Last Week (ending April 11th)

Last week things were a lot better. We at CWA aren’t striking yet (although we’ve reserved the right to since we don’t have a new contract yet), so I got to return to work and continue hoarding money in case negotiations break down and we wind up walking out next week. That’s alleviated some financial stress, and since things in my personal life have calmed down I’ve been happier in general. I’ve gotten to spend quality time with local peeps during the week, and on the weekends I’ve been able to travel to see Emmo, Ra and Sckl last weekend and Caro in Minneapolis this past weekend. I didn’t really get much alone time last week, but it was worth it.

Last Sunday morning in St. Louis Sckl and I cuddled Ra in bed before they had to get up to go to a brunch and I had to head back to Indianapolis to meet up with Mika. Although pouring rain made me a bit late picking her up, I had a nice evening. Mika and I had Chinese food and then snuggled and napped together. Mika seems willing to make more time to get together with me in the near future, so that's very encouraging. She's trying to force doctors to treat her symptoms seriously so she can sleep again and be more awake during the day, which she hopes will help her concentrate and better handle decision-making and stress.

Last Monday CWA still wasn’t striking, so I went back to work. We were crazy-busy all day, and I had a blinding headache I couldn’t get rid of. This wasn’t helped by the fact that I’d taken my analgesics home in preparation for the strike and hadn’t yet brought them back. After work Jero made us dinner and we each played on our laptops. We collected meat on Kingdom of Loathing and I worked on the MUX wiki since it was too late to do much role-playing. I set up a Twitter account for the MUX to alert players when characters are closing and TP events are starting, etc. Once my headache finally receded I was much more productive.

Last Tuesday work was just as crazy, and I got stuck on a cut that took me four hours to resolve. After work I stopped by Jero’s for a hug and kiss and to pick up my computer, which I’d left there so I didn’t have to lug it around all day at work. I then went to Ke’s to pick her up and run us out to McDonald’s for food. Ke was horrendously sleepy (she said her friend called it “experimenting with whole new levels of fatigue”), so we watched TV and played on our laptops while we ate and then just went to bed. I couldn’t fall asleep as quickly as Ke did, so I played a bit longer on the Internet, but eventually I shut things down and snuggled up to Ke to sleep.

Last Wednesday morning Ke and I got up a little early so we could have breakfast at Denny’s before I went into work. After work I went to Chpa and Nivagi’s. They know I'm poor and trying to save money, so Chpa cooked dinner for the three of us while Nivagi got ready to go over to my apartment. Nivagi and I had discussed going out, and eventually decided to just stay in to snuggle and watch anime. Nivagi introduced me to Samurai Champloo, and then we watched Cowboy Bebop until Nivagi passed out (it was a Shinichirō Watanabe night!). Nivagi’s going to try to find the rest of her Samurai Champloo discs so we can watch it from the beginning.

Last Thursday morning Nivagi and I left early so we could grab breakfast at Le Peep. Work continued to be extremely busy, with everyone apparently trying to get everything done before the Easter holiday weekend. Ke had said she wanted more snuggles, so after work I went to her house, once again bringing us food. Ke had a paper to write, so I got on the MUX and role-played with Temera and Sci-Fi as Barbecue, as well as with Stormwind and Uplift as Blaster and Typhoon. However, it turned out that Ke’s paper wasn’t actually due until FRIDAY at midnight, so she decided to turn in relatively early. I got off the MUX and joined her for cuddles and sleep.

Friday I expected work to suck since 90% of my co-workers were gone for Good Friday, but actually it was not that bad. I did wind up getting stuck with an ISDN mess since I was one of only four people in the five states working who’d been trained on them, but after the business office closed it was relatively quiet and I had a chance to catch up on my points for the day. After work I went to Jero’s and we got a new membership at Our Haven so we could go there for events, starting with Beltane next month. I checked my itinerary and packed for the weekend, and then the two of us went to bed since Jero was already unconscious on the couch.

This past weekend I went to Minnesota to see Caro for her birthday. It was great to spend time with her, even when I was just sitting next to her on the couch while she spun yarn. Jero drove me to the airport Saturday morning and Caro picked me up. After stuffing ourselves with yummy breakfast specials we went by the art store and then returned to her apartment to snuggle on the couch and watch Juno. We hung out while she spun yarn, and then went to see some of her friends at a karaoke bar and then to The Triple Rock to see The World/Inferno Friendship Society perform (I’m definitely a new fan). I’m glad I bought my plane tickets before the strike scare, or else I might have hoarded my money and not gotten to have that wonderful weekend with her.

Now I’m back in Indy and at work. This week has been sucky between work stress and fighting with my sister about money, but I have enjoyed time I’ve spent with my girlfriends, and so far work hasn’t managed to destroy my good mood today. Let’s hope it lasts!

New spinning fibers added!
Clearance yarns updated!

Dyeabolical™
Yarns and Spinning Fibers
http://dyeabolicalyarns.etsy.com
http://dyeabolicalyarns.blogspot.com

Week in Review – Week Ending April 4

This week seemed to go really fast. The threat of a strike loomed over me all week influencing my financial choices and adding an undercurrent of stress to everything I did. When I get a chance I think I’m going to post part of the open letter from my union to explain just why we’re considering striking if we don’t reach some kind of agreement with AT&T. AT&T really seems to be trying to use the bad economy to screw us, even though they’re still raking in millions billions in profits.

Last Sunday Ke, Mira, and I slept in at the hotel, getting a late checkout, and then finally ventured out for a late breakfast at Bob Evans before heading back to Mira’s to watch The Big Bang Theory nap. When it started getting late Ke and I reluctantly kissed Mira goodbye and headed back to Indianapolis. After a quick stop at Meijer to pick up supplies for the week, we grabbed Taco Bell and headed back to Ke’s to sleep.

Last Monday I took a little E-time before work – probably the last for a while, since we might go on strike soon. I ate a leisurely breakfast at Au Bon Pain and got some email and journaling done on my laptop before going into work. After work I went to Jero’s, who had just got home from roller derby practice. Since she was sore and tired, we went to bed early and watched Dollhouse and The Daily Show before sleep.

Tuesday after work I went over to Ke’s. Since I’m trying to spend less money in preparation for the possible strike, I resisted buying food and Ke made me a turkey burger instead. Ke had a lot to do, so I hung out and played on my laptop while she studied and did paperwork. She had the TV on, which made it too distracting for me to get anything done that required my full attention, so I poked around blogs, etc. When it got late Ke suddenly announced she was going to bed, so I shut down and followed.

Wednesday I took off work as a belated birthday present to Jero. I met up with her at her house, and after hanging out a bit we went to the northeast side for a very yummy dinner at The Journey. Full and happy, we went to a special theatre showing of The Lost Boys, which was excellent cheesy fun, and then we went back to her house to watch Lost Boys: The Tribe, which was entertainingly bad. I even read the between-movies bridging comic for a night jam-packed with Lost Boys cheesiness.

Thursday Nivagi had some girlfriend drama to resolve, and Ke wasn’t feeling well, so Nivagi and I postponed our role-playing plans and I went to Ke’s instead to keep her company. Ke was mostly feeling better by the time I got off work, though, so we just watched some TV and played on our laptops until she fell asleep. I wasn’t feeling sleepy yet, so I stayed up reading blogs for a while until eventually joining her for cuddles and slumber.

Friday morning I finally called my insurance agent about my windshield, which had been cracked by a flying rock last weekend while driving back from Evansville. I wanted to get it fixed before I drove to St. Louis, but they couldn’t get me in until 4. Ke offered to switch cars with me, and brought my car to get it fixed while I was at work (and she also got my oil changed!) After work she came over and helped me load emmo’s desk into my car for when I saw emmo this weekend. Ke’s such a sweetie!

Saturday I drove to St. Louis for Emmo’s housewarming party. I got to hang out her and her adorable kid, and meet some of her friends as well as her very distracting girlfriend. After the party I went over to Ra and Sckl’s and we got frozen custard and watched Greg the Bunny. Yesterday I’m drove back early to have dinner with Mika, which was nice, and today I’ll be back at work unless negotiations break down in the next ten hours and we go on strike after all. In the meantime, I should get some sleep.

"We've got to pause and ask ourselves: How much clean air do we need?" --Lee Iacocca

Week in Review – March.28

Last week was pretty nice, marred only by lingering depression and stress, most of which relates to things outside my control. Still, time spent with my friends and lovers was fantastic, and as long as I didn’t have too much time to dwell on lost loves and what I couldn’t change or help any more than I was already, I was pretty happy. I got some time alone on Thursday, and the rest of the week I was surrounded by wonderful people who make me very happy, so I have no real complaints.

Wednesday morning my alarm went off at 7 and I had a hard time getting back to sleep. When I finally did get up Ke and I went to have breakfast at Perkins and then grabbed a nap before I went into work. After work I picked Nivagi up and met her new girlfriend as well as getting to say hello to her two other boyfriends, both of whom I really like. Nivagi and I went back to my apartment and tried to watch the first episode of Dexter online, but got pwned, so I’m going to have to buy the season one DVD when I can afford it (maybe not this week – we at AT&T might strike soon).

Thursday night I had no plans, so I decided to take the night to myself and unwind before my weekend in Evansville. I got to talk to Mira for a couple of hours after work, and then I called Jero to wish her a good night before she went to sleep. I’d meant to be productive and journal, but by the time I got off the phone I was pretty sleepy, so I listened to BSG commentary and just posted some backdated entries I’d written earlier before curling up with my pillows and going to sleep.

Friday I got paid, which is always good, but then immediately almost all of it went out for rent, car payment, and parking, which sucked. After work I went over to Jero’s. She had just gotten back from derby practice, so she was understandably tired. We talked about things to do since neither of us had to be up terribly early in the morning, but since she was exhausted and I had a long drive the next day we wound up just snuggling and watching Bones until we fell asleep.

Saturday I picked Ke up and we drove down to Evansville to see Mira. We met Mira at her house and then went to a sushi place to have dinner with Mira’s friends. After gorging on yummy sushi, Ke, Mira and I went to Hebe and P37’s apartment to hang out and watch Commentary! The Musical for Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, which was very amusing. Ke, Mira and I then retired to our hotel, which had a shower big enough for three and a huge comfy bed, in which we immediately conked out after a long fun day.

Sunday Ke, Mira, and I went out for breakfast and then napped at Mira’s before Ke and I drove back to Indy. Last night I hung out at Jero’s, and tonight I plan to see Ke. Tomorrow night Jero and I are going to go see The Lost Boys in the theatre as part of Jero’s belated birthday present, and I’m hoping to maybe get together Thursday with Nivagi to work on role-playing stuff if she’s free. This weekend I’m going up to St. Louis for emmo’s housewarming party, and I’ll get to see Ra, too! Woot!

"One word sums up probably the responsibility of any vice president, and that one word is 'to be prepared.'"

- former Vice-President Dan Quayle