I want more. I can listen to it ten times in a row and I still want more. It's almost sickening. The other song is We Major by Kanye West. As much I think that Kanye West is one of the worst human beings alive today, he can crank out a great song from time to time. What I love about this song is the minimal emphasis on the lyrics and the music that just leaves you feeling good no matter how you felt before. The only odd notable song is that this morning in the shower, for no good reason, I started singing El Scorcho by Weezer. When I was driving to work, I started skipping forward in my iPod and about three songs forward guess what popped on? Quite a coincidence considering that my iPod is now home to about 3500 songs. I could tell you exactly except Apple apparently decided to ruin iTunes. Oh well.
If you are friends with me on Facebook you might have already seen that I got a promotion on Tuesday. I will be the new Customer Service Manager at the 132nd & California branch of Bank of the West. It's a small raise for now but much better hours and phenomenal networking as all of the regional staff are based out of this branch. I start on the 21st, so I'll keep you posted on how it's going.
Virginia is on another horrible rotation. We're starting to think that there aren't going to be any easy, regular-houred rotations. She left home just before 6am this morning and she still isn't home (it's 10:25pm, I have no idea what the time stamp says but it's never right). The utter disregard for the rules that they're supposed to follow (maximum 80 hour week, can't be in the hospital for more than 30 hours straight) is appalling. They tell her to go home because she's been there to long, but in the same breath they tell her eight more things that she needs to do before she leaves. On this particular rotation she has a lazy-ass senior resident who is taking advantage of her but she's too nice to do anything about it. I always joke that there are ten million reasons that I couldn't be a doctor, and I think the number one reason is that I can't keep my mouth shut when somebody is straight fucking me over. I hope she gets to the point where she speaks up because she's in an emotional hell right now and the only way out is to elbow out some mental separation for herself. She'll make it because I apparently keep her sane, but hopefully she can regain some sanity on her own and won't have to rely on me for it.
Listening: I've been obsessed with two songs this last week. The first is Wish I Didn't Miss You by Angie Stone off of the album Fatboy Slim:Late Night Tales. The thing I hate about the song is that it is only 2:24 long. After listening to it, I understand the junkie's craving. I want more. I can listen to it ten times in a row and I still want more. It's almost sickening. The other song is We Major by Kanye West. As much I think that Kanye West is one of the worst human beings alive today, he can crank out a great song from time to time. What I love about this song is the minimal emphasis on the lyrics and the music that just leaves you feeling good no matter how you felt before. The only odd notable song is that this morning in the shower, for no good reason, I started singing El Scorcho by Weezer. When I was driving to work, I started skipping forward in my iPod and about three songs forward guess what popped on? Quite a coincidence considering that my iPod is now home to about 3500 songs. I could tell you exactly except Apple apparently decided to ruin iTunes. Oh well.
If you are friends with me on Facebook you might have already seen that I got a promotion on Tuesday. I will be the new Customer Service Manager at the 132nd & California branch of Bank of the West. It's a small raise for now but much better hours and phenomenal networking as all of the regional staff are based out of this branch. I start on the 21st, so I'll keep you posted on how it's going.
Virginia is on another horrible rotation. We're starting to think that there aren't going to be any easy, regular-houred rotations. She left home just before 6am this morning and she still isn't home (it's 10:25pm, I have no idea what the time stamp says but it's never right). The utter disregard for the rules that they're supposed to follow (maximum 80 hour week, can't be in the hospital for more than 30 hours straight) is appalling. They tell her to go home because she's been there to long, but in the same breath they tell her eight more things that she needs to do before she leaves. On this particular rotation she has a lazy-ass senior resident who is taking advantage of her but she's too nice to do anything about it. I always joke that there are ten million reasons that I couldn't be a doctor, and I think the number one reason is that I can't keep my mouth shut when somebody is straight fucking me over. I hope she gets to the point where she speaks up because she's in an emotional hell right now and the only way out is to elbow out some mental separation for herself. She'll make it because I apparently keep her sane, but hopefully she can regain some sanity on her own and won't have to rely on me for it.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Update
I'm still here. I've been busy, as usual. I finished Lewis Black and am dutifully cranking through the new Sedaris book. Virginia's good. Dot's good. Interviewed for a promotion today. I'll post more tomorrow for certain, but I wanted to put something online today. Until tomorrow.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Reading/Listening, Good Words
Reading: Still Lewis Black. I got a new Popular Science so I got derailed for a bit.
Listening: I was listening to a lot of Medeski, Martin, and Wood over the weekend. For those of you who don't know them (all of you), MMW are a modern jazz trio. They are pretty amazing. If you don't like jazz at all, this probably isn't going to lure you. If you do like jazz, you should check it out. Songs like Bubblehouse are just simply really intelligent and are "must listen" songs.
I used the word "handsy" at work the other day and it got me thinking. There are tons of words that are just awesome. Handsy. Frolick. Vixen. I had a lot more, but I waited a couple of days to type this tiny, pathetic blog and so I forgot most of them.
Hope everybody is doing well. More soon.
Listening: I was listening to a lot of Medeski, Martin, and Wood over the weekend. For those of you who don't know them (all of you), MMW are a modern jazz trio. They are pretty amazing. If you don't like jazz at all, this probably isn't going to lure you. If you do like jazz, you should check it out. Songs like Bubblehouse are just simply really intelligent and are "must listen" songs.
I used the word "handsy" at work the other day and it got me thinking. There are tons of words that are just awesome. Handsy. Frolick. Vixen. I had a lot more, but I waited a couple of days to type this tiny, pathetic blog and so I forgot most of them.
Hope everybody is doing well. More soon.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Reading/Listening, Furniture
Reading: Still Lewis Black. I'm a little over halfway finished and I'm somewhat disappointed. It's not the book's fault, it's my own. I expected it to be exactly like some of his stand up. Instead, it is more like his views on things peppered with his humor. I thought I was in for an endless belly laugh, instead I get periodic chuckles. It is a very enjoyable book.
Listening: Virginia popped in some Frank Sinatra the other night which was a great change. It started me on a schizophrenic listening scheme though. Just today I've listened to trance, hip-hop, rap, punk, jazz, 80s (damn you Tiffany), a peaceful little number sung entirely in French, and some classic rock. And all of this occurred in the span of about three hours. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.
We got our new bedroom furniture today. No more t-shirts in suitcases on the floor. I have too many damn clothes though, which is depressing. When Virginia moved here, my sister helped me clean out an entire closet's worth of clothes. Somehow I'm still busting at the seams with t-shirts though. I need to sort through them. The house is taking shape though. The kitchen is done for the time being. Virginia pained the bathroom today when I passed out on the couch with the dog. Now our bedroom is done. The tortoise is winning the race.
Listening: Virginia popped in some Frank Sinatra the other night which was a great change. It started me on a schizophrenic listening scheme though. Just today I've listened to trance, hip-hop, rap, punk, jazz, 80s (damn you Tiffany), a peaceful little number sung entirely in French, and some classic rock. And all of this occurred in the span of about three hours. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.
We got our new bedroom furniture today. No more t-shirts in suitcases on the floor. I have too many damn clothes though, which is depressing. When Virginia moved here, my sister helped me clean out an entire closet's worth of clothes. Somehow I'm still busting at the seams with t-shirts though. I need to sort through them. The house is taking shape though. The kitchen is done for the time being. Virginia pained the bathroom today when I passed out on the couch with the dog. Now our bedroom is done. The tortoise is winning the race.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Reading/Listening, Vacation, Not Promotion
Reading: I finally finished Miranda July. I just made the decision to finish her and set to it like a horrible school assignment that I was dreading. The last couple of stories were okay, and I actually enjoyed one or two of them. I think she got tired of trying so hard and gave up. The irony is that her writing improved. I don't have the names of the stories I enjoyed because I lost the book in the move somehow. I'm sure it will show up, but I can't find it for anything right now. I've started reading a book by Lewis Black, Nothing is Sacred. It's not as funny as he is in his stand up, but I've always admired his opinions on everything I've heard him talk about. I'm maybe a third of the way through right now and it's pretty slow. I hope it picks up. I hope my next book choice doesn't leave me hoping that it picks up.
Listening: Deep in the Jungle by Blackalicious. This track is off of the Quannum labels showcase album. It's a really simple beat from Chief Xcel that highlights Gift of Gab's ability to absolutely blaze out words like the Micromachine guy. It's nifty. Check it out.
I went to Lake Tahoe over the weekend for a wedding. It was a nice break. I was really sick of work and just needed to get away. We saw Virginia's parents, went to her best friend's wedding on the beach of Lake Tahoe, kayaked around part of the lake, and spent the rest of the time kicking back. I did so much and right now I just can't spill it all. It's not that I'm hiding anything, it's just the writing isn't flowing right now.
I was denied a third promotion while I was on vacation. This one was expected, but still a nice kick in the scrotum. It was expected because the other ACSM who was next on the list for promotion worked in the branch with the opening. The branch manager only interviewed people because he had to. I interviewed really well, but I'm still on the same island. This is the third time in as many months that I've been shot down for a promotion. What makes it incredibly hard is that I'm already doing the job that I'm getting denied. It makes my head spin sometimes trying to wrap it around this thought. Okay, writing just isn't coming tonight. I'll stop here.
Listening: Deep in the Jungle by Blackalicious. This track is off of the Quannum labels showcase album. It's a really simple beat from Chief Xcel that highlights Gift of Gab's ability to absolutely blaze out words like the Micromachine guy. It's nifty. Check it out.
I went to Lake Tahoe over the weekend for a wedding. It was a nice break. I was really sick of work and just needed to get away. We saw Virginia's parents, went to her best friend's wedding on the beach of Lake Tahoe, kayaked around part of the lake, and spent the rest of the time kicking back. I did so much and right now I just can't spill it all. It's not that I'm hiding anything, it's just the writing isn't flowing right now.
I was denied a third promotion while I was on vacation. This one was expected, but still a nice kick in the scrotum. It was expected because the other ACSM who was next on the list for promotion worked in the branch with the opening. The branch manager only interviewed people because he had to. I interviewed really well, but I'm still on the same island. This is the third time in as many months that I've been shot down for a promotion. What makes it incredibly hard is that I'm already doing the job that I'm getting denied. It makes my head spin sometimes trying to wrap it around this thought. Okay, writing just isn't coming tonight. I'll stop here.
Monday, September 1, 2008
House Stuff, Blue, Vacation
So we've done a pretty good job with the house so far. I've nearly gotten the shower curtain rod back up. All I need to do is go and buy a drill bit for some guide holes and then we're back in business. I need to put another layer of joint compound over the holes in the basement because they didn't patch very well. I mowed the lawn today, as well as alphabetized my books and movies, and I also put some wire ties on the cables on the entertainment center. We only have one area left to unpack and then we have a lot of stuff to paint, starting with the pink room.
Last week was a bad week for me. I've been pushing it lately, and I finally crashed Friday and Saturday. I have to really focus on staying happy and not letting things get me down, otherwise it all crashes over me like a wave and I get caught in the emotional riptide and swept away. To summarize, Virginia's murderous pediatric surgery rotation took its toll on our relationship, my job somehow got more boring, there's a litany of things that need done with the house, and this list of things amplify the fact that I don't make jack shit for wages. These were the droplets on the leading edge of the wave that smashed me into some coral Friday. I'm better now. Despite being uneasy with Virginia for about a week now, we talked everything out and are much better. It's why I'm crazily in love with her. No matter what problems we have, we always talk about them very openly and very honestly. I don't know any other woman that I can look in the face and tell her that she's been "sort of a dick" lately without her getting mad. Also, she's the first woman that has figured out that she can do the same and I don't get upset either. It's why we work. So that fixed the relationship issues. The house issues didn't go away, but I just had to take some time to remind myself that it isn't going to be perfect tomorrow. It's okay if it takes me some time to knock out projects seeing that I'm not exactly "handy." As for the job, well, there's only one real fix there, and I'll be dedicating some time to it this week. I feel somewhat better, but I know that my feelings will improve all week.
My feelings will improve immensely on Friday when Virginia and I wing it to Lake Tahoe for five glorious days of not working. Virginia has read me passages from an astrology book about my sign (Taurus) and it really makes sense. I don't put too much stock in that stuff but it is spooky how accurate it is at times. Specifically, I'm a Cusp of Power Taurus because I'm born so close to the Aries sign (I'm April 24th). One thing that really stood out to me was how the book said that I could do inhuman amounts of work as long as I had periods to decompress. It couldn't be more true. Sticking in ten and eleven hour shifts at the bank drain me, but I can keep plugging away when I know that I have a vacation on the horizon. These next three days are going to be hell knowing that freedom is just around the bend. The dog just fell asleep standing up next to me in bed, so that's the sign that it's time to end the blog. Until tomorrow.
Last week was a bad week for me. I've been pushing it lately, and I finally crashed Friday and Saturday. I have to really focus on staying happy and not letting things get me down, otherwise it all crashes over me like a wave and I get caught in the emotional riptide and swept away. To summarize, Virginia's murderous pediatric surgery rotation took its toll on our relationship, my job somehow got more boring, there's a litany of things that need done with the house, and this list of things amplify the fact that I don't make jack shit for wages. These were the droplets on the leading edge of the wave that smashed me into some coral Friday. I'm better now. Despite being uneasy with Virginia for about a week now, we talked everything out and are much better. It's why I'm crazily in love with her. No matter what problems we have, we always talk about them very openly and very honestly. I don't know any other woman that I can look in the face and tell her that she's been "sort of a dick" lately without her getting mad. Also, she's the first woman that has figured out that she can do the same and I don't get upset either. It's why we work. So that fixed the relationship issues. The house issues didn't go away, but I just had to take some time to remind myself that it isn't going to be perfect tomorrow. It's okay if it takes me some time to knock out projects seeing that I'm not exactly "handy." As for the job, well, there's only one real fix there, and I'll be dedicating some time to it this week. I feel somewhat better, but I know that my feelings will improve all week.
My feelings will improve immensely on Friday when Virginia and I wing it to Lake Tahoe for five glorious days of not working. Virginia has read me passages from an astrology book about my sign (Taurus) and it really makes sense. I don't put too much stock in that stuff but it is spooky how accurate it is at times. Specifically, I'm a Cusp of Power Taurus because I'm born so close to the Aries sign (I'm April 24th). One thing that really stood out to me was how the book said that I could do inhuman amounts of work as long as I had periods to decompress. It couldn't be more true. Sticking in ten and eleven hour shifts at the bank drain me, but I can keep plugging away when I know that I have a vacation on the horizon. These next three days are going to be hell knowing that freedom is just around the bend. The dog just fell asleep standing up next to me in bed, so that's the sign that it's time to end the blog. Until tomorrow.
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