Down the Rabbit Hole with the Semi-Evil Squirrel

one more robot learns to feel*

Ah....today is one of those "f*ck it" days where even the slightest discouragement makes me want to just say "f*ck it". I'm moody and I have a sneaking suspicion as to why. It feels like it wasn't that long ago that I was feeling this same way - it certainly doesn't feel like it has been 3 weeks. Suck. Also put into a bit of an irritable mood by the mere fact that it is Monday and I really don't feel like coming to work anymore. Only 11 work days left after today. Really will only work out to 10 because I'm sure my last day will be nothing but goofing around. Plus, if I am this distracted now, I can only imagine that coming to work will soon only be going through the motions and my mind and everything else will be, well, elsewhere.

In other, lighter news, This weekends Grocery Titan title goes to the SaraLee ovenroasted turkey breast that I bought at the deli counter totaling $4.98 for .57 lbs of goodness. Normally, I would scoff at paying so much for lunch meat, but don't really have sandwiches that often any more and figured it would be ok to splurge here and there. So that was it. If it weren't for that, the Grocery Titan would have been the sandwich bread rounds (8 pack) for $3.00 even.

As per usual, the bananas I bought came in as the Grocery Saver for the week. You just can't beat the nutrition in bananas at 53 cents a pound.

Guess that is about it. I'll quit boring you with the mundane details of my life and let you get on with the week. ;-P

*The Flaming Lips - One More Robot - Sympathy 3000-21

Labels: grocery savers, grocery titans, grumpy, work

maybe run from the darkness in the night*

I have been in kind of a funk the last couple of weeks that I just can't seem to get out of. After chatting with Nailz in the kitchen this evening, I realized that it's not anxiety that I'm feeling. I'm feeling restless, yet paralyzed. I know that there is a lot that needs to be done before I move, but it just doesn't really register yet. Instead of sitting myself down to think about what needs to be done when, I just keep distracting myself. If I keep this up, it will eventually catch up to me. I really need to sit still for a couple of hours and work out how and when everything needs to be done. I do feel like I can step forward out of this funk soon, though. Ever notice how sometimes just putting your finger on what's going on can help you to break through?

Anywho - enough seriousness. I would like to announce this week's Grocery Titan as the 4 lb bag of Jasmine Rice coming in at $4.63, just barely ahead of the bottle of pickled ginger at $4.39. The rest of my groceries were pretty reasonable. Of course, I only had 5 things. I felt really confident going to the store that I wasn't forgetting any items on my list. Ah...but of course I did. *laughs at self* I needed to get more coffee beans. Will have to stop tomorrow after work just to make sure I have them.

As a last note, this week's Grocery Saver was the bunch of 5 bananas coming in at a mere $1.20. Yay for bananas!!

Had a good weekend, for the most part. Felt really quite inert, but guess I did get a little bit done. Why does the urge to purge belongings always hit at about 10pm on a work night? Maybe I'll go through just one small box to make myself feel better.

*U2 - Running to Stand Still

Labels: grocery savers, grocery titans, life bitch

pick yourself up, it's a brand new day, so turn yourself around to the sun*

6 April 2009

0830 hrs:

Another Monday. Not that I particularly mind. I had drill this weekend, so coming back to a job where I actually have a purpose and something to actually DO all day is refreshing. Of course, I think laying in my bed sleeping would also probably be fairly refreshing. :D

My dear Readers, please forgive me. I had forgotten to mention last week that the Friday before last, none other than Jo-L phoned me and left me a voice mail message (this after I went to a fabulous happy hour with my cow-orkers and made great eye contact and conversation with the ever-hot Mr. M). I was pretty shocked, but really (deep down) very pleased. It's not that I want anything to do with Jo-L - it's just that lately I have been feeling a significant ebb in self esteem, so it was nice to be reassured that there was at least one man out there (that wasn't crazy or creepy) that is attracted to me.

As mentioned before, I had drill this weekend. I always end up so tired at the end of drill weekends, so yesterday after I got home I did a bit of cleaning and then took a long bath. I waxed my eyebrows, exfoliated my feet and put on a mint julep face mask and then after the bath I smothered my skin in body butter. It felt awesome!! And, I woke up feeling a bit more ready for the week than normal.

Today's mission after work is to go outside and take the rest of a roll of color film so I can drop it off for development tomorrow. I was the official photographer for a retirement ceremony yesterday, so I am anxious to see if they turned out. I was so nervous and my flash wasn't working very well, so we'll see...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30015149/?pg=1#Health_Rodale_FatfighterSnacks

7 April 2009

1009 hrs:

On a conference call. Most of the stuff being discussed has nothing to do with me. I have to wait patiently for my turn. -__-

This morning started out pretty crappy, but the day is slowly getting better.

Went through this weekend's receipts this morning during my break and came across my grocery bill. Feels like forever since I announced the Grocery Titan. This week it was hard to choose. In terms of total price, the bag of navel oranges comes out on the top at $2.50 (on sale), but in terms of actual raw cost, the title of Grocery Titan would have to go to ... the 1 "Jazz" apple I bought. At $2.49/lb, this one apple cost me a whopping $1.27! But I've never heard of this type of apple, so I would like to try it. I feel like an apple connoisseur...

Interestingly, I think this week's Grocery Saver would be the navel oranges. One bag (probably about 3 or 4 lbs of oranges) was only $2.50. Cub was having a sale and it is really worth it!

I also got a bit of a shock when I reached for a package of beef liver in the frozen meat section. A pound of liver used to be one of the cheapest forms of meat available, usually costing a little over a $1/lb. When I bought the 1 lb package of liver this weekend it was $2.29! Though it is still not the most expensive meat, it is still quite a jump....

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/your-individual-development-plan.html

1535 hrs:

Well, the day is almost over. Thank goodness!! My contacts are driving me crazy today. Usually I wear (one of my three pairs of) glasses, but I've decided to mix up "my look" even more by wearing contacts here and there. I am so glad that I brought my rewetting drops with me to work! Otherwise, I would go crazy rubbing my eyes...

Something I forgot to mention earlier was that this morning when the alarm was going off, I thought it was Sunday and that I had to get up for drill. I was totally dreading getting up until I realized that it was really Tuesday. This made me happy because it means there are only 2 more days in this work week. I'll be taking a 4-day weekend (woohoo!) for Easter. I am looking forward to the change of scenery and to not being at any type of work for 4 days in a row. In the last 5 weeks, I have only had 4 days off, so I think it's time to let loose a little. XD

Guess that's about it. Ciao for now!

*The Gorillaz - Demon Days

Labels: grocery savers, grocery titans, Jo-L, link blogging, work

you never know, maybe you're dreamin'...*

0939 hrs:
Almost did not make it in to work this morning. I kept hitting snooze and was having a pretty good dream. Of course, now I don't remember what it was or even the general subject...BUT - as I said last week, the coffee was already brewing and I just can't let good, fresh and hot coffee go to waste, so I had to get up and go to work. Plus, the cat needed to be fed and let out of his carrier and in order to call in to work I would have had to get up to get my cell phone anyway. Smelled the fresh coffee and grudgingly told myself that I should stop being lazy and go to work.

I'm pretty sure most people have today off, but oh well, right? I am taking Friday off to head to Chicago for the JET interview. Still sort of avoiding thinking about it, which is kind of bad considering that now it is less than a week away. Eek!

Went clothes shopping this weekend with Nailz with the excuse that I needed to buy an outfit for the interview. Good times. I bought more shoes than clothes which is sometimes not a very good sign. Ended up getting a really good deal on a pair of nice Naturalizers for only $16! Bought a cute (below the knee) skirt and a shirt, necklace, shoes and purse to go with it. The purse is a Vera Wang that was on sale for under $25 - it is too cute! Will need to figure out how I'm going to do my hair and nails...

Also had my car repaired on Friday. It only came out to $225. Not bad considering most times shops will charge that just for the part that was replaced. I love my mechanic! The car drives much better and so I am pleased on that front.

Did proper meal planning this weekend, so I actually had a grocery list when I went to the store last night. I only bought 4 items totaling $6.73.

This week's Grocery Titan goes to the tub of Dannon All Natural Plain Yogurt coming in at $2.99! *applauds*

I was going to skip the Grocery Saver this week seeing as I only bought 4 items, but I must say that I am mighty impressed that I bought a bunch of 4 bananas for $0.81. WOW. Sometimes I see bananas advertised in gas stations for 2/$1.00, so paying less than $1.00 for 4 seems really awesome. I guess it is all a matter of perspective.

Also, a note about the yogurt... I know that I've complained quite a bit on this blog about my stomach problems. Since taking up the yogurt/health shakes (which are tasty when you don't add too much coconut milk), my stomach has felt better than it has in years. I didn't have indigestion or heartburn once last week and over all, things just feel like they are running better now. It is such a relief!

1302 hrs:
Had a good lunch. I had tuna salad with some pita bread and an orange. I have some broccoli, too, but that will probably end up being an afternoon snack. Read some of the CLAIR website over lunch. Just reading it makes me nervous. They give a lot of good information on both the CLAIR and JET Program websites. For most people, the websites' information may be helpful because they get more of an idea of what they are getting in to. For me, it is disquieting to have so much information. I'm used to going in to these overseas adventures almost completely blind - relying on my leadership to light the way, and the torch would only give off a small circle of light by which to reckon the way. I feel like I'm walking down a brightly lit hallway and any obstacles are well lit and obvious. Having so much visibility of what it is going to or may occur makes me feel as if there is going to be some unpleasant surprise somewhere.

If I am accepted in to the program, one big thing that will be very different from my previous overseas experience is that I wouldn't be going with anyone that I know. Big change there. It would almost be like leaving home for college, except bigger...newer...and probably uncomfortable and lonely at first. *unsure laugh*

Here's a real laugh.

1551 hrs:
Well, my work day is drawing to a close. I almost forgot that I have yoga tonight because I'm making up the one I missed so many weeks ago when it was so cold outside and I was l-a-z-y. Have to eat my broccoli now, as if I eat any later than 4pm, it makes yoga a bit uncomfortable because of all the bending, twisting and upside-down-i-ness of it..

After I finished writing my last portion above, I started to realize that I'm really putting the carriage before the horse. Plus, if I've gotten through some things almost blind, then I can most certainly do them when the way is lit, right? Sometimes, I think I just need to have confidence in myself and my personal decisions.

Well, guess that is it for today. Hope all had a good day off.

*The Dave Matthews Band - So Much To Say

Labels: grocery savers, grocery titans, JET program, link blogging, nutrition/diet, weekend sum up

i just keep losing my beat*

1823 hrs - ETA: This is my 500th blog post. Considering I've had this blog since 2003, that's maybe not all that impressive. But still - cheers!

0947 hrs:
Sometimes it seems that the only reason I get up in the morning is because the coffee is already brewing. This morning it was particularly difficult to convince myself to get out of bed. I hit snooze until I absolutely couldn't any more. We are supposed to get freezing rain today and my sleepy brain was making up a really great excuse (that since the ABS and traction control of my car are not working, best not drive today) to call into work with. Two things saved me from taking a vacation/sick day: 1) Murphy was meowing outside of my bedroom door to be let in and 2) I heard the coffee maker brewing. The cat meowing at the door I could have dealt with and gone back to sleep, but the coffee must NOT be wasted. It's a good thing I have it programmed to start before my alarm goes off, otherwise, the lazies might get me more often than not.

This weekend was ok. I updated the blog on Saturday, so no need to review that day. Yesterday (Sunday), I went to drill and it was surprisingly not a waste of time. On the way home, I called and talked with Mom a bit. We ended up talking for over an hour about all sorts of things and then I took a nap before beginning the usual weekend cleaning. I did a couple loads of laundry, did dishes, cleaned the kitchen counters and stove, vacuumed, picked up my room, etc. All of that is usually spread throughout Sunday, but since I didn't start on it until almost 7pm, it was a late night. It probably didn't help that Nailz and I got a bit absorbed by the Victoria's Secret clearance website and were shopping. All-in-all, by the time I was done showering, writing a weekly letter and writing in my journal, it was almost 1am. *le sigh* It was a good weekend though, and I'm not at all disappointed with it - plus I have an awesome sweater jacket from VS to look forward to this week or next.

1055 hrs:
As is our custom, Nailz and I went to the grocery store this weekend. I went with a list that had 2 items on it. I ended up buying a strange assortment of items that I am now wondering what to do with, but will find something (I hope)...Of course, it is also the custom to stir (and in today's case, brighten) up Monday with the announcement of the Grocery Titan, Grocery Saver and (where applicable) the Target Titan. This week we have all three categories to announce, plus a special guest! Without further ado...

This week's Grocery Titan goes to an unusual item: the sushinori (seaweed wrap) from the Asian foods aisle, coming in at (imagine my best Bob Barker impression) ... $3.09.

The Grocery Saver would have to go to the frozen Cub Foods Green Beans that were on sale for 10/$10.00. I scored one bag of frozen beans for $1 - How awesome is that?

Target turned out to be an expensive shopping trip (as per usual). I only got 7 items, yet managed to spend almost $50! *shock-u* The Target Titan for this week goes (completely unchallenged) to the 7th Generation laundry detergent at a hefty $14.99. Luckily, I only buy laundry detergent about 2 or 3 times a year. *wipes brow*

Now, the moment you've all been waiting for. This week, we have a special guest Titan. Taking the advice of the nutritionist who was the instructor at the nutrition class I took a couple of weeks ago, I've decided to try a health shake for breakfast this week (if I remember, I will post the recipe tomorrow). One of the ingredients is a tablespoon of pure whey protein. She recommended that it be pure whey - as in no sugar or anything added. Though I searched the aisles of Target and Cub Foods, I eventually gave in to the idea that I would have to go to GNC in the maul to find what I was seeking.

A small jar (which in actuality is huge, but not as HUGE as the barrels) of pure whey protein with no additives or flavoring from GNC came to a staggering $32.01!! I dub this purchase the Health Food Titan (possibly of all time).

Rather than suck my thumb for comfort (heh), I convinced myself that this one container of protein would last me forever because it is only a tablespoon a day. We'll see if this purchase was worth it....stay tuned!

1519 hrs:
It's the afternoon slowdown. Time is always unpredictable after 3pm for me. Lately, I've had so much to do that I work right up until 4 and then realize that I haven't concluded and posted the daily post. Not so today. Today, I have actually looked for work. It is a very strange thing indeed after last week.

I have the distinct feeling that my posts have become rather boring. Perhaps it is because I am writing them from work where my brain shuts down all creative functions. Or it might be because there are a lot of background processes running all the time. Two of the main background processes revolve around photography-related stuff and the impending JET interview. I am trying to take a break from the photography stuff for a little bit. I've become a bit too focused on it and it has started to consume my thoughts and my income. XD

Well, best post this. It is getting long and I should find something to do for the last half hour...

*Queen - Somebody to Love

Labels: grocery savers, grocery titans, guest titans, target titans, weekend sum up, work

i will learn by studying the lessons in my dreams*

1016 hrs:
Happy Monday? Hard to believe the weekend is gone already! Time is becoming a real blur for me lately and every day I feel drained, but still somehow energetic enough to not get to bed until late every night. When I sleep, I dream as if I'm awake. I dream about photography a lot lately. Last night I was dreaming about rare films and developing techniques - but it was just like I was awake. Nothing too unreal was present in the dream so it was really just an extension of my waking life. While I enjoy photography and am fairly fascinated by it, I wish I didn't dream about it. *sweatdrop* I know that it is probably just my brain trying to process all of the new stuff about photography that I am learning every day, but still... >_<

Speaking of photography, I bid on and won some more rare, discontinued film on eBay. This time I won an auction for Kodak Technical Pan (usually shortened to TechPan or TP). This film is supposed to have been one of the finest grain black and white films ever made. I also am currently bidding on some other film that is similar to TechPan, but most people will agree is even better than the TechPan. This newest one is called Panatomic-X. One photographer said that he had used some while it was still being produced and he went so far as to call it grainless. 0_o I hope I win the auction - that would be really awesome!

Well, guess that is it for now. I'll come back later with this weekend's Grocery Titan and the weekend sum up. :D

1143 hrs:
I am still winning the auction for the old film. This pleases me. I feel kind of bad trying to get all of this film when I haven't even picked out subjects yet. The TechPan and Panatomic-X were really used mostly for architecture, landscape or portrait photography. I have never attempted portrait photography. I generally don't like people to be my subject. Humans are fussy and they don't sit still for very long and most are not comfortable posing for pictures. I wonder how much it would be to find a model....*ponders*

This morning has gone very quickly for me. I have been busy, and it looks like the afternoon will keep me occupied as well. This also pleases me. (I'm thinking that overall, I must be very pleased this morning...which is strange for a Monday.)

I'm about to announce this week's Grocery Titan, and even though I know you are all on the edge of your seats, I would like to just put a little aside in here first. Last week, I went to a nutrition class. The overall theme was to try to eat foods that aren't heavily processed (all of the things you find on the outer ring of a grocery store) and that have a minimum of sugar added. SO - my grocery list changed as a result of this class, which of course, made a big difference in what this week's Grocery Titan - or should I say Grocery Titans?

TIED for this weekend's Grocery Titan is the bag of California oranges and the basting brush! Both items came in at a sturdy $3.99.

And, (let us not forget) this weekend's Grocery Saver: the pint of fresh blueberries on sale for $2.98! I chose to freeze them until I can think of what to do with them. They will probably end up in some plain yogurt next week.

1543 hrs:
I won the film auction. Someone really was trying near the end there. I was a little bit worried.

I have been doing a lot of data entry today and been busy otherwise as well. The data entry part was difficult today because I seem to have some background processes running in my mind, so I found myself searching the same numbers over and over again in the database. It took me almost twice as long as normal to do as much as I did. *sigh*

Feeling tired. I don't have much planned for tonight. I was going to go to yoga to make up for a day I missed a few weeks ago, but am so tired that I think I will just go home, make some casserole and veg out. Maybe I'll even go to bed at a good time. <--yeah right

*Weezer - Red Album, deluxe ed.

Labels: dreams, grocery savers, grocery titans, photography, sleepy, vintage film, work

i don't know what more to ask for, i was given just one wish*

0917 hrs:
*waves hello* I took a (short) hiatus from blogging last week due to an extreme amount of work to do. One of my cow-orkers is gone on medical leave for a few weeks and in the meantime I have to do part of her job. The part of her job that I am doing normally would only take an hour or so every day, but she was behind, so there was a lot of catching up to do. As it stands at this moment (after working like a mad woman last week), I am now only a week behind. I am hoping that by tomorrow afternoon I will be caught up to this week. *hopes*

I had a really good weekend compared to the weekend before. I did so much that it almost feels like I had a three-day weekend. The only bad side was that I was sick yesterday morning. I had a migraine and it gave me a short-lived fever, chills and some stomach problems. I took some Excedrin Migraine Extra Strength (so often my life-saver) and laid down for a nap. I felt worlds better when I awoke and continued on with my day. I still felt a little shaky for a while, but am feeling mostly ok today. Isn't it strange how migraines can wreak so much havoc physically?

1109 hrs:
Friday night is the ideal time to grocery shop. Nailz and I have made a habit of eating dinner and then going grocery shopping around 7pm. The grocery store is fairly quiet and peaceful and the lines are short, if there are lines at all. I normally wouldn't reveal such a "secret", but seeing as all of 3 people actually read these entries (and of those, none actually shop at the same store as we do), I think I am safe from Friday nights becoming the new busy time for grocery stores. Of course, I don't really care if other stores get busy or are busy on Friday nights - just so long as mine stays peaceful and quiet. Isn't that just how humans are geared to think?

Speaking of groceries - a new week means a new Grocery Titan! This week's Grocery Titan goes to ... *checks receipt and gets distracted* the 1/2 gallon Oberweis 2% milk coming in at a hefty $4.54 (bottle deposit is $0.85). The milk did have some tight competition (if you don't include the bottle deposit, that is) with the loaf of Texas Toast I bought for making French Toast on Sunday morning, which came in at an eye-opening $3.39.

Because the Grocery Titan does seem to be the same types of items every week (for the most part), I've also decided to announce a new category: the Grocery Saver! This item will be decided completely subjectively, based on what I consider to be the best value for the best price. This week's Grocery Saver goes to ... the small box of LIFE cereal! Cereal is usually so expensive, but there was a sale - 5/$10.00. Can't beat that when it comes to cereal!

1144 hrs:
Don't think I remembered to mention it here, but The Decemberists (my very favoritest band ever!) are putting a new full-length album out in March. I am pretty excited. They put up "The Rake's Song" for a free download and preview to the album. It rocks out completely. Did I mention that I'm pretty excited? *grin*

1505 hrs:
Working in a system that is moving like molasses and need to have everything done in it SOON. Gah. Plus, I'm just kind of fumbling around in the system because I was not trained how to do any of this in my cow-orkers absence and neither was anyone else. I've been able to figure it out slowly, but not quite so surely. Eek! Wish me luck and I'll blab at y'all tomorrow! XD

P.S. Happy Chinese New Year! Let's work hard together in this, the year of the Ox. Wear some red and try not to get angry today. :D

*Royksopp - What Else is There?

Labels: busy bee, grocery savers, grocery titans, music, the decemberists, work

it goes on*

0942 hrs:
So it is finally Monday, eh? I never thought I would be so relieved to be at work on a Monday morning. This weekend felt like it lasted forever and I feel more tired now than going into it. Nailz kept apologizing for the trouble (the car issue was the one flogging us), but none of it was within her control - so she really is blameless. Sometimes life just beats you up like that. To be dramatic: this weekend was like some sort of sick, sadistic monster that sucked us both in and we were lucky to escape into Monday with life and limb. I can't remember ever being through such a vicious weekend. I am positive Nailz feels glad to have it over as well.

Tomorrow, I have the day off of work to watch the Inauguration and go out to take some winter photos. I am pretty excited for the day off and for the events of the day. It will be nice to sit and do only what I want to for a day. I don't even have chores to do (well, except for laundry) as I did manage to do most of them Sunday evening. I have a few things that I'll be imbibing during the Inauguration, so that will be nice too. I'm planning on getting up around 6:30am to go out and get pictures of the sunrise. Winter sunrises are AMAZING, so I'm hoping tomorrow morning doesn't disappoint. Much coffee will be made and consumed tomorrow. Maybe a nap after the Inauguration will be in order since I haven't napped in the afternoon for a few weeks.

Well, best get to the Grocery and Target Titan awards. I didn't do much shopping this weekend and my lists were very limited, but here goes anyway:

This weekend's Target Titan title goes to....*drum roll*...the leather and wool gloves that were on clearance for $8.98!

Let's give them a hand! *laughs at own bad pun*

I put those in the pockets of my fancy goat coat *laughs at typo too* to wear this coming weekend to the theater. Yay!

Ahem....Now on to the Grocery Titan for this weekend. The title goes to the 3 lbs of lean ground beef weighing in at $10.79.

Isn't it amazing how much meat costs? Dang! Well, I'm trying to cut down on how much meat I consume (since I seem to consume quite a bit), so hopefully that will last me a month or so. :D

The title really could've gone to the 1 pound of mixed, raw nuts that I bought. The total for a smidgen over a pound was over $8! That sure beats the $3.60/lb that the meat cost.

1124 hrs:
I might leave after lunch today. I'm not sure I can make it through the rest of the day with these people. Normally, it is like water off of duck's back when my cow-orkers criticize my work, but after this weekend, I'm just not sure I can take it. In fact, I'm pretty sure I can't, because as I write this, tears are welling up in my eyes. I feel like just giving up and leaving and it's over something completely stupid - which makes me even more likely to bust out crying. (It's always the stupid things, ne?)

I'll tell you what made it come on:
Today, we are having a potluck. Even though the rest of the corporate world has today off, our managers decided to schedule mandatory training today and then on top of that, do a potluck. SO - I signed up to bring mashed potatoes. Well, that is quite hard to make in advance and keep warm and even so, I don't have a crock pot big enough for as many potatoes as I would need to bring. SO - I looked up a crock pot recipe and one of my cow-orkers said she would bring in her big crock pot. Long story short: I added too much water and when I asked another cow-orker for help she just started bombarding me with "well, why didn't you do this? Or why didn't you do that? Why didn't you make them this weekend and then just bring them in to heat them up?" And so on and so forth. I felt like yelling at the top of my lungs that instead of focusing on what an idiot I am and all of the things I should have done (but didn't), why doesn't she try to help me. I must have made a face when I turned to walk away because the cow-orker who brought in the crock pot for me to use came and has been helping me out. Isn't that nice of her? I feel like hitting the other one in the face with something really heavy and blunt, but hey....I'm sure that urge will pass....Maybe.

*Spoon - The Minor Tough

Labels: bad day, cow-orkers, grocery titans, target titans, weekend sum up, work

fell on black days*

0754 hrs:
Got creative with my time-reporting sheet. Usually, I just put pretty much the same thing for every day of the previous week. This time, I really split it up among the different categories. Can't believe I found some amusement in it. Have I been working in a cube too long? Or is it just that I'm too tired from drill this weekend?

Pretty sure that I've used today's blog title before, but I wouldn't be able to check until I got home, so there it is. It feels very true. Although, maybe I wouldn't say "black days", maybe just "dark days" - but one cannot change someone else's lyrics, so it stays. The reason I thought of that song is because it is so very dark outside this morning. Extremely gloomy and foreboding. Watashi wa kurai kimochi ninaru. (Is that how it goes, Nailz?) The sky does not lie: today we are supposed to get 2-3 inches of show by the afternoon.
Yay. <--sarcasm (indicated so as to not be mistaken) >__<

0837 hrs:
This weekend went by pretty quickly and most of it was taken up with the aforementioned (see Friday's entry) mandatory wasting of time. I did, however, go shopping on Friday evening even though the urge to stay home was strong in me. I convinced Nailz to go with me and as per usual on a Friday night, it was pretty dead. What a pleasant experience grocery shopping is on Friday nights. Reminiscing about the leisurely grocery outing reminds me to announce this week's Grocery Titan. Yay! <--not sarcasm

My shopping list was only 4 items long, so this week's competitors all stood a good chance of winning. The 8-pack of Dannon Activa yogurt, however, took the prize. It was heads and shoulders above the rest, coming in at $4.67. The Hoshi Soba noodles couldn't even come close with it's mere $1.89 for the package.

0927 hrs:
I'm so tired of people forwarding on alarmist emails about everything from new car-jacking schemes to perfume salesmen that ask you to smell their samples and then it knocks you out. All of it is serious bullsh1t. The best is when people see that the email references Snopes.com and figures that's proof enough that it's true and they forward it on. Gah! I'm going to start forwarding all of the FALSE forwards I receive with not only a link to the Snopes.com article added, but the article quote that says that it's all bullsh1t. Seriously - I'm glad that people are concerned for me and my pet's health, but I'm not an idiot. Please stop insulting my intelligence.

1457 hrs:
Um. There is so much that I want to blog about. How does one choose between all of the boredom-inducing possibilities?

Well, I'll make the weekend sum-up brief: Saturday, I had drill. It was ok - but it was the longest day ever. Saturday evening, I forced Nailz to go out to eat with me. I knew I had to GO and DO something that night or my whole weekend would have felt little like suckage to the max. *nerd* We ended up going to Babani's. It was so completely AWESOME. If something could truly be full of awesome sauce, it would be Babani's. I plan on making that one of my favorite places to go for a weekend dinner out.

Sunday was drill again. The only saving grace is that I got to geek out with 2 other photo nerds. Sunday didn't feel quite as long, nevertheless, I was happy when it was over. Of course, I express my joy of having the monthly drill over with by a typical, celebratory, 30-minute venting/bitch session when I get home. If Nailz weren't there to lend a sympathetic ear, the poor cat would have to be held down and tortured with cuddling and self-absorbed ranting.

Today has been good. Going fast. Getting lots done. Still lots to do, so should go. Ciao for now, peeps! *pulling out all kinds of geek-language*

1545 hrs:
I will expound upon these links this evening, if I remember. Heh.

I love the level of geekiness in this comic.

Here's where to find out where you can recycle plastic bags.

And this is for when you want to know just how shitty the driving in Minnesota is going to be due to weather.


*Soundgarden - Fell On Black Days

Labels: grocery titans, link blogwork, weather, weekend sum up, work

the minor tough's walking past again

0921 hrs:
*grumbles* It seems that no matter how hard I try, I'm just not a morning person. Even when I feel awake in the morning, I still don't feel motivated to actually do anything. This morning I am neither feeling very awake nor feeling motivated. I have a cup of coffee in front of me. I hope it helps - otherwise, a whole day spent trying to keep my eyes open would totally blow.

1009 hrs:
My office chair is magic today. The moment I sit down in it, it casts a spell and I can't keep my eyes open. Have been doing more of the Sarbanes-Oxley training, but have had to stand up while reading it so I don't nod off. Our cubicle walls are the medium height ones (4 ft?), so when you stand up, everyone can see you. I felt weird, but hey - better than fighting the heavy eyelids all morning. I think the coffee might be starting to (FINALLY) kick in, so I'm giving the magic chair a try.

1305 hrs:
I can't think of much to say today. I feel like the super-grumps may be descending upon me. SO - to avoid any interaction with my actual personality, I'll announce this weekend's Grocery Titan and the (new category)Target Titan.

In order to do my best to reach one of my goals of 2009, I decided that one of the small parts of achieving that goal is to do weekly meal planning and only buy the groceries that I need for the week's meals. Of the groceries on my list, I also made it a point to buy the product that was on sale or the least inexpensive. Because of this, most of my groceries were under $2.00 a piece. This weekend's Grocery Titan goes to: the Oberweis 2% milk at $3.69 + the $.85 bottle deposit making it a total of $4.54! Now I hope that I can drink all of it before it goes bad. :D

I did well in the grocery department of sticking to my list, but I did not as well while in Target. I'm horrible at not making spur-of-the-moment purchases. This weekend's Target Titan is the red fleece winter pullover (for running) that was on clearance for ... $14.99.

Please give our Titans a boisterous round of applause. Of course, the Target Titan was priced much less than I would have paid for it from a sporting goods store, so I guess it really does deserve kudos.

1502 hrs:
Just about to post this. I'm going to borrow an idea from Sesame Street and say that this blog entry was brought to you by the letter "F". This past weekend's activities largely revolved around facebook, Fantastipo and fotos (heh). Write at you all tomorrow. :)

LIST THAT PLAYED:
random from my mp3 player, but Fantastipo was played more than a couple of times XD
Album: Weezer - Red (Deluxe)

P.S. Check out this handy recycling site. Sorry, completely random!

Labels: grocery titans, link blogging, playlists, sleepy, target titans, work

i'll eat my candy with the pork and beans

0905 hrs:
Well, good morning, 2009. :)

I'm at work and it feels like only the bad kids have to be at Saturday school. It is very quiet around here. All of the top dogs are out of the office today, so we are left with one "lead" to...well...lead us. Plans for the day? Well, I've already done 1/3 of the work I had planned for today. I'm going to be back chipping away at the Sarbanes-Oxley Act course I started last week. Between doing that and trying not to fall asleep, I should easily make it to lunch time.

BUT - before that, I have some Grocery Titans to announce. I went to the grocery store two times in the last 48 hours. Only the first time did I have a grocery list. I think we all know what it means when you go to the grocery store without a list. *ominous look*

Wednesday, 12/31/08's Grocery Titan title goes to (drum roll, please)...
....the whole bean Breakfast Blend coffee, coming in at $6.99!

Though I swore I was going to switch to half-caf, I just haven't been able to bring myself to do it. Rats!

Thursday, 1/1/09's Grocery Titan title goes to...
....the 30 oz. bag of frozen pork dumplings, coming in at $7.99! *boos from the crowd*

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That last one was the spontaneous grocery trip I made yesterday. Originally, I was just going to the bank branch inside the store (it was open on New Year's Day - how weird!!) because they have a change counter and I wanted to "cash in" my spare change that I'd saved up this past year (a disappointing $23.76 - past years have yielded around $50). Once I was there, I realized that I was hungry and that the store was not busy (people probably assumed the grocery store to be closed on New Year's Day). So, I called Nailz and asked if there was anything she needed and also convinced her that we should make some Japanese food for our New Year's dinner. Ended up buying a can of roasted eel to add to sushi and onigiri (rice balls) as well as some artificial crab to put in sushi.

1243 hrs:
Was reading Penny Arcade's news post from the 31st and clicked on the link to the Zune webpage. As Nailz can testify, most Zune 30 owners received a scare when their Zunes "bricked" on Wednesday. The cause was the leap year because of the clock driver not being able to calculate a leap year or some such technical thing. Anyway - that's not the point. I know that not having music for a day at a boring corporate job or other boring job must really suck to high heavens, but some people leaving comments on the Zune page are pretty unbelievable. An example: "How about compensation for not being able to use our Zune's for the day?"

[insert dramatic pause here]

Um, I'm sorry (actually, I'm not), but could this person be more spoiled? There are people in Africa who have to make do without food for an entire day (or more...) and you're pissed because your Zune isn't working and the solution is to wait until January 1, 2009? Let's get a little perspective here. I am in complete awe that someone would allow themselves to get so completely worked up over this. Yes - you paid money for this piece of technology. Yes - it failed. Yes - it's ok to be miffed or for it to be the worst part of your day (or possibly week if your life is really good). All of that is understandable - but wanting compensation for it not working for 1 (ONE) day out 366?? Yeah. I'm sure Microsoft is gonna get right on that.
/rant

To other Zune owners' credit however, most who commented were just surprised and worried that their Zunes were dead for good. Others took it with a chuckle. One guy asked how he was supposed to deal with his cow-orkers if he didn't have his Zune, adding an "LOL" at the end of his statement.

1431 hrs:
Just re-read the Zune rant. It occurs to me that it might sound elitist or something like that (afterall, the comparison I use IS kind of extreme *chuckles*). At first, the idea that it could be taken that way was a bit offensive. On second thought, I've decided I don't really care. I still think it is silly that people crap their pants when something that is not even close to a need goes out on them. Makes me wonder how people (read: Americans) survived the workplace (much less society) before the advent of personal electronics. What horror! Indeed...

HYPOCRITIC'S PLAYLIST:
from my mp3 player before the battery went dead:
Elephant Kashimashi - album
Assorted NEWS and KAT-TUN favorites

on CD:
The Decemberists most recent singles (true to recent style, they were played over and over)

/snark

Labels: grocery titans, playlists, rant, snark, work

ima wa...

0859 hrs:
Wow. Where does one begin? I'm not sure a weekend sum-up would be wise to attempt on a morning "break". This morning has been mildly interesting (if that's what you want to call it) already. When I went out to the garage this morning and opened the door, the trunk of my car was open. I thought, "Maybe I hit the trunk open button on my key fob last night by accident," and proceeded to press the unlock button. My car honked three times. This is the sign that after the car's alarm was enabled, it was tampered with. This made me very nervous. I went back up to the apato and told Nailz about it. (We were both running really late for work this morning...) Her car had had the snow wiped from the driver's side window as if someone had been looking in to see if there was anything good in there to steal. So - that made the morning interesting. We think maybe someone was checking out cars to break into last night - though why they would try to break into cars while it is 30 below zero is beyond me... All of this also made me a 1/2 hour late for work - which hasn't happened in....Well, I can't even recall the last time I was that late (which is probably a good thing, eh?).

1107 hrs:
I am already full of fail this week. How is that possible? Not only was I late this morning, but now I remembered that one of our vendors is bringing us pizza for lunch today and tomorrow is our potluck, so I don't need to bring lunch at all this week. Last night, I made it a point to make a dinner that would have enough left overs for lunch the two days I am at work this week. So I have my lunch with me... Now I have a bunch of left overs, but no time to eat them before I leave for Christmas vacation. Yes, I know - cry me a river, right? Well, I just hate wasting food. Maybe the curry I made last night is able to be frozen...

Also, another point of fail: made coffee once I got to work because I didn't get very much sleep last night (yes, again), because the upstairs neighbors were stomping around until after midnight (yes, again). Apparently, I made the coffee too strong because I've been having heart palpitations all morning and my left eye is twitchy. *sigh*

Come to think of it. Except for a couple of high points, I was made of fail this weekend, too. If I could, I would just crawl into bed and hide under the covers until the middle of January.

1427 hrs:
The day feels like it has gone very quickly. Of course, I have to stay a 1/2 hour later than usual because of this morning's lateness. Made the mistake of drinking a full-fledged Pepsi (i.e. one that is neither "diet", nor "caffeine-free"). You would think that after the heart palpitations of this morning, I would have known better. Well, my intelligence is often overestimated, but not often enough - especially in cases dealing with food and beverages.

Went grocery shopping this weekend. I spent A LOT on groceries considering I'm pretty much not going to be home for the next week. There were quite a few close contenders for this week's Grocery Titan title. I believe we need some honorable mentions/runners-up this week:

LKK Sweet Soy Sauce came in at $3.09, just barely beating out the new snow brush/scraper for my car at $2.99. About a head in front of those two titans was the Julekage bread that I bought on impulse from the bakery (how dare they put that right at the entrance where it smells all warm and spiced after the bitter, bitter cold of outside!) at a fair (?) price of $3.99.

BUT, this week's Grocery Titan title goes to the Gold n Plump chicken breasts - that really blew the other contenders out of the water by coming in at a hefty $6.99 for 20 oz!! That'll teach me to buy pork next time!

1510 hrs:
There are many things I could have written about here. Some of them might have even been amusing.

Labels: food, grocery titans, highly-caffeinated, work

still now you're waiting to grow, inside you're old

0825 hrs:
Lazy day....the boss is out of the office today and there is not really that much for me to do yet. This afternoon will be busy, but the morning stretches out before me calm and motionless. In order to take a moment to entertain myself, I have read a webcomic that I usually read during my lunch break, but yesterday it wasn't yet updated. In the news post, they linked to this.

I am serious when I say that if I am ever dating a guy and I walk into his place of residence and he has anything close to that displayed, I will turn around, walk out and never look back. It's not that I'm against nerds or geeks (to the contrary, I feel a strong kinship with them), it's that all of that collector crap costs a lot of money and over time, the amount of money invested in such collectibles would be bound to be a subject of contention in the future. Also, when a guy is that much into gaming or fantasy worlds, etc. he deserves a girl who will indulge him. I am not that girl.

1040 hrs:
Sometimes it is really hard for me to not worry about things. All morning I've been worrying about the crockpot at home. Specifically, I am worried that the cat will do something to it. More specifically, that he will be curious about it and knock it off of the counter. Even more specifically, that after he has knocked it off the counter, the dog or cat will choke on chicken bones. *frets*

I'm so worried about it that I rescheduled my chiropractic appointment that I was supposed to go to directly after work. Sad, I know...

In other news, it is time for announcing this week's Grocery Titan:
1/2 gallon Oberweiss Farm Fresh milk at $3.60 (the good stuff in the glass bottles - yummy!!)

Not bad. It was a relatively small and inexpensive grocery trip this week. I bought a lot of fresh veggies that I now have to find a way to use before they go bad. Eek!

1319 hrs:
Almost forgot to mention that this morning's sunrise was unreal. It was so beautiful and different from most ordinary sunrises. It made me wonder if a person could tell the difference between a sunset and a sunrise if just shown a picture of each. What makes it obvious it is a sunrise of sunset?

Labels: boy stuff, fret, grocery titans, link blogging, work

you're not obliged to swallow anything you despise

0949 hrs:
Yikes...I am having a very sleepy morning and feel like it should at least be noon by now! I've decided to not drink coffee on the weekdays, so today is my first day trying that. *longs for caffeine*

I called in yesterday. I was completely exhausted and just couldn't manage to get out of bed on time, so I took an unpaid day. Didn't do much of anything - mostly slept in and watched Hana Yori Dango2. I'm completely hooked on that series. So full of bishounen!! Also, I want to see how it ends (well, of course, right?).

1124 hrs:
Just spent some time away from my desk helping out other people with a project that needed help in completing. Now that I am back to my desk, I am really hungry and feel like taking a break.

I just looked at my planner. My week involves a lot of being out and about almost every day and night. I am tired just thinking about it. Actually, every night until Thanksgiving is looking pretty busy. This makes me sad. I just really want to chill at home for the whole weekend for once.

Also just looked at my grocery bill from last night's shopping foray. This week's grocery titan is a clear winner: Minnesota-grown Wild Rice coming in at $4.49 for 1 pound takes the crown. Nothing else really comes close to that one. Everything else is pretty much $3 or less.

Well, can't think of much else to say. I'm feeling pretty blank at the moment and this will probably be all for today. Ciao for now!

PLAYLIST:
The Shins - Wincing the Night Away
Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago

Labels: busy bee, grocery titans, j-drama, playlists, sleepy, work

Hello hello hello!

0835 hrs:
Ah...so it is Monday, the most cursed of days...

I am feeling ok about the fact that it is Monday. What is bothering me is my keyboard. I can't seem to find a comfortable spot for it. Angled up, it hurts my wrists too much; not angled at all and it feels difficult to stretch for the number keys. Some people are never satisfied. *grin*

On Mondays and Fridays throughout the month of November (and possibly December), Colin the coffee maker will have the day off. The coffee shop on my way to work has coffees of the month. This month, the special is a Pumpkin Pie Latte. I am SO indulging myself on Mondays and Fridays for this month! Yay!

Other than that, there is nothing special going on this morning. In fact, it's pretty dead in here. Doesn't help that the boss is out today. I am super sleepy and wish I could just take a nap. *so tempted to close eyes* Will see how this morning goes....

Just looking through my receipts from the weekend. This week, two items tied for the title of grocery titan: super-special maple syrup and a 30oz bag of frozen gyouza. Both came in at $7.99 and fell under the non-taxable food items category. Let's give our contenders a hand! I haven't tried the maple syrup yet, but the frozen gyouza were definitley worth all $8!! Nailz - can you believe that syrup cost that much?! I'm shocked, personally. It better be the best damn maple syrup I've ever had in my life. Shame on me for not even looking at the price before purchasing. I guess I just assumed it wouldn't be that much for a bit of maple syrup. Yikes...

Also, filled up my humble gas tank this weekend. It was nice to only spend $21 to fill 'er up. Also nice was the 26.9 miles I got per gallon this past tankful. I've been trying to take the freeway (which is very close) instead of city roads whenever I can (except during rush hours, of course).

Guess that's about it for now. Am still super sleepy. Eyelids are drooping something fierce. *sad girl with heavy eyelids*

0928 hrs:
This article made tears come to my eyes at the end of it. Sure, it starts out snarky, but the last paragraph made me feel so many strong, mixed emotions, I got all teary. *knows she is pathetic*

1053 hrs:
Taking a brief break from the grind. This morning feels leisurely. I have put my ear phones in because I don't want to hear any of the political discussion that might crop up periodically today. Democrats heavily outweigh Republicans in this office, so the two Republicans get really pissed off sometimes. I don't blame them, being 20-some against 2. Talk about feeling like the kid who gets picked on at recess... I don't sympathize completely with them of course. I think it's pretty obvious which "side" I am on.

I'm getting really excited to vote tomorrow. This will be the third Presidential election that I've gotten to vote in. Isn't the democratic political process exciting? It makes me giddy to get to cast my vote. I still haven't decided whether or not I'll watch election coverage tomorrow or not. I so rarely turn on the TV, I'm kind of hesitant to start now. Plus, it's not like knowing the outcome before I got to sleep will help me any. I'll either be super-happy or super-pissed. Either emotion will make it hard to go to sleep. Maybe best just to wait until the morning to find out who wins.

Nailz - when are you going to vote? Before or after work? Do you want to go to the polls together? I'm sure some company would be nice, because the lines are pretty much garuanteed to be long.

1205 hrs:
I went to the party at Jo-L's on Saturday night. My friend and I went dressed up as Samantha and Miranda from Sex in the City. It was nice to be able to wear my fancy business suit; I never get to wear it otherwise. I think I looked pretty good, if I do say so myself. We only stayed at the party long enough to drink a beer (about 20 minutes) and then took off. I didn't say goodbye to the host, which I know is rude. He was so absorbed in his other guests that I'm sure he didn't even notice. The good thing is, I think that our quick exit will be sure to throw him off my trail and he won't be contacting me again. This is a big relief. If he does contact me, I won't have any problems being blunt with him. He's not a bad guy, but I don't want anything to do with him. He reminds me too strongly of other guys in the past who've all ended up being complete dickheads and my gut tells me that this guy is the same. I'm old (and hopefully, wise) enough to know to listen to what my guy says about people. I'm not looking for a serious relationship, but I would appreciate a guy who's not seeing others and possibly sleeping around on the side.

Oh - and just looked at my planner and all of my weekends up until Thanksgiving are completely booked. How weird! I feel kind of panicked thinking about it. I long for an easy-going weekend where I can stay home all day and not go out...*wistful sigh*

Got a new cell phone last week. It has the worst ringtones on it! They are horribly cheesy and outdated. It shames me every time it rings. It makes me feel un-hip - so I set out on a quest to get better ringtones. I wanted some NEWS or KAT-TUN ringtones, but they are not available through Verizon. Also, tried following a few tutorials on the internet for how to make your own and get them on your Verizon phone, but they did not work either. *sadness* Ended up going online and finding a few nice ones. BUT - when I tried to buy and download them, Verizon let me know that my phone does not support purchasing ringtones online, so I had to do it from my phone. Super exasperated by that point, I purchased the first 3 ringtones I found that didn't sound shitty. They cost me (get this....drum roll please) $2.99 per ringtone. Isn't that just scandalous!? I felt like I had been bent over on that one. But I was desperate - I was going to really die of shame the next time my phone rang in public if I didn't get a new ringtone...*sigh*

Anywho - Feel like I'm boring you all, so I'll leave it at that for today. Hope everyone is having a lovely, post-daylight savings time Monday!

Labels: election, grocery titans, Jo-L, sleepy, work