Thoughtdump

September 30th, 2005, 9:56 AM by Goddess

Subtitle: Better left unread

I’ve been walking around with what others might call a “sinus headache,” but I believe it’s because there are about 7,000 thoughts trapped inside my head with nowhere to go and, thus, it’s actually my brain that’s hurting.

Can’t recall the last time I wrote what I think to be a proper blog entry. Since I moved to WordPress and now that I cannot modify my f’in template because I don’t know how, I’ve lost interest in this page. And without my SiteMeter, I don’t know if anybody’s reading and I wonder why they even would. 😉

I have been keeping my journal in my car, but as I have been driving more carefully of late, it does me no good. The only time I’m in my car is when I’m commuting (damn gas prices — I’m spending well above $300/month to fuel my beloved Samantha, a tiny toy car for cripes’ sake).

And when I find time at home to write, well, I’m too lazy to drag my ass outside to get the book. It’s filled with half-assed entries and rants that were started with good intentions of solving whatever self-created drama I sought to immortalize. So, say it with me, “What’s the point?”

The thing is, when your life revolves around one thing (work, and admittedly, gratefully so), and when blogging about work might have gotten you into a spot of trouble in your previous life, you are understandably loath to share anything that might hint (even in the slightest) of things that puzzle or “challenge” you. But it also makes you wary of sharing things that entertain, please or maybe even intrigue you.

So what do you blog about, then, when you don’t have a goddamned thing going on that’s worth sharing? Do you really need to hear about my $275 speeding ticket, my $115 property tax fee (for the joy of vehicle ownership in Virginia), my now-$120/month insurance fees because of an accident that my insurance company claims was my fault despite the fact that Some Dumb Bitch was up MY ass when I was more than halfway backed out of a parking spot?

Oh, and today is the day I am to be given my four-month eviction notice from my apartment. My paycheck waved goodbye before it even got here, and the next one is already half-spent. Not to mention that I forgot to pay my phone bill (since July. whoops), so there went another $165.

Yet, if I look at where I was at this time last year (jobless), I wouldn’t trade this year’s mess for the world.

One day, I’m going to get over being scared of my own shadow — says She Who Used to be Fearless — and quit simply being grateful that things aren’t worse. I’m surrounded by success stories — it’s time I figured out how to become one of them.



Mailbag

September 28th, 2005, 7:04 AM by Goddess
Dear Ragweed,

Die.

Love,
Dawn

I hate September. My head is so full of sinus drippings that I cannot seem to find room to fit or form a thought amid the snarfalicious chaos and pressure. I feel like a cartoon character with a blank balloon above my head.

Not to mention my inability to wear makeup because my eyes are a-waterin’ something fierce. It’s like Halloween came early for me — sca-RY!

And you know what happens when I have nary a whisper of a proper blog entry — tunage!

And it’s groovy kinda shit, too. Like, be happy or at least lapse into a trance, right? 😉

Love in Traffic (John Creamer mix) — Satoshi Tomiie
“Chocolate (Club Silenciore mix)” — Kylie Minogue
“Don’t Make Me Want You” — Dublex Inc. f/Alice Russel
“One Word (Chris Cox club mix) — Kelly Osbourne



Because I love spreading good news

September 27th, 2005, 8:03 AM by Goddess

Giving me faith in great things happening to even greater people, I am so happy to report that Tiff and Tom just got engaged!

I was putting on my makeup this morning when she told me. And now I have to go put it on again ’cause I’ve cried it off. Happy tears are the best, I say. 🙂

Congratulations, friends!



In which Leadfoot gets a $275 ticket

September 25th, 2005, 9:00 PM by Goddess

Speeding ticket, kids, NOT lottery ticket.

I had JUST merged onto the highway and cut left across four lanes in one fell swoop. And I figured I’d go into the HOV lane because it was totally empty so that I could pass the herd in front of me. But as it’s difficult to pass people who are going 75 mph, I HAD to punch down the gas harder than they were, right?

Well, now that’s the fun part. I was just about to pass four cars when — oh, now this is priceless — a Maryland state trooper WALKED INTO MY LANE AND WAVED ME OVER TO THE LEFT SHOULDER. Yes, walked out in front of me. On the interstate. Where I was clocked at 86 mph.

Well, 86 AFTER I slammed on the brake.

*sigh*

This was at the beginning of a 250-mile round-trip rendezvous to see my family for lunch.

I’m hardly mad about it — I’ve had this coming for YEARS. When folks at work bid goodnight and say, “Drive carefully — stay away from the crazies,” I have to remind them, “I AM one of those crazies.”

But it sucks now that I have to watch my speed and live with assholes tailgating me because I’m now only going 10 miles above the speed limit and not, well, 36. On a good day.

I admit, I was lost in thought, as I am apt to do behind the wheel. I was chilling to Portishead (right-click, save as. You know the drill) and just kind of dreaming out the window when I saw the state trooper staring me down and waving me to the shoulder.

Going from 86 (plus) to zero within 10 feet was quite an accomplishment — even though my brakes are only a year old, they sound tragic … hence why I don’t use them altogether that often. 😉

But here’s the catch. The patrol car? Was on the OTHER SIDE of the highway. I was going north; the car was pointed south. He had to HOP THE FUCKING CONCRETE DIVIDER to come after my ass.

I handed over my license (that doesn’t have the correct address) and my registration (which doesn’t have the correct license plate) and hoped for the best. And wonderfully, even though I have been pulled over MANY times, I hadn’t actually yet gotten a ticket (till today), so no points on the license. w00t!

Better yet — and I totally thank my new black push-up bra and low-cut camisole that is miraculously the same shade of green as my eyes — he lessened my fee a bit. The only other shining highlight to the humiliation was that he wasn’t one of those jagoffs who likes to ask you if you knew how fast you were going.

Because, and the answer is obvious and say it with me:

Not. Fast. Enough!!!!



Friday Five

September 24th, 2005, 4:00 PM by Goddess

So what if it’s Saturday?

  • Do you have a dream you will always strive to achieve until your dying day?
  • Inner peace, outer beauty and everlasting happiness. The day I give up is the day I might as well drive myself to the crematory.

  • Do you believe in fate or free will, or something else?
  • When I was 16, I was convinced I was a transcendentalist. I was also a big dork and read a lot of Whitman and Thoreau. I also didn’t have any friends and believed everything I read in books. 😉

    Overall, my “simple” answer is that I believe in limited or guided free will, in that we are certainly *able* to make our own decisions, but that our intuition is too strong to be ignored.

    I also believe in divine intervention and karma impacting our course — free will wasn’t given to us without consequence.

    I believe some things will never be resolved yet we need to close the door anyway, and if it has already been closed, then we waste precious spiritual energy trying to prop it open.

  • Marilyn Monroe. Conspiracy or tragic accident?
  • Duh, conspiracy. The government always wins. Always. And it doesn’t miss a trick. Big Brother is keeping thousands upon thousands out of the unemployment line with the sole purpose of monitoring the rest of us.

    *removes tin foil hat now*

  • Favourite childhood sweets/candy?
  • Seasonally, it was Cadbury eggs. Those and whatever Reese’s product was out for the holidays — peanut butter pumpkins, peanut butter Christmas trees, peanut butter Easter eggs.

    Hell, I just bought two peanut butter pumpkins at Tar-zhay last night. Happiness in a purple wrapper. …

  • Favourite cocktail (alcoholic or virgin) and its ingredients?
  • Caramel Appletini — introduced to me during my last visit to Pittsburgh at the Quaker Steak in Robinson.

    Ingredients — funny you should ask, ’cause I totally copied the menu description onto my receipt while I was there:

    Three Olives apple vodka
    Butterscotch schnapps
    Splash of cranberry
    Iced martini glass, drizzled with caramel

    I had the female equivalent of a hard-on after having that. *rolls tongue back into mouth*



    If I had a window, I’d probably be jumping from it

    September 23rd, 2005, 6:07 AM by Goddess

    I’ve been doing a time analysis on my life this week, as my schedule is just a black hole for good intentions.

    I’ll spare you the results (it ain’t pretty) but perhaps you might enjoy my morning more than I did:

    6 a.m.– Alarm goes off

    6:15 a.m.– I awaken, hit snooze

    6:24 a.m.– More annoyance from 104.1-FM’s DJs, who are polling people on whether they will donate in the aftermath of Hurricane Rita. Am appalled that majority of callers (at that time) were saying they have no sympathy for those who didn’t vacate for Rita, after seeing what happened to Katrina evacuees. Um, did ya not watch the news last night and see all the Texas interstates more backed up than your colon immediately after eating refried beans?

    6:30 a.m.– Pee, feed cats, fire up computer, start working

    7:48 a.m.– Have sufficiently scared colleague with visible iTunes playlist. Again. Yes, I do listen to songs that don’t have curse words in the title. Just not when you’re looking. 😉

    8:05 a.m.-9 a.m. — Try to turn Cinderella into something less wenchy.

    9:05 a.m. — More work pops up — am called on phone, feign poise, don’t mention what I was *really* doing at the time (using a blow dryer, kids, that’s all!)

    9:10 a.m. — Realize am topless, so grab first available bra. Work in guchies. Feel oddly liberated.

    9:15 a.m. — Realize curtains are open and four men are standing below balcony, trying to peer into my window. I wave.

    9:30 a.m. — Get dressed

    9:35 a.m. — Decide outfit looks like hell. Go into closet and weep.

    9:38 a.m. — Grab another outfit. Pray it doesn’t need to be ironed.

    9:40 a.m. — Curse outfit and lack of time to try on more.

    9:42 a.m. — Realize slip is way too long for short skirt. Am whore. Take scissors, hack shit out of slip. Remember black asymmetrical spandex skirt of youth that I used to wear for Halloween and, hell, to school.

    9:45 a.m. — Leave house. Four men still hanging around outside my front steps. They wave back. Read the rest of this entry »



    I swear people exist solely for my mocking purposes

    September 22nd, 2005, 6:14 AM by Goddess

    OK, so I had full intentions on not eating at all today, given my recent diet of, well, anything BUT diet foods. But alas, lightheadedness got the better of me and I ran out to Jerry’s Subs for a sammich.

    Big whoop, right — I’ve lost most of you by now. *snooze*

    But wait; there’s more.

    So my number was 461. My number was called. Everyone knew the order was mine — there were all of three people waiting to pick up their food, and the counter workers didn’t exactly suffer from short-term memory loss — they knew I had ordered said culinary delight and tried to reach out the bag for me to grab it.

    But, alas, someone else wanted my sammich even more than I did.

    Some woman, who was about a head shorter than me, dashed in front of me and tried to grab for the bag that the (very tall) man behind the counter was trying to extend to me. We looked quizically at each other and at her. He repeated, “This is order 461.” But did she care? Not a whit. She still kept grabbing for it, and he kept raising the bag higher and higher.

    She was mad, too. She was like jumping up and shit. Never mind that I had the fucking CLAIM TICKET for it! I woulda been HAPPY to part with it if she would have given me the retail price of it!

    I reached over her head and got my sub from the guy, resisting the urge to bop her over the head with it.

    And damn, that sammich was good. Mmm, sammich. …

    Anyway.

    BONUS

    Seen over at Irk’s, remember Kanye West’s shot heard ’round the world? Well, here it is, remixed.

    (Note: You’ve got to be familiar with the beat of “Gold Digger” before you can truly appreciate it.)

    Stream it, steal it, cross-post it, loot it — whatever ya call it, just listen to it.

    And preferably not at work. 😉

    Funny how I didn’t even KNOW of Kanye before that — now I have two albums’ worth of his songs.



    I need an intervention

    September 21st, 2005, 10:30 PM by Goddess

    I was just trying to remember the last time I had a healthy meal.

    I can’t remember back that far.

    Ate out Saturday. Ate out Sunday. Saw a movie Sunday; had popcorn (lots of butter). Fueled up at 7-11 Monday morning; ramen for lunch; Chinese for dinner. Drove through Burger King Tuesday morning; no lunch; had dinner from Checkers. Drove through McDonald’s this morning; no lunch; had Mexican tonight.

    I suppose I shouldn’t go to Krispy Kreme tomorrow like it had crossed my mind. 😉

    And gallons and gallons of coffee at all hours of the day. And Diet Cokes. Lots and lots of Diet Coke. No WONDER I haven’t slept in three nights! Even last night’s 2 a.m. cocktail of two Tylenol PMs and milk didn’t do the trick. Boy am I edgy. I haven’t been this wired since I first quit smoking and paced the house at all hours of the night, worried and weary and having nicotine withdrawal fits!

    Any insomnia tips?



    Vampires, engagement iPods and turning karma into triumph. Must be a Tuesday.

    September 20th, 2005, 8:59 PM by Goddess

    Life’s not bad these days. Sure, I have a laundry list of things that are frustrating the wits out of me (like not having any time/energy to do laundry, or go grocery shopping, or actually *cook* when I do have food in the house, as Tiff so lovingly reminded me. Or, for that matter, get enough sleep), but overall, things are about 200% better than they were at this time last year.

    That said, I told someone tonight that I am generating some fan-fucking-tastic karma right now. I have yet to see the results, mind you, but I was saying that when they come, for example, I’m not just gettin’ a husband (eventually, my friends … don’t wanna scare any current or potential contenders!) — I’m getting a sugar daddy. w00t! LOL

    Perhaps said sugar daddy will somehow help me to actually get some sleep at night — my sleep window is limited to a maximum of six hours anyway, and most of them are spent being an insomniac. I just got another major financial worry thrown at me and I am ready to take the nearest bridge. Seriously, God? The curveballs are coming too frequently right now. Slow your roll, cowboy.

    Both Tiff and my other adored friend Shan were very strongly reminding me that this shit that does suck, well, shall pass. The past year has been about survival — the next year is about triumph. They have seen me at my worst — they were among the few who reached out their hands to help keep me steady (and to outright hold me up, at times), and I am happy to let them in on the good things that are surely in store. Read the rest of this entry »



    Monday poll done on a Tuesday, comme toujours

    September 20th, 2005, 8:19 AM by Goddess

    Reader Poll Monday:

  • Do you own any TV shows on DVD?

  • “Dead Like Me, Season 1” (Thanks Pratt!). I have a few seasons of “Sex and the City.” The rest are in my Netflix queue, including the second season of “Dead Like Me” (coming in a few days!), “The L Word, Season 2” and a whole buncha stuff that will include “The Office” and others.

    Season 2 of “The Office” starts tonight! Squee! Lurrve network TV in the fall — “Medium” is back, as is “ER.” Time to start revolving the social life around the idiot box again. 😉

  • What’s your inseam?

  • I am the reason for the word “shorty.” I think it’s 27″

  • Do you have a wireless Internet connection at home?

  • Funny you should ask. I spent a fortune on a wireless router awhile back, but when I found myself unemployed, I sold it (still in its original box/plastic wrapping) for not even a third of what I paid for it.

    This was when, of course, I was saving up to buy a laptop, but that dream’s on hold for a little while longer.

  • What’s your favorite thing about autumn?

  • Vibrant colors. I dislike the color I refer to as “Apartment Eggshell” — the color every office and apartment is painted — my eyes are so screwy from staring at light walls and computer screens 24/7. I swear, I have Seasonal Affective Disorder, because I am only happy when I am outside and seeing pretty, pretty colors everywhere.

    My least favorite thing (I know I wasn’t asked) is looking back and wondering where my summer went — I did nothing to enjoy it. And I fear the next couple of seasons are going to pass by equally unnoticed.

  • Have you ever bleached your teeth?

  • As I was a smoker for 10 years and will probably drink coffee and pop for the rest of my natural-born days, I am in need of artificial whitening action. I’ve done the strips thing, although they always give me cold sores and I look like I’m contagious or something. NOT FUN!

  • What’s your best feature, appearance-wise?

  • *bwahahahahahaaaa* Yeah, right. I’m typing this in Garfield pajamas, glasses and no makeup — I wouldn’t say I’m feeling altogether that stellar right now to possibly come up with a semblance of a response.

  • What’s your best feature, personality-wise?

  • *bwahahahahahaaaa* I don’t have any personality. 🙂

    I don’t know — I’ve been told I can light up a room when I want to. I bite my tongue and otherwise feel so stifled all the damn time — there is so much I leave unsaid, usually because my very-vocal style has always, ALWAYS ended up making my life more difficult. That, and when I am holding onto some juicy gossip, I will keep it close to me (until, of course, I can exploit it — I’d be great at blackmail!).

    In any event, get a coupla bloody marys in me, and I will feel free to chat away and say ridiculous, incoherent things that people somehow remember fondly. And I won’t even care whether y’all are laughing with me or *at* me!

  • What’s your favorite memory from high school?

  • Leaving it. Actually, there were two, um, “highlights”:

    CRISPY CRITTERS

    I was trapped in the high school building while it was on fire. Great fun.

    Long story short, I was trapped in the library with a friend when the classroom across the hall erupted in flames. It was about 5:30 p.m. — we dorks were working on the school newspaper. Our adviser was known for smoking in that room and ashing into the trashcan.

    Dumbass (she might have had black roots, but for all intents and purposes, she was a blonde) didn’t put out the cigarette before throwing it in the can, so it smouldered for awhile before going *poof.* What a joy it was to call the fire department because the school was on fire!

    She had hated us BEFORE that day, so AFTER was an even bigger treat. Although, in exchange for our silence about her being the cause of the fire, she quit giving us shit. And I skipped her journalism/creative writing classes for the rest of the year and still got an “A.”

    It was the least she could do for almost KILLING her students.

    And she will forever be known as an “ash blonde.” LOL

    PUTTING THE ‘MORON’ IN OXYMORON

    Oooh! There was another time I enjoyed (there were only two — believe me, this ain’t evolving into a trip down memory lane). We were practicing for Honors Night — the National Honor Society chapter event for graduating seniors and new juniors. I was the president of this esteemed group. (I was smart. Once.)

    The principal was onstage, getting ready to introduce me. He was known for being pretty long-winded, so I plopped into a chair and curled up for a long winter’s nap — I figured he’d be awhile. He joked, “I promise, I’ll make my remarks short.”

    And what’s when my Inner Tourette’s kicked in, because I don’t remember saying this, but apparently I’d said, “Him? Brief? That’s an oxymoron!”

    And my guidance counselors totally overheard me and ratted me out. Surprisingly, on the actual honors night, when the principal gave his remarks and turned it over to me, he recounted the story of what I’d said, for the WORLD to hear, and noted that maybe I was right after all. 🙂 I absolutely loved him for that!

  • If you were forced to change your name (first and last), what would you like it to be?

  • Princess Conchita Bananahammock — or whatever “Phoebe” on “Friends” decided to do. 😉

    I used to have a pseudonym for publishing my poetry/fiction works, but I ain’t tellin’. That doesn’t fit me anymore.

    I may have to enter Witness Protection someday anyway, so it’s best if I don’t reveal my secret identity. 😉

  • Ask me something.

  • How DO you handle a problem like Maria?

    On iTunes: Portishead, “Beautiful”