The last post about the job for a while

My limit of ass time on a chair in a Starbucks was reached today, as I logged a good four hours there doing my work. And my butt hurts. Continues to hurt, I bet, if I sat on a hard chair, but I've been treating it well, and only sitting on comfortable and cozy seats. I think, maybe, next week I will attempt to do my work at home. Now that I've got my system figured out, and the best and perhaps quickest way of doing things, I may be able to do this here. (After all, I did about three hours worth of work yesterday afternoon in the loft, and that was with Brian and Sydney in the house and making all kinds of noise and distracting movements.) So, maybe with some ear buds plugged in, and some self-control, discipline and will power (not my strong suits), I'll be able to become an actual at-home worker. Tomorrow though, I drive to the office.

*sigh*

You know, I have to tell you, I'm already bored with writing about my job here on the blog. It never changes, or is going to have new challenges, now that I've got it figured out. But when there's nothing else that happened to me today worthy of a post, it's what I'm stuck with. I shall strive to do better in future.

Ultimately, it led to Halloween

What a bizarre little Internet rabbit hole I just pulled myself out of. It started off normal enough, with a search for sneakers for me, since I'm running low. Then it went to Old Navy, for inexpensive sneakers for Sydney, but the site was moving too slow. Then to Gap, which also was going slow, so obviously, there's a company-wide issue right now. Then to Barnes & Noble because I just got e-mailed a 20%-off coupon for Labor Day. Then to Amazon, for books also, but then to search for plastic labels for Sydney's school water bottles so I don't have to keep markering on them. Then to Chasing Fireflies, because their catalogs are awesome, and because they have amazing Halloween costumes. And then, I'm done.
So now I want to dress up for Halloween. I recently reacquired my poodle skirt with petticoat and matching shirt, as well as Howie's Letterman jacket, but I kinda want to go bigger than that. I saw a super cool witch's costume on Chasing Fireflies for adults, which may make its way to my house. But I'm not sure. I do want to do something, though. A QUANDARY.

Mystery injuries scare me

So, Daisy went and got herself a boo boo today.
I dislike, very much, coming home to discover a bloody spot on my dog. It's a scrape kind of thing, about the size of a quarter, and it's almost perfectly round. It left blood on her fur, and will probably scab up into something dark and gross in the next day or two. I clipped and cleaned away the hair, cleansed the wound, and then put some Neosporin on it.
But then the fun began: the hunt for whatever in the hell did this to her. And no kidding, I could not discover it. She didn't get it behind any toilets or under any cabinets in the bathrooms, because she always leaves evidence when she's been dicking around in there. ... It wasn't the right kind of wound to be made from the new perimeter fencing in the backyard. That would have made more of a stabbing wound, or a long scratch. Also, there was no hair on the fencing anywhere. So, not there. ... It wasn't in any of the closets, or under any tables, or anywhere in the house which could have made such a mark. Brian contends that it was on the doggy door, with her jumping through it too quickly, and poorly judging the upper portion. I don't buy that. She's too little for that. Also, no blood or hair was found on the doggy door itself.
The mystery continues. Whatever it was, I hope she doesn't do it again. (And it's kinda gross, so I'm not going to post a picture of it.)

Gerard Butler is my movie boyfriend

ITEM!: I like it when two movies are released in close time proximity with the same premise. A couple examples: Deep Impact and Armageddon; Mirror, Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman; and Olympus Has Fallen and White House Down. Close proximity films lend themselves to comparison. But so many times, people see one and don't see the other. I saw both of the asteroid movies, but have only seen Snow White. Tonight, we watched Olympus Has Fallen, starring Gerard Butler, and I thoroughly enjoyed. I imagine we'll probably see White House Down (starring Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx), but I doubt I'll enjoy it as much. By the way, I have several movie boyfriends.
ITEM!: Yesterday, we bought and installed the perimeter fencing for the rose garden in the backyard. This fencing is not to keep out bunnies or pests like that. Indeed, the fencing is to keep Daisy out, so she can't chew up any more of the drip watering system. Now, we need to measure out the tubing that needs to be replaced and the drip heads, and head over to Lowe's to buy replacement pieces. Damn dog.
ITEM!: I enjoyed my work day at Starbucks. I tested the Starbucks Bathroom Honor System a couple times, and it was a positive test both times. But what cracked me up was at one point I turned around, and every table and flat surface was covered by someone's computer, and every seat was taken. It was about 10:30 a.m., and the place was packed full. I felt so much like I belonged! So hipster!

It's Sunday. Sunday, Sunday

I've got nothing for you guys tonight, and I feel super tired. I think going to bed before 11:30 p.m. is a great idea, and one that I will embrace with my entire being. Tomorrow morning, I work "at Starbucks" as I told my hubby, and I'm eager to get started on my Week of Figuring Out How I'm Going to Schedule My Job. Tomorrow is creating posts and saving them as drafts. I'm going to hope to get all my peeps done for next week. That's my goal for the day.
But right now, I'm yawning and ready for bed.

I see a forest full of pink trees

Yesterday's snit is over, and I have several people to thank:
First, to Brian, who actually always does have my back.
My mommy, who helped me compose the e-mail response, and who was just as relieved as I when that response was graciously replied to.
Sydney, who doesn't care about any of it, and could she have ice cream when she gets home today?
Andrea, who called me to chat, but also mainly to find out what the snit was about.
My dogs, who chilled in the office with me all morning, showing me that they are perfectly capable of hanging out with me while I work and not being nuisances.
The mailman, who this afternoon brought me the new Real Simple and Entertainment Weekly.
And last but not least, Marlo, with whom I was finally able to sit and have a conversation (even if it was by text) tonight, and that made me happy.
A majority of my issues from yesterday worked themselves out on their own, and the things I could take care of, I did take care of. I'm excited to enjoy my weekend, and to get to work -- officially -- on Monday. I am clearly in a better frame of mind tonight.
People! And I can't stress this enough: PEOPLE! DON'T MESS WITH THAT.

It was a day ripe with snit

The worst thing about being in a snit is the agitation and physical stress shakes I get because I'm being bugged so much. A few things did manage to put me in a snit today, and while a couple are fine to talk about, others aren't fit for public consumption. It's like, one or two things is tolerable, but add on the other three or so, and I'm just a bundle of FUCK YOUs, and LET ME JUST SIT AND WATCH THIS DUMB MOVIE, and also STOP BUGGING ME.
--> The car's warning light turned out to be nothing, which is good, but I spent two hours at the dealership before they told me it would be a while longer, and that they'd give me a ride home, if I wanted. Snit level: LOW.
--> A guy left his dog in his car at the grocery store, with the windows open, but still, it was too hot for that today. Sydney and I sat by the car for 10 minutes before going into the grocery store and having customer service make an announcement for the person with the car to tend to their dog before the police are called. Sydney and I continued to wait. The guy came out about 10 minutes later. Snit level: MEDIUM.
--> Sydney refused to just sit and read her book, and the subsequent whining was more than I would have liked. Snit level: LOW.
--> People on Facebook are so quick to believe the worst that they see on Facebook that they don't ever bother to make one more click to verify a story's facts. An article posted by The National Report yesterday went viral, asserting that there is a gay-to-straight conversion plan being implemented into the Arizona public school system for grades K-12 in November. This "article" appeared three times on my FB feed, with a whole bunch of outrage and holier-than-thou attitude. The kick is that not one of these people did any background into the article, to see that it was posted on a satire and parody web site. You know how I figured out the article was fake? I clicked one more time. I spent a portion of my afternoon loudly and in all caps explaining that this was not a true news story, and that people need to do their due diligence before posting to Facebook. Snit level: HIGH.
--> An e-mail. Snit level: HIGH.
--> A comment. Snit level: HIGH.

And the money starts rolling in?

Weirdest thing: I got a paycheck today. Of course, I didn't really start my job until today, so the check was for the minimal stuff I've done that has gone live for clients up until now. That includes a blog post ... and other stuff I've forgotten, because all I can remember is the blog post.
Happily, the $65 I got today is a small fraction of my usual paychecks. Today was the first day where my efforts are scheduled to go live next week, and therefore, I get paid for the clients I represent. So, the 5th of September should be pretty awesome. It won't be much, but it'll be helpful to the household.
And honestly, anything that I can bring in that makes it easier to go out to lunch and not have to sweat about it, is a good thing.

I've been mistaken for everything

I made a few mistakes tonight, and at this moment, I'm very much regretting them.
MISTAKE OF CURLY HAIR: I chose to not dry my hair with the hair dryer, and instead allow it to air dry. The no-dryer option always seems like a good idea when I'm faced with standing in the hot bathroom with a hot blow dryer. But it's at this point, two hours later, when I'm all, "Ugh, it's gonna be so curly tomorrow..." in my best whiny internal monologue. And it's too late to dry it straighter now.
MISTAKE OF CUPCAKE: I chose to go downstairs and slice up one of the cupcakes we bought at the bakery on Friday last week. It was kind of hard and stale, but I soldiered on and tasted it. It was not good. The harder edge of cake was crumbly, and the frosting itself was not as creamy and delicious as I like. Add to that, the cupcake was a new flavor that I couldn't remember. But at least it wasn't the coconut one. I did smell them all before I made my selection. The first and second bites grossed me out, so I tossed the rest. And now I taste icky cupcake and my tummy is mad at me.
MISTAKE OF CUTE STUFF: I chose to spend some time virtually wandering through a Pier 1 Imports, and found way too much stuff I want for Halloween (not a whole lot) and Thanksgiving (totally a whole lot). And now I want nothing more than to decorate my house for the holidays, and buy a bunch of new decor, and to have magical space where I can store everything in a single bin (like the tents in Harry Potter, you know). I did do my looking with my on-staff interior designer, who gets a discount at Pier 1, but still, there's more than I need, or should get. And now, I'm fantasizing about glittery ghosts and turkeys, and there's a lot of time before October and November.
MISTAKE OF FOOD: I chose to eat a whole lot of not wonderful things today, and my stomach is angry. My dinner of Beefy Nacho burrito (it was brought to me, not selected by me) was tasty enough, but didn't serve the purpose of nighttime nourishment. I really don't have much to say about this one, as the name of my dinner makes the mistake of it pretty self explanatory.
MISTAKE OF ENTERTAINMENT: I chose to watch Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery as my entertainment for the evening. The movie itself holds up well, and a lot of the jokes are still very solid, but now I've got that ridiculous sing-songy tune stuck in my head. And now I'll be listening to it between my ears all night, and seeing naught but Austin's teeth and chest hair every time I close my eyes.
MISTAKE OF TIRED: I chose to close my eyes for just a moment just now, and now I'm more tired than I thought I was. It was nice, and buoyant, and comfortable with my eyes closed, and I felt happy. But I still need to put my computer away, check the house's fortifications, and kiss my baby goodnight. But all I want to do is roll over and go to sleep. And now I'll be yawning, and my body will start to slow down in preparation for sleep, and I'll probably forget something I needed to do tonight. Also, shoes.

And both characters were named Jack

Confession: I've seen two Tom Cruise movies within a week.
Secondary confession: I actually liked one of them.
I attribute my liking of the movie, Jack Reacher, to the actress Rosamund Pike, who I think is awesome for no specific reason; the actor Jai Courtney, who played a bad guy and also is kinda dreamy; and the character of Jack Reacher, who is pretty badass. But yes, I really did enjoy the movie. I don't usually say that about Tom Cruise lately. So, either I'm getting older and softer in my opinions, or this movie is good despite Tom Cruise's participation.

Also, Tinkerbell is a bit of a bitch

We all sat down and watched Peter Pan together this afternoon. Truth be told, I don't remember if I ever sat through the entirety of Peter Pan before. I will assume I did at some point, but it obviously didn't stick with me.
Hey, you know what? Peter Pan is kinda boring. Also, it's super, super politically incorrect with its Native American stereotypes. Yikes. It made me cringe even more than the crows in Dumbo.
The bigger crime for me is the boredom though, as I looked over longingly at Brian, who fell asleep about 25 minutes into the movie (and it's one of his favorites!). Sydney giggled and enjoyed, which is the purpose behind these vintage Disney movie days, so ... achievement: fulfilled. But still, I was going crazy every five minutes that the movie wasn't over yet.
Add Peter Pan to the list of rides and accompanying songs that are better than the movie.

In future, it may be all about Cakebites

We found a new "gourmet bake shop" today, as Brian and I were driving around town. It's in the same parking lot as the Chipotle, where we had lunch, and we were intrigued. Unfortunately, we're also forgetful, so we left lunch without checking out the shop. But it didn't slip Brian's mind entirely, so we went for a visit in the early evening, after we'd picked up Sydney and everyone had cooled down (it was hot today).
The bakery had three display cases, which included cupcakes (of course), cookies, and Cakebites. Of the cupcakes, we bought a double fudge, a strawberry shortcake, root beer float, FairyFetti, pina colada, and one other I don't remember. Brian was in charge of picking cookies, so all I know is that there's a heavy box of cookies in the refrigerator. And then there are Cakebites, which are little balls of cake batter and frosting mixed together and baked, then dipped in chocolate. They are ... awesome. We got a couple samples when we entered the store: Sydney thoroughly enjoyed the double fudge, and I loved the lemon. We ended up getting three double fudge Cakebites. (This invention may be as brilliant as donut holes, or pretzel bites.)
I tasted ... er, ate ... the strawberry shortcake cupcake tonight. The cake was nice and moist, and the frosting was delicious. I can't wait to share the chocolate one with Sydney tomorrow, since I've got faith in its probable fabulousness. Brian ate half of the root beer float cupcake, and said it was really good, too.
Lovely. Just what we need: a delicious bake shop within a 10-minute drive.

My night in second grade

Parent Orientation Night is always interesting. I learned a bunch of things:
There's a whole lot of sand in the playground, so my hopes of it running out in the next week, so there isn't any sand in Sydney's shoes after school, is a pipe dream.
The principal likes to chat, and is super excited to be at such a good school. Like, really. He was incredibly enthusiastic. The vice principal also is a chatty guy, with seemingly no direction at all in his remarks.
Change is hard, and the parents don't like it. There's a new Gate to Gate policy at the school, where parents drop their kid at the gate, and pick their kid up at the gate. This is the first year it's been implemented, and the parents don't seem too happy about it. It's interesting to hear the administrators explaining the new policy, clearly placating the freaked out parents who have been complaining for weeks.
In second grade, the students' chairs are bigger, and sitting at desks is more comfortable.
There are nifty words for everything, prettily emphasizing what they really are. Writing, reading and phonics is called "Fundations." Math is called "Math Facts," making it more definite, I guess. Reading is called "DEAR time," which stands for Drop Everything And Read. ... Happily, social studies and science are still called that.
Homework and schoolwork begin in earnest next week, and once again, it looks like the homework is going to be more work for me than Sydney. I get to log all her time playing math games on the computer; I get to log her time reading every night; I get to go over all her work with her; and of course, I get to make sure she's doing all her assignments. I don't mind my responsibility in this. It's just that none of these things can be accomplished without some pushback, attitude and/or ridiculously exaggerated pouting from the student herself.
There's an overhead projector that shows on a white board in the classroom and it's a touch screen, too. There wasn't anything that cool when I was in school.
School is still a fantastic thing, and I'm glad that Sydney is enjoying it.
Even the principal and vice principal can be super rude. As a couple, they came into our classroom towards the end of the orientation, made some random comments here and there, and then announced at 7:02 p.m. that it was time for us to go, cutting her off rather than let the teacher finish up with her remarks and allow time for questions. To add more irritation to that, I noticed as we left the classroom that there were two other classes still happily moving along with their time together.
If I'm not home, and Brian is in charge, Sydney is perfectly happy not insisting on her dinner being prepared and ready for her consumption right at 6 p.m.

Oblivion ... is a long time

ITEM!: I did really good work at Starbucks today. I was unsure of how it would go, and got butterflies in my stomach when I walked into the place (which is ridiculous, because it's like my second home). But I sat down with my tea, plugged in my computer, put in my ear buds, and promptly got to work. Three hours later, I was farther along than I thought I would be, had a stack of questions for my boss, was full up of green tea, and felt like I had been productive. So; goal accomplished, and I'll be back tomorrow.
ITEM!: Brian rented Oblivion on iTunes last night while he couldn't sleep, and tasked me with watching it today before the 24-hour rental expired. I wasn't interested in watching the Tom Cruise, end-of-the-world film, but I knew that if I didn't, Brian would get annoyed. In the interest of not being annoyed at tonight, I watched it. Also, I live tweeted my disdain. It made it more interesting for me. The movie itself, not so much.
ITEM!: We also watched the HBO documentary, Americans in Bed, tonight. I can't decide if it was uplifting or depressing; if it made me envious or thankful; or if it made me horny or just want to cuddle. The documentary interviewed several couples, sitting up in bed, about their relationships, including sexual relations, love for each other, issues with each other, and their take on love and romance. Some of the couples were awesome, some were sad, and some made me want to scream because they don't talk to each other. But mostly, I'm glad it didn't make me feel like I have to sit down with Brian and over-analyze our relationship.
ITEM!: I was uncomfortable with my clothes at Starbucks this morning. I had on my khaki capri pants, a t-shirt and some flip flops. My "uncomfort" comes from my chilled toes, my ankles being uncovered, my muffin top being there, and the unforgiving waist. (Damn, I need to get fitter for my clothes, yo.) The answer to my issues is, of course, yoga pants. They need to be long, so they cover my ankles, and look good with my tennis shoes. They need to be yoga, so they are more flexible in the waist, but still control my awesome waist fat. And they need to be in my closet, so I can be a comfortable while I'm sitting at my computer, in a coffee shop, as nature intended.

Yeah, well, that's probably right

This article about BMW drivers being jerks makes me laugh, because for so many people (even us), it's the absolute truth. Though I can say right now that I drive a Volkswagen, I do not forget that I drove a BMW for a few years in my youth. So no one toss that back at me.
Brian was telling me the other day that in regards to drivers, he thinks that women tend to speed more than men, but that while the men speed, they are more aggressive and dangerous. I'll agree with that wholeheartedly, as I am one of the women who likes to speed, and Brian is a man who speeds more aggressively.

BMW drivers really are jerks, studies find
By Tom Bemis | The Wall Street Journal
Drivers of BMWs frequently come in for anecdotal criticism for habits on the road that are perceived as aggressive.
Now, a couple of studies, one in the U.S. and another from the U.K., appear to provide statistical evidence that BMW drivers are, to be polite about it, complete jerks.
In the older study, by researchers at the University of California, BMW drivers were far less likely to stop for a pedestrian who had just entered a crosswalk, the New York Times notes. 
“In our crosswalk study, none of the cars in the beater-car category drove through the crosswalk. They always stopped for pedestrians," researcher Paul K. Piff told the paper. He added that not only were "fancy cars were less likely to stop," but also that "BMW drivers were the worst."
Drivers of BMWs and other high-status cars (including Prius hybrids) were also more likely to cheat at four-way-stop intersections, according to the research.
In the second study, in the U.K., motorists were asked to identify the make and color of the car from which they have most frequently suffered road-rage incidents, the Daily Mail reports.
The study of 2,837 motorists found men between the ages of 35 and 50 driving blue BMWs were most likely to be reported as having engaged in road-rage behaviors such as aggressive driving and swearing.

So. There you go. It's official. But I wish they had broken it down into gender, too. That would have been as much fun, and would have added another level to the research.