A little over three weeks to go and we will be through five years. Five long years. I feel some days I have moved forward and at the same time am still spinning my wheels in many respects. I know there are good things on the horizon, but I still feel overwhelmed some days. Feel like I haven't done a damn thing. I am just a cog in the machine slowly turning round and round.
Woke up way too early. Drove off to the client which was about 2 miles from my hotel. If I had walked it would have been a little over a mile but due to one way streets, it was farther to drive. Go figure. Arrived about 7:30 and had 90 minutes to kill. I needed to be there a little early to configure the room but still ended up with way too much time on my hands. Today I don't plan on arriving until 8:30, but my body is so used to being up, that I now have three hours to kill. I may actually eat breakfast. Probably not, but there's always the slim chance I will get so bored - shit I just remembered I left my flash drive stuck in the client's machine. Need to remember to remove that this morning. Writing a post-it note right now...
Okay. Back on track. Taught all day. Decent group. About 11 students. We went all the way up until 5 and then I headed back to the hotel. On the way I stopped at the mall to get a new pair of pants as the ones I brought were the wrong ones. They are too casual for this gig. I needed my dress pants but grabbed the wrong ones when I left. I first went to Fridays for dinner, then found pants. Also stopped at a grocery store for some supplies and lunch for today. There is nothing onsite to eat and I don't feel like trying to drive around an unfamiliar place at lunch. I was back at the hotel by 7.
Relaxed, caught up on emails, and finished the third book in the Maze Runner series. Talked with B and went to bed around 10.
Today I teach the same class to a different group. Apparently it is hot back at home and everyone is whining about it. I am in 50 degree weather with a tornado looming. I wish I was back where it was hot. Three more days and I will be back home. Then a show. Whee.
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Y5 D339
So sleepy. Hate the first day after traveling. I am so off. Two days in a row where I have been up at 3am. Three if you count being up Sunday after the show. Need more sleep. Decent travel day at least. Didn't get my upgrade on my first flight into Dallas, but I did get it on the second from Dallas to Tulsa which is kind of okay as we ended up sitting at the gate for 45 minutes waiting for mechanical issues. At least I got to sit in a comfy seat while we waited. My new bag did pretty good too. The funny part is it fit better under the coach seat than it did under the first class seat. The first class seats are a little lower and it was scraping the top. Under the coach seat it fit with no problem. Go figure. I was on a 757 yesterday for both flights and I still have yet to see how it does on a RJ80, but so far so good.
Got to Tulsa around 2:30 and made it to the hotel about 3. I did get a nice king suite upgrade at least. I was looking at the floor map and there are only four of these on each floor which makes me feel pretty good. It's not like I need the extra room, but it's nice to have.
Ironed all my clothes for the week, talked to B once she got home, walked over to an Outback for dinner, and then played Diablo. Yes, I can play it on my laptop which was a nice surprise. I didn't know if it would be to graphics intensive, but it played nicely. Finished reading the second book in the Maze Runner series and found a mobi version of the third. Given the time difference I sat in bed reading until almost 11. At this point I will finish reading the series just because I want to know how everything turns out. I am too invested in the books to give up now.
I have about 2 hours before I have to be onsite. I should get some breakfast but I am just not hungry. I will figure it out at lunch time. Two different groups today and tomorrow followed by a 3rd day of mixed mentoring. Paid rent. Next up is to call the new place and see what they will have available come June 1st. Changes are on the wind...
Got to Tulsa around 2:30 and made it to the hotel about 3. I did get a nice king suite upgrade at least. I was looking at the floor map and there are only four of these on each floor which makes me feel pretty good. It's not like I need the extra room, but it's nice to have.
Ironed all my clothes for the week, talked to B once she got home, walked over to an Outback for dinner, and then played Diablo. Yes, I can play it on my laptop which was a nice surprise. I didn't know if it would be to graphics intensive, but it played nicely. Finished reading the second book in the Maze Runner series and found a mobi version of the third. Given the time difference I sat in bed reading until almost 11. At this point I will finish reading the series just because I want to know how everything turns out. I am too invested in the books to give up now.
I have about 2 hours before I have to be onsite. I should get some breakfast but I am just not hungry. I will figure it out at lunch time. Two different groups today and tomorrow followed by a 3rd day of mixed mentoring. Paid rent. Next up is to call the new place and see what they will have available come June 1st. Changes are on the wind...
Monday, April 28, 2014
Y5 D338
Travel day! Up at 2:45, arrive at destination at 2pm CST. Fun day ahead of me. No known upgrades yet either which sucks. But we can always hope. Yesterday was a seriously lazy day. B didn't get up until noon. Made her breakfast and then we relaxed. She caught up on PLL and tried to start a new show but I kind of ruined it for her. We started to watch Bates Motel. First of, spoilers. Whatever. So it's supposed to be a prequel and it starts off feeling like it's in the 50s which made sense. But then fast forward a few minutes and it's modern days. WTF? Okay, I can handle that. But then the murder happens and I am sorry but my first instinct was "CALL THE FUCKING POLICE". They didn't do anything wrong, no court would have convicted them, but no, they drop the body in the fucking lake. Done, so done. I kept a running commentary going during the show which B hates and so we watched one episode. I then opted to go into the other room while she watched "My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding". Oy. I had to close the door to the other room. The stupidity was too much for me. Made chicken for dinner and then we had a BBT marathon. That was enjoyable up until about 7 when B took a melancholy turn. She hates when I am on the road and so she got all sad. We went to bed around 9:40 and she couldn't sleep. Not my problem. I need to be up soon. She understood and put on her iPod. That was nice of her actually. I fell right asleep. Okay, time to finish organizing and go to OK. Oh joy!
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Y5 D337
Why am I up so early on a sunday after a show? Flight check in. I am totally going back to sleep in ten minutes. 2 hours and 32 minutes is not enough. Not even for me. But I figured I would kill a few and type this up.
Ran some errands in the morning including picking up a fun little thing for B. I got her this little origami giraffe which held two truffles in it. Very cute and it's something she can keep. Other than that not much went on yesterday. I wandered around the mall and got a couple of t-shirts for me. Came back home, waited for B, made pork chops. We went to a friend's house pre-show and hung out.
The show was pretty good. One of our cast members proposed to his GF on stage (aw) which was really sweet and everything BUT B and I are pissed because their date is 3 weeks before ours. Not cool.
The show itself went okay. Got out around 2:30 and voila. Here we are. Flight check in time. I will see you tomorrow at 2:45 when I get up to leave for OK.
Ran some errands in the morning including picking up a fun little thing for B. I got her this little origami giraffe which held two truffles in it. Very cute and it's something she can keep. Other than that not much went on yesterday. I wandered around the mall and got a couple of t-shirts for me. Came back home, waited for B, made pork chops. We went to a friend's house pre-show and hung out.
The show was pretty good. One of our cast members proposed to his GF on stage (aw) which was really sweet and everything BUT B and I are pissed because their date is 3 weeks before ours. Not cool.
The show itself went okay. Got out around 2:30 and voila. Here we are. Flight check in time. I will see you tomorrow at 2:45 when I get up to leave for OK.
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Y5 D336
Nothing of any real news from yesterday. I worked, B watched Grey's while dying. She finally admitted that what she has is a head cold and not just allergies and treated it appropriately. I think she is finally starting to feel better.
Class was a bit annoying for me. One student in particular was either really fucking stupid or not paying attention. Either way it made for a real challenge. Even other students in my class were starting to get annoyed with her. But we made it through without anyone losing it.
When I was done with class we went to BJs for dinner. I have come to really like that place. For a chain, I find it acceptable. Plus they have a new mobile pay option which means you don't have to wait for a check. At any point once your order has been put it in, you can go to the website, see your order in real time and pay it. That means that if your server screws up and let's say forgets something, you can see it right then and there. Hey where's my whatever, oh I don't know, yeah because you didn't put it on the ticket. BAM.
After dinner we hit Target because B is looking for some new summer tops. That took a bit of a sour turn. She is feeling fat and it made for a frustrating trip. We tried hitting the mall too but that didn't work out so well. When we got back home she didn't want to talk because of the frustration coupled with illness. I let her be and went and caught up on stuff I would have had to do today. Went to bed around 10:30 and she was already knocked out from drugs.
Today I have to pack and get ready for a show. Two more days and I am back on the road. I am actually excited about it. Odd, I know. I also hope my niece is having good travels today. She is off to Florida and it sounds like she has hit some bumps already. Welcome to air travel Sis. This is what I deal with every time. Fun shit.
Time to take a shower.
Class was a bit annoying for me. One student in particular was either really fucking stupid or not paying attention. Either way it made for a real challenge. Even other students in my class were starting to get annoyed with her. But we made it through without anyone losing it.
When I was done with class we went to BJs for dinner. I have come to really like that place. For a chain, I find it acceptable. Plus they have a new mobile pay option which means you don't have to wait for a check. At any point once your order has been put it in, you can go to the website, see your order in real time and pay it. That means that if your server screws up and let's say forgets something, you can see it right then and there. Hey where's my whatever, oh I don't know, yeah because you didn't put it on the ticket. BAM.
After dinner we hit Target because B is looking for some new summer tops. That took a bit of a sour turn. She is feeling fat and it made for a frustrating trip. We tried hitting the mall too but that didn't work out so well. When we got back home she didn't want to talk because of the frustration coupled with illness. I let her be and went and caught up on stuff I would have had to do today. Went to bed around 10:30 and she was already knocked out from drugs.
Today I have to pack and get ready for a show. Two more days and I am back on the road. I am actually excited about it. Odd, I know. I also hope my niece is having good travels today. She is off to Florida and it sounds like she has hit some bumps already. Welcome to air travel Sis. This is what I deal with every time. Fun shit.
Time to take a shower.
Friday, April 25, 2014
Y5 D335
I am a little hungover this morning as well as functioning on 4 hours of sleep, but for a good reason. What kind of reason would send me drinking on Thursday night especially given how good I have been lately you ask? The only valid one - a death. Yesterday during my afternoon class break I received an email, my director's brother died. The same one who 3 years ago I went down and saw in a nursing home. The same one who had the stroke, the brain damage, etc. He died of cardiac arrest yesterday at 48 years old. Needless to say I was thrown off for the remainder of my class. We went over to there house around 8 last night with flowers, cookies, cake, card, and vodka. All the tools needed to grieve properly. There was no way we were letting her be alone last night. There were about six of us over at the house staying by her side until she was doing okay. We ended up leaving at around 11:30. So that was my afternoon/evening. I am proud of B for also going with me since her allergies are still kicking her ass. We have decided (okay she decided) that what she has is not a head cold but allergies because of the sneezing she is doing. She was seriously messed up yesterday unable to breath or function. The fact that she was able to make it as late as she did last night made me real happy. She knew it was one of those important nights where personal pain was trumped by dead brother. Same thing goes for sleep. I know I am going to pay for this today but it was important. That was yesterday. Teaching, death, drinking, grieving. And now thank the lord, it's Friday. Get through this class and then a show, then off to the grand state of OK! Whee.
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Y5 D334
Very out of it today. I was right in the middle of an intense dream when my alarm went off at me screaming. It shocked my system into waking up. Not a nice wakeup but full frontal assault kind of wakeup. Not cool. The dream involved X2 which is weird since I haven't thought about her in forever. In my dream we were somewhere and I just kept thinking to myself how skinny she looked. Not good kind of skinny but the sick kind. Where she had twigs for arms and legs and looked like she was starving. Kind of scary.
Taught yesterday, did some hotel reservations. Realized that starting Monday I am on the road for the next three weeks between three different clients. First OK, then a 'local' gig for three days where I am staying one night at a friend's house then one night in a hotel, followed by a week in Reno. May is already booked tight. I get three days of peace in May otherwise I am jammed tight. B got home around 5 and was dying. She isn't sure if it is allergies or a cold unfortunately. It could be either. She loaded up on drugs and passed out around 8. She will be sleeping for 12 hours, you watch. Heck maybe even more since she doesn't have to work today.
Not much else going on. Same shit different day.
Taught yesterday, did some hotel reservations. Realized that starting Monday I am on the road for the next three weeks between three different clients. First OK, then a 'local' gig for three days where I am staying one night at a friend's house then one night in a hotel, followed by a week in Reno. May is already booked tight. I get three days of peace in May otherwise I am jammed tight. B got home around 5 and was dying. She isn't sure if it is allergies or a cold unfortunately. It could be either. She loaded up on drugs and passed out around 8. She will be sleeping for 12 hours, you watch. Heck maybe even more since she doesn't have to work today.
Not much else going on. Same shit different day.
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Y5 D333
Interesting day yesterday. Nothing exciting happened, but it was interesting none the less. I taught a class but only had two students. Made for a very personal/private kind of session. For once I was able to leave everyone off of mute which made them feel great but was weird for me. I am used to talking and not getting any feedback real time. I also woke up super early due to some indigestion. Nothing like starting the day off with stomach issues. On top of that, one of my students didn't show up until 40 minutes into class. Luckily with just the two of them we were able to still get through all the material. After class I played some DS. I bought a new DS game, Disney Magical World, last week and I have been really enjoying it. It's like an Animal Crossing kind of game but much more quest centric which I like. It has so many characters in it too which is fun. B got home and she wanted Taco Bell. I need to break her of eating there. It's not good for either of us. She needs to eat more at home but it isn't what she is used to even a year after living with me. Came back and we did a mini marathon on BBT. We made it into Season 5 but we stopped when we found one of the episodes is bad. I need to dig out the DVD to rerip that one episode. Plus I also realized my directory of season 7 is spotty. I am missing an episode from early in the season and it hasn't updated in a while. Need to take care of that before we get to season 7. She started feeling like she had a cold coming on and then realized at 9:40 she was out of cold medicine. Sigh, off to CVS I went for her. She got all emotional because I was crabby about going out at night. Sorry but I had already changed for the night and was cranky about moving my car and possibly losing my parking space. I was overly grouchy on the subject so it was my fault.
In other news, my sister sent me a very nice catch up email which was great. I now know everything going on in her life. She needs to kill her in-laws. Or at least kick her husband in the butt to get them back in their own place. Otherwise, things seem like they are doing good for her. I am thankful for her. At least I have one relative out there I give a rat's patootie about.
Five students today. One day class. It's a light one so I should finish early. Then I have a two day system admin class for Thurs/Fri. THEN I am off to Tulsa. Yay OK. It is a new state for me so I am kind of excited about it. Plus I haven't really gone anywhere since Feb so I am overdue for a road trip. 5 days in OK away from everything. Yeah, I need it.
In other news, my sister sent me a very nice catch up email which was great. I now know everything going on in her life. She needs to kill her in-laws. Or at least kick her husband in the butt to get them back in their own place. Otherwise, things seem like they are doing good for her. I am thankful for her. At least I have one relative out there I give a rat's patootie about.
Five students today. One day class. It's a light one so I should finish early. Then I have a two day system admin class for Thurs/Fri. THEN I am off to Tulsa. Yay OK. It is a new state for me so I am kind of excited about it. Plus I haven't really gone anywhere since Feb so I am overdue for a road trip. 5 days in OK away from everything. Yeah, I need it.
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Y5 D332
Woke up about 30 minutes before my alarm with massive indigestion. We had burritos last night and I am paying for it this morning. It has to do mostly with the fact that B didn't get home until after 7 and neither of us wanted to cook. Well I did but she didn't want ham again. Fine. As long as she is paying. I have bills going out and need to be and need to be frugal until payday. Not broke, just frugal. But man I can't wait until we move and I have 800-900 extra a month. It will make such a difference. B went in late yesterday due to one of her coworkers being sick. They needed her coverage more in the afternoon and evening to make up the deficit. She didn't go in until 9:30. Since I didn't teach yesterday we both had a nice leisurely morning. I wrote up a webinar, washed my car, updated timesheets, and all sorts of fun admin type stuff. Then I read, followed by some Diablo. Excitement abounds around here people. I have classes all the rest of the week and then I get to go off to OK. Had a team meeting yesterday and it looks like there will be some more upcoming trips once we hit June and July. Good, I need the mileage and the hotel points. Need to keep my status. Um, that's about it. Not much else going on here. Hope everyone out there is doing okay. I know I am a lousy friend/brother/whatever sometimes and don't follow up as much as I should, but I do think about you. I do care if you're doing well. I just sometimes forget to show it.
Monday, April 21, 2014
Y5 D331
Had a damn good day yesterday. B woke up and we 'found' all the presents the Easter Bunny left. He left B a basket with some nail pens in it, two bags of Doritos, and a basket of candy. Plus he hid all the eggs. Yeah I know, it was dumb but it was dumb fun. We both enjoyed having some stupid fun so I will not apologize for it. It was silly yet a good silly. B ended up going back to sleep for two hours while I played Diablo. When she got up, we watched some TV, relaxed, read, and had a quiet drama free Sunday. She wanted to watch her Grey's so I went in the other room. She was sad when she realized she only had three left in the season and no more were available on Netflix. Thankfully with the help of a wonderful person, I was able to get all of the current season for her. There's still three episodes left to air, but she has everything that has aired to date. Now she has 18 episodes left to watch. I wanted her to also have it since I will be on the road next week. This will give her something to focus on while I am gone. For dinner I made a huge Easter meal of ham, potatoes, green bean casserole (she loves this shit and I do not know why), and biscuits. We were both stuffed like little piggies. I went to bed around 11 and she followed right after the episode she was watching was over.
The only thing that distracted me from the day was casting email for our next show. Our director is being grumpy because too many people have checked out of a special show in May. Sorry, it's on a Friday, too far from the house, and I don't even know if I will be in town that week. I can't plan that far in advance with my schedule. Especially for a weeknight show. On top of that, this is the 4th show in a row where I haven't been the emcee which is starting to piss me off. This doesn't feel like 'rotating' to me. Whatever. After we move I will be pulling back anyway so the less responsibilities I have, the better.
Today I have to put together a presentation for an upcoming webinar, figure out a technical issue for one of my students from Friday, and plan out the next month with my boss. Busy day, but at least I don't have to talk. I also need to make a car reservation for next Monday. Fun stuff.
The only thing that distracted me from the day was casting email for our next show. Our director is being grumpy because too many people have checked out of a special show in May. Sorry, it's on a Friday, too far from the house, and I don't even know if I will be in town that week. I can't plan that far in advance with my schedule. Especially for a weeknight show. On top of that, this is the 4th show in a row where I haven't been the emcee which is starting to piss me off. This doesn't feel like 'rotating' to me. Whatever. After we move I will be pulling back anyway so the less responsibilities I have, the better.
Today I have to put together a presentation for an upcoming webinar, figure out a technical issue for one of my students from Friday, and plan out the next month with my boss. Busy day, but at least I don't have to talk. I also need to make a car reservation for next Monday. Fun stuff.
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Y5 D330
Happy Easter! I think the Easter Bunny came and left presents in the other room! Just have to wait until B wakes up to go a hunting!
We had a pretty good day yesterday. I was in a bit of a mood last night because my tinnitus is acting up in my left ear and I have been dealing with a high pitched whine. I am planning to make a doctor's appointment for it as soon as I have a free day. Other than that it was good.
I did some follow up cleaning to what B did on Friday. Mostly the heavy duty stuff. I first went to Target and got some general stuff including a scrub brush and some comet. Our tub has been looking dingy and needed a good solid scrubbing. Took care of that and the like. Played some Diablo, read a book, and relaxed.
When B got home we had dinner and then around 7:30 headed out to a party. It was our friend's celebration for graduating college. It meant a lot to him as this has taken him forever. He is 37 and finally managed to graduate. I can understand how he feels. That sense of accomplishment. Also he comes to all of our events and didn't want him to feel bad. He invited 60 people and 14 showed. At least I was one of the 14. People remember shit like that. It was at the pub so there was drinking and karaoke and a fun time for all. Even B drank. She drank just right to the point of having fun but not too much fun. I know this because when we got home it was monkey sex time. No complaints here. Go monkey sex.
Fell asleep near 1. Let's see how long until she gets up. I want to hunt for eggs!
We had a pretty good day yesterday. I was in a bit of a mood last night because my tinnitus is acting up in my left ear and I have been dealing with a high pitched whine. I am planning to make a doctor's appointment for it as soon as I have a free day. Other than that it was good.
I did some follow up cleaning to what B did on Friday. Mostly the heavy duty stuff. I first went to Target and got some general stuff including a scrub brush and some comet. Our tub has been looking dingy and needed a good solid scrubbing. Took care of that and the like. Played some Diablo, read a book, and relaxed.
When B got home we had dinner and then around 7:30 headed out to a party. It was our friend's celebration for graduating college. It meant a lot to him as this has taken him forever. He is 37 and finally managed to graduate. I can understand how he feels. That sense of accomplishment. Also he comes to all of our events and didn't want him to feel bad. He invited 60 people and 14 showed. At least I was one of the 14. People remember shit like that. It was at the pub so there was drinking and karaoke and a fun time for all. Even B drank. She drank just right to the point of having fun but not too much fun. I know this because when we got home it was monkey sex time. No complaints here. Go monkey sex.
Fell asleep near 1. Let's see how long until she gets up. I want to hunt for eggs!
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Y5 D329
Had a fun night. Friend's came over and we dyed easter eggs, had pizza, some libations, played CAH, and in general just had fun. We also for once didn't spend the majority of the night talking about cast or cast related issues. We talked about other stuff which was a nice diversion. Our eggs came out pretty damn good if I do say so myself.
During the day I trained while B was off. She took care of all the cleaning in the morning which I really appreciated because it means I can actually relax today on my day off. I don't have to stress about cleaning the house. I have a couple of small errands to run today but otherwise I am free.
After cleaning she relaxed and watched a Grey's marathon. She only has a few episodes left in Season 9 and I don't have season 10 so I don't know what she is going to do next. Cest la vie.
That's about the extent of the day. Not much going on but no issues either. My big drama days are starting to finally be behind me which is nice. I keep writing this in part to remember the things I have done, but also to remind myself that things do get better. That a boring night of dyeing eggs and having pizza is a positive thing.
I can handle that.
During the day I trained while B was off. She took care of all the cleaning in the morning which I really appreciated because it means I can actually relax today on my day off. I don't have to stress about cleaning the house. I have a couple of small errands to run today but otherwise I am free.
After cleaning she relaxed and watched a Grey's marathon. She only has a few episodes left in Season 9 and I don't have season 10 so I don't know what she is going to do next. Cest la vie.
That's about the extent of the day. Not much going on but no issues either. My big drama days are starting to finally be behind me which is nice. I keep writing this in part to remember the things I have done, but also to remind myself that things do get better. That a boring night of dyeing eggs and having pizza is a positive thing.
I can handle that.
Friday, April 18, 2014
Y5 D328
How'd you spend your Thursday night? I painted a lifelike replica of my friend's hand in a thumbs up position, you know - the usual. No seriously that's what we did last night. Our friend has this awful habit of photobombing pictures with a thumbs up so B bought one of those kits that let you mold things. We had him stick his hand in it and then finally tonight we painted it. It's been sitting here unpainted for a couple of weeks now. This thing looks scary real. We want to eventually put it on a stick then use it to photobomb. As one does, right?
Taught all day, got through class. Three students - one really sharp, one doing okay, one a moron. It all averages out for me. The one sharp one I am actually more worried about because I want to make sure he gets the most out of this class. But in the end I got through, all was good. One more day with the same group. Then it's the weekend. Woo hoo! Funny how this time last week I was waking up in a hotel room and going to Disneyland. The days just keep coming no matter what we do. Can't stop them if we try.
Pause. Must use bathroom.
Okay back. B had the day off yesterday. I won't lie, there's a couple things about her that I hope change as she gets older, one of which is how she uses her time on a day off. I think part of it has to do with 'ownership' and it will change once we move. To her in some respects this is 'my place'. She moved into my space. When we move later this year she will see it more as her place and there will be a larger sense of ownership. By all this I mean when I have a day off (like tomorrow) I plan on spending it cleaning. I take pride in where I live and sitting around on a day off while there's cleaning to do is hard for me. I want her to clean at least a little on her day off. Alas she didn't. Which sucks because we have people coming over tonight to dye eggs. Whatever. Like I say, I can handle it now. As long as she grows into wanting to be more responsible for the space around her. There's very little about her where I blame age, but sometimes it rears its head.
When I was done teaching we went out to get the paint for our evening project. With that done we came back, relaxed, painted, and had a nice night. I went to bed around 11 and she come in sometime later I think around 1. Also a problem when she has a day off, but much more understandable.
Okay, teach, clean, eggs. The plan for the day!
Taught all day, got through class. Three students - one really sharp, one doing okay, one a moron. It all averages out for me. The one sharp one I am actually more worried about because I want to make sure he gets the most out of this class. But in the end I got through, all was good. One more day with the same group. Then it's the weekend. Woo hoo! Funny how this time last week I was waking up in a hotel room and going to Disneyland. The days just keep coming no matter what we do. Can't stop them if we try.
Pause. Must use bathroom.
Okay back. B had the day off yesterday. I won't lie, there's a couple things about her that I hope change as she gets older, one of which is how she uses her time on a day off. I think part of it has to do with 'ownership' and it will change once we move. To her in some respects this is 'my place'. She moved into my space. When we move later this year she will see it more as her place and there will be a larger sense of ownership. By all this I mean when I have a day off (like tomorrow) I plan on spending it cleaning. I take pride in where I live and sitting around on a day off while there's cleaning to do is hard for me. I want her to clean at least a little on her day off. Alas she didn't. Which sucks because we have people coming over tonight to dye eggs. Whatever. Like I say, I can handle it now. As long as she grows into wanting to be more responsible for the space around her. There's very little about her where I blame age, but sometimes it rears its head.
When I was done teaching we went out to get the paint for our evening project. With that done we came back, relaxed, painted, and had a nice night. I went to bed around 11 and she come in sometime later I think around 1. Also a problem when she has a day off, but much more understandable.
Okay, teach, clean, eggs. The plan for the day!
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Y5 D327
Sleepy this morning. Did not sleep well last night. Weird dreams, random wake ups. Just not a good night. Plus my throat has been bugging me this week. Too much talking I think. I haven't let up in almost three weeks. I need a day off from talking all together. Let my throat rest. That or I have a cold coming on which is just as bad.
Taught day three yesterday. Got everyone through the material. New group today for the next two days. Plus I got my next road assignment for May - Reno. Whee. Of all the places, Reno. Ugh. I don't know who the client is yet but just the thought of spending a week in Reno annoys me. It's bad enough when we do shows there let alone be there for a client. But at least it's drivable and I know the town. Find the positive.
Took a brief nap after class, B came home around 5. We attempted to marathon 3 episodes of Agents of Shield but I realized about halfway through the second episode that it was all spoilers from Winter Soldier which we haven't seen yet. We decided to not watch the 3rd episode until we see Winter Soldier. While I appreciate continuity and I appreciate all the story lines tying together, it's the same thing that used to drive me nuts with comic books. You have to read them ALL to get a full story. Marvel is applying the same logic here - watch everything or miss something. FINE.
B headed to bed around 9, I played some Diablo and went to bed around 10. She has the next two days off so this should be interesting.
Taught day three yesterday. Got everyone through the material. New group today for the next two days. Plus I got my next road assignment for May - Reno. Whee. Of all the places, Reno. Ugh. I don't know who the client is yet but just the thought of spending a week in Reno annoys me. It's bad enough when we do shows there let alone be there for a client. But at least it's drivable and I know the town. Find the positive.
Took a brief nap after class, B came home around 5. We attempted to marathon 3 episodes of Agents of Shield but I realized about halfway through the second episode that it was all spoilers from Winter Soldier which we haven't seen yet. We decided to not watch the 3rd episode until we see Winter Soldier. While I appreciate continuity and I appreciate all the story lines tying together, it's the same thing that used to drive me nuts with comic books. You have to read them ALL to get a full story. Marvel is applying the same logic here - watch everything or miss something. FINE.
B headed to bed around 9, I played some Diablo and went to bed around 10. She has the next two days off so this should be interesting.
Wednesday, April 16, 2014
Y5 D326
I am worried about a friend of mine. I have sent him some emails and I know he is reading them, but no replies back. There's only a handful of people I really give two shits about and he is one of them. Don't make me drive up there to see if you're okay. I just worry. It's my job.
Taught all day. After class I was about to head out to CVS to pick up a prescription and some easter stuff when B came home. That was odd as she wasn't due for another 2 hours. She was suffering from a major migraine and almost couldn't drive home the pain was so bad. She went off in the other room and fell asleep for 3 hours. I didn't know if she was going to wake up in time, but I made dinner anyway with the expectation she could eat later. I made a roast pork loin, mac and cheese, and corn. I bring it up because while she was able to get up and eat, the pain came right back after dinner and she ended up in the bathroom sending dinner the other direction. She was avoiding taking any meds because they're pure caffeine and it would keep her up all night. Around 7 she had no other choice and popped the pills. By 9 things were better, but as expected, she was up all night. Between sleeping and the meds that was it. I think she got maybe one or two hours of sleep last night. Which is going to make for a fucked up day today, Sigh. Yesterday started off pretty rough for her too. Around 6 we both heard knocking. I thought it was coming from the front door area but it seemed like it was the neighbor banging on the wall. WTF? We weren't making any noise obviously as B was asleep and I was in here typing away. We still haven't gotten to the bottom of that issue but if it repeats this morning there will be hell to pay.
Got new episodes of shows to watch tonight. Just need to make it through one more day of teaching. Well and two tomorrow. Nothing planned for the weekend though which is nice. I did get some easter stuff as planned. I plan on surprising B with an easter basket on sunday. That should be fun.
Taught all day. After class I was about to head out to CVS to pick up a prescription and some easter stuff when B came home. That was odd as she wasn't due for another 2 hours. She was suffering from a major migraine and almost couldn't drive home the pain was so bad. She went off in the other room and fell asleep for 3 hours. I didn't know if she was going to wake up in time, but I made dinner anyway with the expectation she could eat later. I made a roast pork loin, mac and cheese, and corn. I bring it up because while she was able to get up and eat, the pain came right back after dinner and she ended up in the bathroom sending dinner the other direction. She was avoiding taking any meds because they're pure caffeine and it would keep her up all night. Around 7 she had no other choice and popped the pills. By 9 things were better, but as expected, she was up all night. Between sleeping and the meds that was it. I think she got maybe one or two hours of sleep last night. Which is going to make for a fucked up day today, Sigh. Yesterday started off pretty rough for her too. Around 6 we both heard knocking. I thought it was coming from the front door area but it seemed like it was the neighbor banging on the wall. WTF? We weren't making any noise obviously as B was asleep and I was in here typing away. We still haven't gotten to the bottom of that issue but if it repeats this morning there will be hell to pay.
Got new episodes of shows to watch tonight. Just need to make it through one more day of teaching. Well and two tomorrow. Nothing planned for the weekend though which is nice. I did get some easter stuff as planned. I plan on surprising B with an easter basket on sunday. That should be fun.
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Y5 D325
The taxman cometh. Or at least in my house he stopped by yesterday during lunch. And technically he's my company's CFO and he happens to do my taxes for me. But that sounds a lot less ominous now doesn't it? But stop by he did. He brought me my return, B's return, and the kid's return. Good news? B gets back around 250 fed and state, the kid around 350 and I get back 7900. And this year? This year I get to keep every goddamn penny of it. Nothing to the IRS nor anything to the state. My obligations to both of them are paid in full. Which means I will enough money to pay half of the wedding venue, money for our move, enough to ay off three credit cards, and still put something away in savings. There's also enough if I want to treat myself to a little something for my birthday. Nothing fancy or crazy, but enough that I will feel like not all of my money went to practical things. You realize if I could keep this level of return for the next couple of years how much my debt would go down? I could have it all gone so soon.
Other than the good news from my tax guy, I taught all day yesterday, followed by a much needed grocery trip. It's been nearly a month since I went grocery shopping. When I step back and look at it, we only spend 200-300 a month on groceries. That's not bad. It really isn't. I spent a lot less when it was just me, but I also wasn't eating right. I spent a little over 200 yesterday but I have enough food for at least 3 weeks of dinners, lunches, etc. Can't eat out for the long on that much.
Got back from the grocery store and the kid came over. She needed to sign her return. She stayed for dinner and the three of us had fish tacos. While we were eating we got the quote from the caterer on the wedding. It was met by a resounding suck my dick by me. They picked the most expensive entrees on their menu, they added way too much in stupid shit like coffee service and staff, and overall it was a disgusting quote. They want $3700 for everything. Um no. B's grandmother is going to go in there today and chew them a new one. I feel like we can get that down to $2800 at least. To me $2500 would be about right, but we shall see. This of course stressed B out because her grandmother offered to pay for catering and she is freaked out by the price. I told her to relax about it because we don't have to accept the first offer given. Hell, we don't have to accept it at all if we don't want.
We did get the paperwork confirming the venue is paid for and arranged. One thing down. Also I found a tux I like online. $155 on overstock. I may just pick that up in the next few weeks. One more thing down.
We watched some Criminal Minds. It does seem like I am missing some shows - Supernatural and Agents of Shield to be exact, but this time of year with breaks and hiatuses I may just be off. I need to look things up. Oh well.
Another day of teaching followed by nothing on the calendar for the evening. I can handle.
Other than the good news from my tax guy, I taught all day yesterday, followed by a much needed grocery trip. It's been nearly a month since I went grocery shopping. When I step back and look at it, we only spend 200-300 a month on groceries. That's not bad. It really isn't. I spent a lot less when it was just me, but I also wasn't eating right. I spent a little over 200 yesterday but I have enough food for at least 3 weeks of dinners, lunches, etc. Can't eat out for the long on that much.
Got back from the grocery store and the kid came over. She needed to sign her return. She stayed for dinner and the three of us had fish tacos. While we were eating we got the quote from the caterer on the wedding. It was met by a resounding suck my dick by me. They picked the most expensive entrees on their menu, they added way too much in stupid shit like coffee service and staff, and overall it was a disgusting quote. They want $3700 for everything. Um no. B's grandmother is going to go in there today and chew them a new one. I feel like we can get that down to $2800 at least. To me $2500 would be about right, but we shall see. This of course stressed B out because her grandmother offered to pay for catering and she is freaked out by the price. I told her to relax about it because we don't have to accept the first offer given. Hell, we don't have to accept it at all if we don't want.
We did get the paperwork confirming the venue is paid for and arranged. One thing down. Also I found a tux I like online. $155 on overstock. I may just pick that up in the next few weeks. One more thing down.
We watched some Criminal Minds. It does seem like I am missing some shows - Supernatural and Agents of Shield to be exact, but this time of year with breaks and hiatuses I may just be off. I need to look things up. Oh well.
Another day of teaching followed by nothing on the calendar for the evening. I can handle.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Y5 D324
Man what a long day. One of those days where around 7 you're just like WTF? Feels like I have been up forever. Got up yesterday around 6 or so. Felt good to be sleeping in my own bed again. I was really disappointed in the beds at the HGI we were at this time. I have gotten too spoiled by the nicer Hilton. It's different when I am on the road and there is no other choice. But this time was annoying. When B got up we got ready and headed out to the train station. We stopped first at Panera since it is across the street and B needed food. She was unhappy with her food since they said the entire menu was available but then they tell us they have no soup ready. Fail. We got on the train around 10:20 and made it into the city a little after 11. Our friend who convinced us to go to this Bridal Fair didn't show up until 11:30 or so. In that half our we managed to walk the entire floor and see everything.
Overall it was a decent time. We got some ideas on a couple of things, made an appointment for B to look at dresses, had free food, and entered eleventy billion giveaways. We watched a fashion show where she saw some dresses she liked. The nice part about dealing with most of these folks was all we had to say when they started pushing was "We are having the wedding in Michigan, do you travel?". Oh. No. Well then stop talking to us. The ones that were really annoying were the timeshare people. B didn't realize that's what most of the 'free' trip giveaways were. We actually 'won' one for 3/2 in Vegas at the Riviera but, no thank you. You had to sit through their presentation, get yourself there, and it's a shitty hotel to stay at anyway. Pass.
We headed out around 2 as there was a baseball game nearby and I wanted to be back on the train before it let out and we had to deal with drunks and idiots. We got home around 3.
From there it was do nothing time. We both knew it was too late to nap even though we were exhausted. B ended up marathoning Grey's Anatomy and I played Diablo. We went to bed around 9:30 since we both have to be back on the work track today. I teach all week fully and she is on M-W with Th/Fri off this week. She is very happy about that.
My tax guy is coming by today at lunch. Wish me luck on that.
Overall it was a decent time. We got some ideas on a couple of things, made an appointment for B to look at dresses, had free food, and entered eleventy billion giveaways. We watched a fashion show where she saw some dresses she liked. The nice part about dealing with most of these folks was all we had to say when they started pushing was "We are having the wedding in Michigan, do you travel?". Oh. No. Well then stop talking to us. The ones that were really annoying were the timeshare people. B didn't realize that's what most of the 'free' trip giveaways were. We actually 'won' one for 3/2 in Vegas at the Riviera but, no thank you. You had to sit through their presentation, get yourself there, and it's a shitty hotel to stay at anyway. Pass.
We headed out around 2 as there was a baseball game nearby and I wanted to be back on the train before it let out and we had to deal with drunks and idiots. We got home around 3.
From there it was do nothing time. We both knew it was too late to nap even though we were exhausted. B ended up marathoning Grey's Anatomy and I played Diablo. We went to bed around 9:30 since we both have to be back on the work track today. I teach all week fully and she is on M-W with Th/Fri off this week. She is very happy about that.
My tax guy is coming by today at lunch. Wish me luck on that.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Y5 D323
42 days to go and this year is over. Will it end on a high note? Stay tuned to find out!
Finally home. Yesterday was a long day. I was up way too early for being out of town but the room was just not at the level we have become spoiled by from the other hotel. I wrote Hilton a short letter letting them know that the room was less than wonderful. Let's see if they get back to me.
B woke up around 7:45 and we got on the road about 9. It took until 4:30 to get back to our area. Traffic, construction, and accidents all along the way. If we were just coming home it wouldn't have been a problem, but the minute we got home we had to quickly put stuff away and then get ready to go to a party. We went as 50s greasers which was fun. We got to the party around 6:30 and it was fun. All bad blood between everyone is gone and we just had a nice time. We stayed until almost 11. Not bad given the long day we had.
Today we are off to a bridal fair. I have never been to one so this should be interesting.
Finally home. Yesterday was a long day. I was up way too early for being out of town but the room was just not at the level we have become spoiled by from the other hotel. I wrote Hilton a short letter letting them know that the room was less than wonderful. Let's see if they get back to me.
B woke up around 7:45 and we got on the road about 9. It took until 4:30 to get back to our area. Traffic, construction, and accidents all along the way. If we were just coming home it wouldn't have been a problem, but the minute we got home we had to quickly put stuff away and then get ready to go to a party. We went as 50s greasers which was fun. We got to the party around 6:30 and it was fun. All bad blood between everyone is gone and we just had a nice time. We stayed until almost 11. Not bad given the long day we had.
Today we are off to a bridal fair. I have never been to one so this should be interesting.
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Y5 D322
As promised, the large three day post. Ready?
Wednesday - Taught all day. Good class, they weren't as dense as they were on Tuesday. I think since it was the same group from the day before they got through their heads all the little technical challenges. They were a very quiet group and I hope everyone enjoyed themselves. I always get worried when they don't ask a lot of questions and just sit there without responding to things. I also get frustrated when they don't respond because I am never sure who is actually paying attention to me. But I got through the class. Finished around 2. Went and put gas in the car and grabbed some snacks for the drive down later in the night. Got back around 3 and went to sleep. Slept until 5 when B got home. We ate some dinner and unfortunately she wasn't tired. I knew if I didn't sleep more I would have issues. I went and laid down around 8 and slept again until 10. I tossed and turned so it wasn't good sleep, but it helped. We got on the road around midnight which brings us to...
Thursday - The trip down was okay. We were right at the start of a big accident on the way down. Maybe 10 or 12 cars back. Since we were so close we ended up being at a dead stop for about 15 minutes while the police cleared the scene. It was a bad accident. Entire back end of one car gone, front end of another in pieces. After that we hit some road construction which slowed us down again for about 30 minutes. We ended up arriving at the park about 6. We went to the hotel and asked if they could check us in early. They said yes, but they only had a room with 2 queens instead of a king. If we gave them an hour or so they might have a king free. Okay. We went and had breakfast and came back in an hour. No king, but according to them, a 2 queen room. Problem? It was actually a 2 double room. B and I have had to sleep apart the last two nights. It's a conflict on whether to complain. On one hand they let us check in 8 hours early, on the other if I had known it would be two doubles, I would have waited. Either way, we slept until about 10 and headed to the park. Thursday was the big event day for Small World's 50th Anniversary and the park was PACKED. Neither of us knew about this and we were getting frustrated by the sheer number of people in the park on a Thursday in April. Also while local schools aren't on spring break, it appears many WA and OR schools were and they were all in the park. Around noon we headed over to DCA and decided to relax at Carthay. Best move ever. It took the edge off for both of us. They day got much better from there. We stayed in the park until about 5, headed back to the hotel and decided screw it, we were going to eat somewhere outside the parks for once. We went over to Outback next door and had a good dinner. We were back in the room around 9 and we both crashed.
What we both realized on Friday is that this trip wasn't so much about going to Disneyland as it was a break from work and people and catching up on sleep. Disney was just a bonus. That really stood out on Friday. We got up around 8 and moseyed. We didn't get into the park until about 10. The difference in people was amazing. We walked right up to rides, we were able to function without smacking into people, etc. Yesterday was a good park day. We stayed from 10 until 2, napped, then went back at 6 for dinner. Got back to the hotel around 10 and had the sex. Yay sex! Crashed out around 11:30. We did some shopping yesterday. I finally found a new bag for travel. Reasonably priced ($100), big enough for my stuff, small enough to fit under a plane seat. Score. Happy days.
Today we are heading home soon. We have a birthday party tonight to attend. We shall see if our director is still pissed off at us. If she is, then we are staying long enough to be polite then heading out. On Sunday we are going to a bridal faire which might actually be fun. Man talk about a busy weekend.
Wednesday - Taught all day. Good class, they weren't as dense as they were on Tuesday. I think since it was the same group from the day before they got through their heads all the little technical challenges. They were a very quiet group and I hope everyone enjoyed themselves. I always get worried when they don't ask a lot of questions and just sit there without responding to things. I also get frustrated when they don't respond because I am never sure who is actually paying attention to me. But I got through the class. Finished around 2. Went and put gas in the car and grabbed some snacks for the drive down later in the night. Got back around 3 and went to sleep. Slept until 5 when B got home. We ate some dinner and unfortunately she wasn't tired. I knew if I didn't sleep more I would have issues. I went and laid down around 8 and slept again until 10. I tossed and turned so it wasn't good sleep, but it helped. We got on the road around midnight which brings us to...
Thursday - The trip down was okay. We were right at the start of a big accident on the way down. Maybe 10 or 12 cars back. Since we were so close we ended up being at a dead stop for about 15 minutes while the police cleared the scene. It was a bad accident. Entire back end of one car gone, front end of another in pieces. After that we hit some road construction which slowed us down again for about 30 minutes. We ended up arriving at the park about 6. We went to the hotel and asked if they could check us in early. They said yes, but they only had a room with 2 queens instead of a king. If we gave them an hour or so they might have a king free. Okay. We went and had breakfast and came back in an hour. No king, but according to them, a 2 queen room. Problem? It was actually a 2 double room. B and I have had to sleep apart the last two nights. It's a conflict on whether to complain. On one hand they let us check in 8 hours early, on the other if I had known it would be two doubles, I would have waited. Either way, we slept until about 10 and headed to the park. Thursday was the big event day for Small World's 50th Anniversary and the park was PACKED. Neither of us knew about this and we were getting frustrated by the sheer number of people in the park on a Thursday in April. Also while local schools aren't on spring break, it appears many WA and OR schools were and they were all in the park. Around noon we headed over to DCA and decided to relax at Carthay. Best move ever. It took the edge off for both of us. They day got much better from there. We stayed in the park until about 5, headed back to the hotel and decided screw it, we were going to eat somewhere outside the parks for once. We went over to Outback next door and had a good dinner. We were back in the room around 9 and we both crashed.
What we both realized on Friday is that this trip wasn't so much about going to Disneyland as it was a break from work and people and catching up on sleep. Disney was just a bonus. That really stood out on Friday. We got up around 8 and moseyed. We didn't get into the park until about 10. The difference in people was amazing. We walked right up to rides, we were able to function without smacking into people, etc. Yesterday was a good park day. We stayed from 10 until 2, napped, then went back at 6 for dinner. Got back to the hotel around 10 and had the sex. Yay sex! Crashed out around 11:30. We did some shopping yesterday. I finally found a new bag for travel. Reasonably priced ($100), big enough for my stuff, small enough to fit under a plane seat. Score. Happy days.
Today we are heading home soon. We have a birthday party tonight to attend. We shall see if our director is still pissed off at us. If she is, then we are staying long enough to be polite then heading out. On Sunday we are going to a bridal faire which might actually be fun. Man talk about a busy weekend.
Friday, April 11, 2014
Y5 D321
Yeah, I know I promised a post today but so much went on yesterday that you're all going to have to wait. A big post is coming. Stay tuned
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
Y5 D319
Malthael is dead. Suck it Malthael. Act V done. Crusader at level 50. Ha! Yeah, that's the excitement of my life.
Yesterday's class was annoying as hell. It was like the moron factory exploded and they all ended up on my class. Took until 7:20 just to get everyone situated and logged in to the class. I had to force mute on two different people because the concept of muting and not breathing into the telephone was apparently beyond the scope of their little brains. 33 hours. Then I will be back inside Disneyland. I can do this. I can make it through one more day.
Got through class, made dinner, relaxed with B, played Diablo, went to bed. No issues, mo major complications of the day.
I go parp now?
Yesterday's class was annoying as hell. It was like the moron factory exploded and they all ended up on my class. Took until 7:20 just to get everyone situated and logged in to the class. I had to force mute on two different people because the concept of muting and not breathing into the telephone was apparently beyond the scope of their little brains. 33 hours. Then I will be back inside Disneyland. I can do this. I can make it through one more day.
Got through class, made dinner, relaxed with B, played Diablo, went to bed. No issues, mo major complications of the day.
I go parp now?
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Y5 D318
Got major shit done yesterday on the document front. Finished the final training class conversion. I can go out of town on Thursday guilt free. In two days I will be back in Disneyland. Yay me. Back in my happy place. All I have to do is get through the next two days of classes. Two days, two different classes, same primary group. I can do this.
Other than working on docs, I played some Diablo, had dinner, and relaxed. B treated us to Greek food last night as she was craving it. We found a little place on the water near by and I have to admit, it was pretty darn good. Reasonably priced, not too crowded, and the food was pretty tasty. I was impressed. A rare find.
That about sums up the day. I worked, I played, I slept. We did have some issue at bed time. It was hot yesterday. Summer is starting to rear its ugly head and neither of us was comfortable. I had to dig out a fan around 11pm which helped alleviate the problem. Even so, B still tossed and turned. I had the coolest dream. It was a mix of Criminal Minds meets Fast and Furious meets Men in Black. Aliens were racing against the Triads while a crime team was investigating a separate case. Weird but cool. Yeah, my mind works like that some times. Leaving in 43 hours, in the park in 51. I can do it.
Other than working on docs, I played some Diablo, had dinner, and relaxed. B treated us to Greek food last night as she was craving it. We found a little place on the water near by and I have to admit, it was pretty darn good. Reasonably priced, not too crowded, and the food was pretty tasty. I was impressed. A rare find.
That about sums up the day. I worked, I played, I slept. We did have some issue at bed time. It was hot yesterday. Summer is starting to rear its ugly head and neither of us was comfortable. I had to dig out a fan around 11pm which helped alleviate the problem. Even so, B still tossed and turned. I had the coolest dream. It was a mix of Criminal Minds meets Fast and Furious meets Men in Black. Aliens were racing against the Triads while a crime team was investigating a separate case. Weird but cool. Yeah, my mind works like that some times. Leaving in 43 hours, in the park in 51. I can do it.
Monday, April 7, 2014
Y5 D317
No class today! I got to sleep in! Yay me. I needed the sleep that's for sure. We got home Sunday morning from the show at 3:15 and then I was back up at 8. We had a party to go to which while fun, was terribly exhausting for both of us. We headed out around 11:30, got to the party at 12:30, stayed until 3:30. B wasn't feeling well and she came home and rested while I played Diablo for like 4 hours. I got through Act IV and am now in Act V. The first part of it is HUGE and I was just playing long enough to get to a damn checkpoint. Read for a while in bed with B. She ended up staying up later than me because she wanted to finish the book she was reading. The day as you can tell was pretty boring to be honest. The party was fine, we learned our friends are having a boy. Good for them? I think their joy is split. While they are happy to be having a healthy baby, I know that one of them really wants a girl. We had fun though. Lots of food, cake, etc. I guess it's what normal people do on weekends? Spend time outside in parks socializing. Meh, not our gig but we got through it.
Today is laundry and paperwork day. Fun stuff.
Today is laundry and paperwork day. Fun stuff.
Sunday, April 6, 2014
Y5 D316
Gee another show where I get into an argument with my director and I am stuck between a rock (her) and a hard place (B). This week's adventure? How B doesn't check in for shows. And of course, I am asking for special treatment because she's my gf (I'm not) and I didn't defend my fiancee well enough (I did). What my director fails to realize is that if I walk in the theater and the first thing you do is yell at us, we're not likely to stick around much longer, now are we? Other than the initial issue, the rest of the night went okay.
The day itself was meh. I was fine for most of the day. Played Diablo, got through Act 3 and desired. Ran some errands, had lunch with the kid at her work, and took a nap. By myself, I had a great day. But as the night drew closer I started getting sad. Because I knew there would be drama at the show of some type and I just wasn't looking forward to it.
I don't know what I am going to do about all this. We don't have a show for at least two weeks which means maybe everyone can get their feelings back in line before the next one. Yeah, right.
Today we are going out to the new area to hang out with friends out there. They are having a 'gender reveal' party for their new baby. Plus it will give us a chance to meet some other people who live in the area. A few more months and we move. Big things on the horizon.
The day itself was meh. I was fine for most of the day. Played Diablo, got through Act 3 and desired. Ran some errands, had lunch with the kid at her work, and took a nap. By myself, I had a great day. But as the night drew closer I started getting sad. Because I knew there would be drama at the show of some type and I just wasn't looking forward to it.
I don't know what I am going to do about all this. We don't have a show for at least two weeks which means maybe everyone can get their feelings back in line before the next one. Yeah, right.
Today we are going out to the new area to hang out with friends out there. They are having a 'gender reveal' party for their new baby. Plus it will give us a chance to meet some other people who live in the area. A few more months and we move. Big things on the horizon.
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Y5 D315
Pretty decent day yesterday. My class was 100% awesome. Seriously, best class I have had in a while. They were smart, on time, asked relevant questions, knew how to mute themselves, and were just on the ball. Made for a great day. B had the day off yesterday and was in the other room while I was teaching working on some projects. She was doing some sewing and taking care of finalizing the wedding venue. Looks like that is all squared away. In 13 months we will be getting married at some historical site in MI. Whee?
After class we both took a nap. Her much longer than me as usual. While I waited for her to get up I straightened the house up as we had company last night. I went to the store to get some things for dinner, and our friends came over around 7:30. Just one couple that we have been wanting to hang out with for a while but timing hasn't worked. We finally all had a free night. It was nice. We sat around talking and having fun until about 11 as B had to be up this morning for work.
An okay day for me. She is still stressed about her job so it was a shadow over her ability to really enjoy herself, but I still feel she brings some of it on her self. I think it is a female thing. I know that sounds sexist, but I really do. There is a certain amount of empathy and emotion women bring to the workplace, both good and bad, that men don't. We are able to be more clinical about things sometimes. Sometimes. I know how frustrating people can be, but I think men are able to shake it off better and just ignore certain things. Let's see how her day goes today.
I have a couple of errands to run today and then a show tonight. Otherwise, I am free. I am sensing some Diablo in my future. I am at level 36 with my Crusader and about to finish Act 3. I would like to get through Act 3 and a good chunk of Act 4 if possible. We shall see.
After class we both took a nap. Her much longer than me as usual. While I waited for her to get up I straightened the house up as we had company last night. I went to the store to get some things for dinner, and our friends came over around 7:30. Just one couple that we have been wanting to hang out with for a while but timing hasn't worked. We finally all had a free night. It was nice. We sat around talking and having fun until about 11 as B had to be up this morning for work.
An okay day for me. She is still stressed about her job so it was a shadow over her ability to really enjoy herself, but I still feel she brings some of it on her self. I think it is a female thing. I know that sounds sexist, but I really do. There is a certain amount of empathy and emotion women bring to the workplace, both good and bad, that men don't. We are able to be more clinical about things sometimes. Sometimes. I know how frustrating people can be, but I think men are able to shake it off better and just ignore certain things. Let's see how her day goes today.
I have a couple of errands to run today and then a show tonight. Otherwise, I am free. I am sensing some Diablo in my future. I am at level 36 with my Crusader and about to finish Act 3. I would like to get through Act 3 and a good chunk of Act 4 if possible. We shall see.
Friday, April 4, 2014
Y5 D314
B and I had a pretty serious argument last night which is a shame because I had a really good group in my class. It's like I can have one but not the other. My class was great - they showed up on time, they knew what they were doing, they understood how to mute themselves. It helped that 2 of the 4 had been to one of my classes before, but still, I like it when I have an intelligent class. After class I got a call from a coworker who wanted to discuss some stuff. That was an interesting call. The company is moving her from doing consulting only to helping us fill some training gaps and they want to adjust her comp plan to be a flex plan instead of hourly as a result. She wanted to know if I thought there would be enough training dates to make it worthwhile. It's the same shit they tried to pull with me and I told her so.
While I was talking with her B came home. She was in a good mood when she got home and everything was fine. Then she made the mistake of sending her boss an email about their paychecks. They use some local accountant to handle their payroll and the guy has no respect for what time he shows up. B asked her boss if since payday was saturday that their guy could show up a little earlier than his normal 4:55. Her boss responded with a very cold, yet professional, response of how he is honoring his commitments as he has until the close of business to deliver checks and that B should feel lucky as some companies wouldn't even pay on a weekend and make her wait until Monday. All true comments, but her boss doesn't really know how to be casual or even polite sometimes. She is a cold person when it comes to her emails and the problem is B takes it personally. She got upset with her bosses response and started in on the whole 'I want to quit my job' thing. I had enough. I told her she needs to stop taking these things personally and to get over it. Also if she wants to quit she has to wait until we move because I can't take the stress of her not working right now. That led into a big blowout about her being a burden blah blah blah. It just soured the night. Long story short, while B knows I am right, she was upset because I couldn't empathize with her. Sorry, I just can't. Part of the argument was me telling her she lets too many stupid irrelevant things bug her. Just go to work, do your job, and go home. This of course made me the bad guy because I just 'didn't understand anything'. Nope, I don't. Not in this case.
She ended up taking a bath while I went in the other room. In the end she tried apologizing to me and I told her there was nothing said that required apologies from either of us. Which is true. We did argue efficiently at least. While she got a little emotional neither of us said anything spiteful or mean. We really didn't even raise our voices. The downside is I was upset and ended up not eating dinner. I gave her some space and came to bed around 10.
In the end it was all resolved, but I stand by my feelings. Hopefully she as a result of this will be able to take a step back from everything and see that she does take some things personal that she just shouldn't. On my part, I will try to empathize better with her situation. I was also serious about her quitting AFTER we move. Because what we're going to save a month in rent will allow her to not have to work for a while. She just has to hold on until then.
While I was talking with her B came home. She was in a good mood when she got home and everything was fine. Then she made the mistake of sending her boss an email about their paychecks. They use some local accountant to handle their payroll and the guy has no respect for what time he shows up. B asked her boss if since payday was saturday that their guy could show up a little earlier than his normal 4:55. Her boss responded with a very cold, yet professional, response of how he is honoring his commitments as he has until the close of business to deliver checks and that B should feel lucky as some companies wouldn't even pay on a weekend and make her wait until Monday. All true comments, but her boss doesn't really know how to be casual or even polite sometimes. She is a cold person when it comes to her emails and the problem is B takes it personally. She got upset with her bosses response and started in on the whole 'I want to quit my job' thing. I had enough. I told her she needs to stop taking these things personally and to get over it. Also if she wants to quit she has to wait until we move because I can't take the stress of her not working right now. That led into a big blowout about her being a burden blah blah blah. It just soured the night. Long story short, while B knows I am right, she was upset because I couldn't empathize with her. Sorry, I just can't. Part of the argument was me telling her she lets too many stupid irrelevant things bug her. Just go to work, do your job, and go home. This of course made me the bad guy because I just 'didn't understand anything'. Nope, I don't. Not in this case.
She ended up taking a bath while I went in the other room. In the end she tried apologizing to me and I told her there was nothing said that required apologies from either of us. Which is true. We did argue efficiently at least. While she got a little emotional neither of us said anything spiteful or mean. We really didn't even raise our voices. The downside is I was upset and ended up not eating dinner. I gave her some space and came to bed around 10.
In the end it was all resolved, but I stand by my feelings. Hopefully she as a result of this will be able to take a step back from everything and see that she does take some things personal that she just shouldn't. On my part, I will try to empathize better with her situation. I was also serious about her quitting AFTER we move. Because what we're going to save a month in rent will allow her to not have to work for a while. She just has to hold on until then.
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Y5 D313
I was so tired last night when I went to bed I was falling asleep within five minutes. Even with all the lights on. I just couldn't keep my eyes open. I am seeing a late awakening on Saturday for sure. Headed out to the client yesterday around 6, arrived at 7. Stopped at the store across the street to buy them some treats for three days of a job well done. I do so much more enjoy live classes than the ones here from home. There are plusses and minuses to both, but some days nothing beats hands on, one on one interaction with a student. Being able to immediately troubleshoot an issue, being able to see exactly what they see, etc. One of the big downsides is how overwhelmingly exhaustive live classes are. So much interaction. Being right at the head of a room. All those things. It's draining.
Finished up class around 4:40 and managed to miss most of the traffic. I was home by 5:30. B got a new toy last night and that took up most of our night. She got an at home blue wax kit. The warmer, the wax, everything. She was also in the mood for burritos and picked up dinner for us. After dinner we played with the wax kit. Well, she did. I helped and watched. I was also the guinea pig for the test runs. The thing works well I have to admit. It doesn't require any strips with blue wax which makes things easier.
Around 8:30 she went to read and I played some Diablo. Went to bed around 9:30 and crashed out by 10. Yes, I am old and go to bed early. Whatever. I still only manage to get 7 hours maximum each night which is less than optimal. I remember when I could function on 4-5 a night, but I just can't do it any more. I think in some ways that's a good sign. I need decent sleep to be functional in the morning. Nothing wrong with that.
Two more days of teaching and then I finally have a light week next week. At least it's only one more class over the next two days. We can get through everything and be done. Next week I only have two days and then I am going to Disneyland. Yay me.
Finished up class around 4:40 and managed to miss most of the traffic. I was home by 5:30. B got a new toy last night and that took up most of our night. She got an at home blue wax kit. The warmer, the wax, everything. She was also in the mood for burritos and picked up dinner for us. After dinner we played with the wax kit. Well, she did. I helped and watched. I was also the guinea pig for the test runs. The thing works well I have to admit. It doesn't require any strips with blue wax which makes things easier.
Around 8:30 she went to read and I played some Diablo. Went to bed around 9:30 and crashed out by 10. Yes, I am old and go to bed early. Whatever. I still only manage to get 7 hours maximum each night which is less than optimal. I remember when I could function on 4-5 a night, but I just can't do it any more. I think in some ways that's a good sign. I need decent sleep to be functional in the morning. Nothing wrong with that.
Two more days of teaching and then I finally have a light week next week. At least it's only one more class over the next two days. We can get through everything and be done. Next week I only have two days and then I am going to Disneyland. Yay me.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Y5 D312
I ended up going home last night instead of staying near my class. Why? Well, before I left the hotel yesterday I sent my friend a simple message asking if he could leave an iron and board out for me as well as instructions for connecting to his internet. He responded with a text a few hours later stating he doesn't own an iron AND his internet has been out all week and won't be operational. We're done. I could handle buying a $20 iron if need be, but no iron AND no internet? Nope. Heading home. No way I could function without both of those.
Day went okay. Taught up until about 4:45. They brought lunch in for once which was nice. They are planning on doing the same today for us. It took me about 75 minutes to get home thanks to traffic and weather. B called me on the way home. She placed a to go order for us and it was ready as I was getting home.
Had a nice burger thanks to her. We did have one little issue last night. She recently applied for her first credit card and was denied. That didn't surprise us as she has little credit history but the reasons were because she had delinquent accounts. Um, no. We tried looking things up on line and it looks like in 2008 and 2009 someone opened accounts under her SSN. She of course freaked out and we spent the next two hours trying to reach someone at Equifax. She is still a little frantic about it but now after talking to some folks she has a path to go down.
We then watched some TV and headed to bed. While I am glad I came home, I am not happy about having to drive. But you do what you got to do, right?
Day went okay. Taught up until about 4:45. They brought lunch in for once which was nice. They are planning on doing the same today for us. It took me about 75 minutes to get home thanks to traffic and weather. B called me on the way home. She placed a to go order for us and it was ready as I was getting home.
Had a nice burger thanks to her. We did have one little issue last night. She recently applied for her first credit card and was denied. That didn't surprise us as she has little credit history but the reasons were because she had delinquent accounts. Um, no. We tried looking things up on line and it looks like in 2008 and 2009 someone opened accounts under her SSN. She of course freaked out and we spent the next two hours trying to reach someone at Equifax. She is still a little frantic about it but now after talking to some folks she has a path to go down.
We then watched some TV and headed to bed. While I am glad I came home, I am not happy about having to drive. But you do what you got to do, right?
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Y5 D311
I am in a hotel with the worst internet connection ever. I find it completely unacceptable and will be making this known to Hilton later in the day. Hence, I will be keeping this post brief today I feel.
Drove out to the client in the morning. Took me about 45 minutes which isn't bad. It's never the drive here that's a problem, it's the drive home. Taught all day, large class of about 17 people. The class is more savvy than we were led to believe and I am having to think a little on my toes. Changing up the material on the fly to keep everyone engaged.
Got through the day and headed to the hotel. It was MUCH nicer going 5 miles instead of 50. The hotel is unfortunately mediocre. The internet is horrible, the room heater is sporadic, and the ambience is lacking.
Walked over to zPizza for dinner. Also a fail. I was so disappointed in my meal I took a picture of it and complained on Twitter. Ate in my room and talked to B. While we were on the phone I got an email from my boss with some negative feedback from my Friday class. I had already sent him a heads up to expect some as even I knew it was not a good class. Too many browser and technical issues abounded to make everyone happy. He was worried I would take it too personally, but I knew better. I knew that most of what the student was complaining about was in fact true. I did stretch the start of the class to fill time because of server issues. Yes, it does suck I can't let everyone control their own microphone. Their complaints were all valid.
Instead of getting angry, I used the opportunity to send him some feedback of ways we could potentially minimize these kind of issues in the future. I used it as a chance to send some things that were on my mind. Don't get me wrong, no one likes getting negative comments, but sometimes they help. I wish she wasn't demanding a refund however. To me that's above and beyond. If she was so unhappy all day then she should have dropped off earlier. It's like the person who eats all of their meal and then complains after.
Started reading Insurgent last night. It's the second book in the Divergent series. Managed to get through about 250 pages. I actually like the premise of the second book better than the first. I just wish it wasn't told from a 1st person narrative. If the author had made it 3rd person it would have jumped that gap from YA to regular science fiction. Instead there are too many parts that read as 'whiny teenager' instead of as good SF. But I really do like the storyline better in this one and I am halfway done so I will plug along.
Breakfast in 40 minutes then I can leave her at 7:30 instead of the normal buttcrack of dawn. Tonight I am staying like three blocks from this hotel at a friend's place. This should be interesting as he has dogs that I have a feeling are going to be 'friendly' with me all night.
Drove out to the client in the morning. Took me about 45 minutes which isn't bad. It's never the drive here that's a problem, it's the drive home. Taught all day, large class of about 17 people. The class is more savvy than we were led to believe and I am having to think a little on my toes. Changing up the material on the fly to keep everyone engaged.
Got through the day and headed to the hotel. It was MUCH nicer going 5 miles instead of 50. The hotel is unfortunately mediocre. The internet is horrible, the room heater is sporadic, and the ambience is lacking.
Walked over to zPizza for dinner. Also a fail. I was so disappointed in my meal I took a picture of it and complained on Twitter. Ate in my room and talked to B. While we were on the phone I got an email from my boss with some negative feedback from my Friday class. I had already sent him a heads up to expect some as even I knew it was not a good class. Too many browser and technical issues abounded to make everyone happy. He was worried I would take it too personally, but I knew better. I knew that most of what the student was complaining about was in fact true. I did stretch the start of the class to fill time because of server issues. Yes, it does suck I can't let everyone control their own microphone. Their complaints were all valid.
Instead of getting angry, I used the opportunity to send him some feedback of ways we could potentially minimize these kind of issues in the future. I used it as a chance to send some things that were on my mind. Don't get me wrong, no one likes getting negative comments, but sometimes they help. I wish she wasn't demanding a refund however. To me that's above and beyond. If she was so unhappy all day then she should have dropped off earlier. It's like the person who eats all of their meal and then complains after.
Started reading Insurgent last night. It's the second book in the Divergent series. Managed to get through about 250 pages. I actually like the premise of the second book better than the first. I just wish it wasn't told from a 1st person narrative. If the author had made it 3rd person it would have jumped that gap from YA to regular science fiction. Instead there are too many parts that read as 'whiny teenager' instead of as good SF. But I really do like the storyline better in this one and I am halfway done so I will plug along.
Breakfast in 40 minutes then I can leave her at 7:30 instead of the normal buttcrack of dawn. Tonight I am staying like three blocks from this hotel at a friend's place. This should be interesting as he has dogs that I have a feeling are going to be 'friendly' with me all night.
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