Y11 D97

So. At the lake. Nature and stuff. Oy.

We headed out around 9, dropped our car off at B's grandparent's and swapped for their truck. There was some traffic but that was epexcted as it is a holiday weekend and we were doing the same thing as every other midwesterner - going to the lake for the weekend. Once we got off the main road it wasn't bad. Took us about 4 hours total to get up here.

The cabin is smaller than I would like, but bigger than I expected. Two bedrooms, but there's only a full bed in each so we slept in separate rooms last night. Sorry, we love each other, but we need our room.

I took a ton of pictures, we sat at the lake, we grilled burgers for dinner, we rode around in a golf cart, we tried seeing the northern lights, and went to bed around 11. Not a whole lot to report because up here there's not a lot going on.

You think there's not a lot going on. Look closer baby you're so wrong...

Go Canada. If you have no idea what that was all about, watch Corner Gas.

Shout out to my sister for her belated birthday. And to my buddy for missing his birthday too. I screwed up the entire month appartently. My apologies to both of you and hope you enjoyed your birthdays.

Y11 D96

Man, I needed some sleep! Slept from 11 to 7. A full 8 hours. And I would have slept more if my alarm hadn't gone off. I was in the middle of a weird ass dream. It started with me in a casino watching these two lose all their money on a slot machine and then I walk over play a nickel, then a dollar, and win $405. I cashed out, they gave me money and a bottle of chartreuse, and I walked away to join a group of people. We were going into a restaurant with a 'nuclear bar' whatever that is. Except Brad Pitt was our group leader and he fixed my shirt to look cool and it matched his to some degree, but then I was in the back of a car filming a commercial. WTF?

We got our stuff ready for today's trip. Went to the grocery store, laundry, etc. But our big chunk of the day was spent at the MI state fair! We were there from about 9:45 until 3pm. A good amount of time to see all the booths, buy junk we don't need, eat nasty food, and ride about a dozen rides. It was a good time. Still not as big a fair as I am used to attending, but not bad at all. B had a good time. Won herself a stuffed animal throwing darts. She kicked butt.

Today we are off. Leaving around 9, should hit the lake around 2. No real internet up there, but I will figure out a way to post so help me.

Y11 D95

Day one of being off was off to mediocre start. I checked email all day, responded to some stupid shit, and got really pissed off at 9pm because people are stupid. My faith in the organization is gone. I am scared to look for a new job, but dammit, I can't work in this environment any more. I don't know what to do. Byt like always, I will figure it out or die trying.

Took B to the doctor yesterday. Dealt with her passing out while they drew six vials of blood. No one listens to her. She repeatedly said she was going to pass out during the blood draw. And lo and behold she did. Fun times. Her doctor did do something no other doctor has done; she looked at all of her issues as one big thing instead of little problems. This may finally help figure out some of the things that are going on with her. We shall see.

The kids are gone finally. Quiet prevails.

Today is fair day. Need to go get gas and cash. We're getting there right at open. Maybe stay until 2 or 3. Then it's off to the lake tomorrow.

Y11 D94

Oh look, I am off! Whee!

WTF, why am I hearing noises this early? Cats, what are you doing? Small humans? Is it you? Whatever it is, shut up.

Taught my class. That was all day. From 8:30 prep start until 5pm finish. So not much to report there. The group was a quiet group with a couple of derps. It wasn't an easy group that's for sure. But I got through it.

Set an out of office message at 6pm. Bye bye.

Made chicken mexi-bake for the humans. Well most of them. The way the little one has been raised drives me nuts. She doesn't eat anything. I never dealt with shit like that from the kid and so it frustrates me when B makes a second meal for the tiny human. Here's dinner, don't like it, don't eat it. I am not going to make a second set of food for you. Grrr.

They watched a movie, I played video games.

Today we drop them off, I take B to the doctor, she goes to bingo, I make lamb. Then we pack. Then thursday is the fair, and Friday we head to the lake! Ah, the lake. A large body of water I can splash in. I need it. Bad.

Y11 D93

I can't wait until tomorrow. I will be turning on my out of office and turning off my alarm. It will be nice to sleep as long as my body wants to sleep. Such a strange concept. Plus we made a decision yesterday. Wednesday I am taking off because B needs to go to the doctor for blood draws and some other stuff and needs me there. Thursday we are going to the MI state fair (bought the tickets last night), but the rest of my time off? We will be going to the lake. That's right. I am going to be sitting by a lake for labor day weekend like all the other midwest people. I just looked and it should be low 70s while we are there which is perfect. Not too hot, but not too cold where I won't go in the lake. I am not even bringing my big laptop. Nope. Just the chromebook so I can do stuff like this. But otherwise, 3 days of leave me the hell alone. I had a meeting with the private training sales guy yesterday and he really gets it. He had a medical situation a while back that almost killed him and if there's anyone on our team who understands putting your health and sanity first it's him. He has at least three projects lined up for me that should close this week (Pasadena, Ottawa, and Orlando) but he made it very clear that there is no such thing as an emergency in our work and all of it can wait until I get back. THAT I respect. Because he's right. Despite what the salespeople thing, despite what some of our management team thinks, this shit isn't all that important. No one is going to die if I am unavailable for three days. Deal with it buttercup. Your data and reports will all still be there when I get back.

Yesterday I had that meeting with him which was to primarily go over a document I wrote for him outlining the max number of students per class, what can be modified for a class for custom requests, and other things like that. We talked for almost 2.5 hours but it was a good use of time. No complaints here.

After all that, our new entertainment center came and I spent 2 hours putting it together. This one is for the basement. I am really surprised at the quality. It was $80 from Walmart of all places, but I will be damned if it doesn't look and feel like something more expensive. The basement is FINALLY coming together. I will include some pics at the end, but I am really getting to 'happy' with it. I am still on the fence about the couch because it's a monstrosity, but otherwise it feels good down there.

When I was done and the girls were done with dinner, we went over to the grandparent's house. It was B's grandfather's birthday and we brought him some gifts. I think he was glad to see us. I confirmed with him we could use the cabin and he offered us his truck to drive up in. As long as we bring back some stuff he has up there he said we could use it all weekend. Sold. It's 500 miles round trip to the lake so no complaints here.

Got back, ate a late night snack together, and everyone was in bed by 10:30.

Today I have a 9-5 class with 15 people but shouldn't be an issue. Once it's over, I am done. I can do it.

I hear from my sister yesterday. Our grandmother turned 90 on friday. That doesn't surprise me since evil cannot die. She's having a good time away too so for that good for her. She too deserves a break from all this stupid shit, silly shit...

HEY! Only a couple more days until the new Tool album!! Woo!!

Now, as promised, basement pics:

 

Y11 D92

Spent the whole day doing shit. From grocery shopping, laundry, dropping off the truck finally, it felt like it was never ending. But we got everything done including picking up B's sisters. They're staying with us until Wednesday. This is the first time she's been able to see them in a while thanks to her mother being cunt supreme. I thought X1 was a childish buffoon but B's mother takes the cake and then some. It's a long drawn out story and it's not worth going into it but understand that she is a butthole for sure. Regardless, the girls are here, B is happy, and I am okay with it.

Tested out my new sprinkler. Worked wonderfully. I need one more and I can have the whole yard watered at my leisure. I will save this lawn. I know I only have a couple of months before it turns white, but it shouldn't look like total poopy until then. I want it to make it through.

I have the pest guys coming back today to do a spot spray for spooders. We've been finding a lot of webs and egg sacs outside. I am still within my 6 months of protection and want a touchup before winter. Next is having the AC guys come out and do my bi-annual inspection to make sure the furnace is ready for the winter.

This week is light. Today I have some documents to put together followed by a 12:30 - 2 meeting to discuss said documents. Then tomorrow is a full training day with Prudential. From there, I am done for six days. We are going to the state fair on Thursday and I think we may go to the lake Fri-Sun. That's right. I am going to suck it up and have a weekend on the lake. It might just do me some good.

Y11 D91

I'm home.

Nothing to report here.

The house is still standing. The animals are alive. The years keep coming and they don't stop coming.

Did it make sense not to live for fun?

Things to do places to be.

Does it ever end? Does it ever stop?

Y11 D90

2am and time to go home. I have a short week next week. Only working Mon and Tues. Six days off after that. Booyah.

Last day went well except for one small bump. One of my students starting feeling faint and had a fever. He almost passed out on us. He had to leave right then and there. Man, I overworked him, didn't I? He made it home safely but still, it was a scary few minutes. Other than that, no issues.

Had dinner at the hotel, went to bed around 8, and that's the extent of my day. B has been busy doing B stuff. Our house guest is gone so she is playing catch up on her errands, cleaning, etc. I am hoping to come home to a quiet, clean house. We shall see.

I ordered a new sprinkler for the yard to try and save my lawn before winter comes. That and a few other odds and ends will be delivered today. Stuff to do on Sunday. Okay, time to go.

Y11 D89

I finally got my body to reset to PST just in time to go home. Sigh.

Yesterday went well. No issues. The client did send feedback to our folks and is happy from what I can tell. This is good. It also looks like two past clients are interested in me doing some more stuff before end of year. One more down here in Pasadena and then one in Ottawa. That one will be fun. At least one international trip per year is the goal. It may only be canada, but it all helps.

We finished around 4 yesterday and I was back at the hotel by 5. On the way back I stopped at FedEx and sent some clothes home. Because of the extra pair of pants, it was going to be a tough fit in my luggage. I said fuck it and shipped it all home. My backpack will now be a little lighter and easier to manage. My clothes won't get there until Tuesday but so what.

Have to pay bills this morning. Ah fun times. Nothing like having to do bills and such while on the road. Not the first time and probably won't be the last.

Ate in the restaurant last night. I have 2 $50 coupons for the restaurant here thanks to the nice manager who listened to me bitch on twitter. For once they didn't just try to throw points at me. Gave me food instead. I'll take it.

Last day. Get to go home tomorrow and see my new couch!

Y11 D88

Three days down, two to go. Then I can go home and see my new couch which is coming today. I am excited about it. Taken almost a year but I feel like that basement is so close to being truly our space. Makes me happy.

Traffic sucked again as usual. 30 minutes there, an hour back. Had dinner with a coworker. Had to buy a new pair of pants last night. The hem on mine came out and I was tripping all over them yesterday. I have been wearing one pair of pants when I am on the road which is putting a strain on them anyway. I needed a second pair.

It was almost 9 by the time I got back to my room and pretty much went straight to bed. I am finally getting aligned to the time change. Just in time to go home. Good times abound.

B had a very productive day. She recently switched her meds up and the results have been great. A lot less anxious, less tired, and more productive. These are good things. Maybe she can rely less on the pot as a result. I know it's one medicine for another, but the pills are a lot cheaper. When things get fully legal in MI then it will be easier.

Time to make the donuts.

Y11 D87

Not much to report. Up way too early. Still no time for breakfast in the morning. Left at 5:25 yesterday, got there at 6. Almost died at the wilshire/sepulvada merge. Good times.

Day went okay. It finished early as expected. I hate that class. I pushed for it to be a 1/2 day only but no one listens to me.

Got back to the hotel around 5. Stopped for el pollo loco on the way. Had chicken, went to bed.

Three more days of this.

I did have another client want more training in Pasadena next month. That works for me. Come into Burbank instead of LAX. Or even John Wayne. Probably JW since it will be cheaper. Burbank may be closer but the price will be higher since it's an Alaska hub.

B went to her big flea market with her grandma. The houseguest's car is now dead apparently. Good times.

Y11 D86

Oh boy, I have the AC headache. Yay. Fun times. Why can't hotels just have windows that open?? Why can't I go somewhere with some humidity where I don't have to keep forced air running all night? Argh. Yes, I'm a whiny bitch, leave me alone.

This gig sucks. It's about 8 miles to the campus. I left here at 5:36 yesterday (no breakfast) and got there at 6:10. Yeah you read that right. 34 mintues to go 8 miles. Took me an hour coming back. Fun times.

Group is okay. 10 people showed, 6 of them indian with heavy accents that I can't understand when they speak. Whee. Same group all fucking week too. Double whee.

Went to Lucille's for dinner. That was good. I have leftover BBQ now for lunch one day. Happy with that. Need sides to go with it, but at least it's food. I need breakfast foods to be honest. If I have to skip breakfast every day I will have issues.

1 day down, 4 to go. Then next week I am taking days off. Wed - Tues thanks to Labor day holiday. I need it.

Y11 D85

An incredibly dull but extremely long day was had. I left the house at 3, my first flight was delayed by 20 minutes which wasn't bad because we made 10 of that up in the air. I arrived at Chicago at 6:30 and my next flight was scheduled for 8:25. Instead, we left at 10:45 and didn't get in the air until 11:15. Why? Storm. Like storm from hell. The sky opened up and did a light show to rival the gods. It was a full ground stop at ORD for almost 2 hours. Then we had to wait for everything to catch back up. It was wonderful to watch if I hadn't been sitting in an airport waiting for a flight. The sucky part too is that instead of switching to lunch, they still gave us breakfast. Oy. Nothing like an omelet at 1pm. Oh well. Food is food. I am damn glad I decided on the upgrade too. My back was killing me from almost 5 hours in that seat. 

Got to LAX, took the shuttle to car rental, and got basically the same car I have at home. Just the shittier model. Got to the hotel around 2 which overall was still not bad. Except it was 5 in my head. Ironed, walked over to Target for some stuff, then went to dinner.

Went to dinner at Dinah's. Now, if you've never been to Dinah's on Sepulvada, you have been missing out. Best fried chicked in all of Southern California. For real. It's a combination of fried and roasted. The way that midwesterners do broiled and roasted (broasted for those who have never heard of it), this is similar but fried. I hereby call it Froasted. 

Got back from dinner and struggled to stay awake. Finally gave up around 8:30. But that hurt me because I woke up at 11, 1, and 2. Finally at 3:30 I gave up. Yay time travel.

Hotel is valet only. I may skip breakfast today and get my car only to see how long valet takes and how long it takes to get on campus. Map says 27 minutes. I want to gage traffic. I can have breakfast tomorrow, ya know? Today I need to see how long things are going to take. 

5 full days ahead of me. 12 students, 10 of whom are Indian. This should prove interesting to say the least.

Y11 D84

Already annoyed. Delayed flight. Discovered it's valet only at the hotel. 35 - 45 minutes to go 7 miles according to maps. Ugh. I fucking hate trips like this.

Did nothing yesterday. Helped B bake a cake. Cooked dinner. Went to bed at 8 but didn't fall asleep until 10. Working on about 3.5 hours of sleep. Good times.

I need this houseguest gone before I get home. I want to come home to peace and quiet.

Happy 50th to Woodstock.

Y11 D83

Mindhunter is back! I like that show. I now have something to binge this week while on the road. Sweet.

The house "guest" is still here and now she needs more fucking driving around. Losing my patience big time. She has to got to some drug check in shit before work this morning. And guess who has the fucking pleasure of driving her? That's right! It's me! Thank fucking god I leave tomorrow. I can't take it. I want her gone before I get home next Saturday. I want my fucking house back. Speaking of that...

So B had her concert last night. Wait, back up. First off, I had to drive the 'guest' to work in the fucking morning. 10am. Had to put gas in the car. Then I had to pick her up at 4, gas in the other car. (Technically B's grandpa's truck. We've been taking care of it while her grandother is in the hospital. Did I tell you all about that? Her grandmother had a nasty infection in her dialysis port and has been in the hospital for a week. She had to have surgery and it fucks up her kidney list placement. Fun times.) Anyway, gas in the truck. Drive all over town. Well the 'guest' (and yes, that's her new name) had a date last night. B was schedule to leave around 5:30 and I figured the other one would be gone too. Oh no. Her date doesn't show until like 7:40 ruining my plans for the night. I just wanted some fucking alone time at home. Nope. Not for me. I got a little, but not as much as I had hoped. Everyone came home at like midnight. I didn't get to bed until after 1. And here I am up again at 5:40.

FML.

Hard.

I can't nap today either because I have to be in bed by 8:30 to get up at 1:30 tomorrow. I am taking the mother of all naps when I land in LA.

Speaking of the west coast, the kid is back safe and sound. No scary issues to report. She had a 9 hour (!!) layover in Korea yesterday but is home in one piece. All I care about.

Okay. Flight check in. Take the 'guest' to her shit. Try to enjoy my fucking day.

Y11 D82

We had a nice night. We finally had some alone time. We had dinner, came back, enjoyed the evening together. Dinner wasn't great, but the evening was.

Two more days until I leave for a week. I am hoping when I get back, my house is empty. We shall see.

Kid is somewhere between Seoul and Seattle right now. She should have another 5-6 hours in the air.

I am so tired. Physically. Mentally. All over.

B is going to a concert tonight. Hootie and the Blowfish + Barenaked Ladies. She's going with her dad. I hope she has fun.

Y11 D81

Is it winter yet? Can I turn on the humidifier? Can I make it a fucking swamp in here? Fuck dryness. Driving me nuts. Headaches. Throat issues. Snoring. Fuck. Driving me nuts. What day is it? Thursday I think.

We found a new couch for the basement. We have needed one since we moved in here. It comes next Thursday. B picked it out and fell in love with it. Way more than I wanted to spend but it makes her happy. We also found a new TV stand for the front room. That makes ME happy. We have been using this janky amish buffet table with no holes or shelves and I am tired of everything crowded on top of it. I finally get to clean up all the cables and wires. That is being hand made and will be here next month.

Worked on docs. Prepped for next week. Upgraded my flight out of my own pocket. I checked the upgrade list and there was no way in hell I was going to get my upgrade so I said fuck it and paid for it. This way the client can pay for the base coach ticket and I can have an enjoyable flight. Everyone wins.

We ordered a swing for the backyard. Actually got a good price on that. $110 for a 3 person swing off Amazon. That I was happy about. We spent the night assembling it. B is happy about that too. She's happy, I'm happy. All that matters.

Same ol' today. Just a couple more days and I am gone. I will be so close to hitting all my levels for the year after this trip. Hotel will be done. Air will be real close. Car rental I should be good too.

Kid comes home today. She's been having a blast. Pics have been awesome.

I need a fucking vacation. A real one. Somewhere new where I don't care. Sigh.

Y11 D80

Man, I had a rough night. My mouth feels like sandpaper. Humidity people, is that so much to ask?? I can't fucking take AC running all night. When is she going to get that through her head? Don't yell at me for snoring when you insist on forcing dried shit air on me all night. Argh.

Did mindless shit yesterday. Worked on low priority documents. Have a class today thankfully to distract me from the inane boredom.

Few more days and I am on the road. Then I can have it as humid as I want. Stick my head in a fishbowl before I sleep.

Y11 D79

What's the saying about fish and houseguests? Smelling? Rotten? Need to go??? That's where I am at right now. Time to go sister. Your car is in my garage, I am up at 4am to drive you to work. Nope nope nope. My *child* is grown and I didn't ask for another one. Sigh. Here's the difference between me and them - I would have DEMANDED the other person's insurance get me a rental car the day this accident happened. Period. This would not have been a request. I would have been on the phone with them every hour on the hour until I had this shit taken care of. It's been over a week and her lack of pressure on them has caused me more grief than them. Nope. Fuck.

Finished my final document. I fucking knew I would enough time but oh no the poor sales people worried too much. Now I have the rest of the week to fill. I do have one class tomorrow which is okay but that's it.

I heard from next week's client on some logistical questions I asked about. They fucking moved the training to a different campus. I could have stayed closer. Now I get to drive in LA traffic next week. Fun times.

Yes, I am cranky this morning. Sue me.

Y11 D78

I am so sore and achy this morning. I did ALL the yardwork. I have a thousand tiny holes in my hands where stickers and splinters went through the gloves I was wearing. I think I got all the splinters out but my hands still hurt like hell so I can't be sure. I took huge piles of branches and twigs and turned them into little twig so they could fit inside my official yard waste cans. Now I can put them out with the regular garbage today. I am not built for this kind of work. I need to flatten this whole backyard and put in succulents and things that don't require maintenance like I did when I had my house in SoCal. I ripped out ALL of the lawn there. No mowing, no trimming, no nothing. Let it grow wild baby. People around here take their lawns way too seriously. Almost like being in King of the Hill.

We got the friend's car in our garage now. Sigh. It has been sitting in a Burger King parking lot since the accident because she couldn't afford a tow. We went over there last night to see if it was drivable or not. With a little smushing of the hood, we got it so she could drive. Now it's going to sit in my fucking garage until the insurance people come out. The upside is she called the insurance people last night and they told her she should be getting a rental car out of all this. Thank fucking god. We can stop playing driving miss daisy around here. It's starting to cross from being nice to annoying the fuck out of me. I am too old to have someone else in my space. It bugs me.

Been watching this show called Final Plate on netflix. It's pretty good. REAL chefs doing shit. We are on the fourth episode and watched them cook some awesome Brazilian food. Makes me want to cook.

The kid is still in Thailand. I think today or tomorrow is their trip to Phuket. She sent me some pics from the wedding they attended. Really neat stuff.

For me, I have ONE more document to write today and then I have a quiet rest of the week. Have a class on Wednesday but otherwise everyone should leave me alone this week. Here's hoping.

Y11 D77

Kid has been sending some pics from Thailand. Looks very cool. I am so glad she got the travel bug from me. Too many people live in closed little bubbles never exploring the world. Hell, most don't even explore their own country. I have seen 80% of the US but only 6% of the world. My goal is to see at least 50% if not more. But even 50% would mean going to about 90 some odd countries. But how cool would that be? To see 90 or more countries in your life? To really experience the human condition from as many points of view as possible? I think it would be incredible. Only 75 to go.

Did all the grocery shopping yesterday. Enough food now for at least two weeks. We grilled last night. Chicken breasts, sausages, corn. Twas tasty.

Took a trip to the mall after dinner. Got some candy and stuff from Lush. Nothing exciting but I needed out of the house.

Today is the yard work I ignored yesterday. Plus I have to hang a laundry line in the basement. Fun times.

One week until I am back on the road. I will hit my Diamond level for Hilton next week and be super close to Platinum on American. If we get this UCSD deal I may hit that next tier finally. Man that would be sweet. It would only take me about 4 trips to do it. Between Oct and Dec I can easily get 4 trips in. Heck, I might even get in six. That would put me within sights of the highest tier for once in my life. Don't expect that to happen, but it would be cool. I would like to finish the year with a couple hundred thousand miles. I am at 130 right now. 300 and we can pretty much go anywhere in the world business class. That's the goal for 2020. I promised B we would go to Scotland for her 30th so I have a little bit of time to build them up. If I stay on track, we could go early too.

2020. What a concept.

Y11 D76

The kid is in Thailand! She is 11 hours ahead. They flew Air Korea there and she said the food on the flight wasn't too bad even for being in coach. They fed her like three times. They got into Bangkok around 2pm my time which was 1am for her. She immediately crashed. While I slept they were catching a smaller hopper flight to some village up north where the actual wedding is happening. Man, what a cool adventure.

As for me, I finished document 3 out of 4. Just one left to deal with on Monday. I can handle that. I have a 1/2 day class on Wednesday, but otherwise it should be a calm week for me next week. I need one. Especially since I will be gone Sun to Sat the following week.

Paid bills. Cleaned house. We tried a new mexican place for dinner. It was closer to real food but so bland because I think they're afraid of hurting the midwest taste buds. It needed more of a kick in my opinion. Or at least some damn salt.

Today I have to go grocery shopping and do some yard work. My wild weekend plans. Look out world.

Y11 D75

I got more emails yesterday than I have received in the last six months. No exaggeration. I got almost 50 emails. Less than 10 were worth my time reading. Fucking sales people and their propensity to copy the whole world on every fucking piece of minutiae. So goddamn annoying.

Had my first run in with MI police yesterday. But thankfully my white privilege was on my side. I apparently made a left in a construction zone which is not allowed. However after looking me up and checking everything, she gave me a verbal warning on that. BUT the insurance card I had in the car was expired and she gave me the fix it on that. I just hadn't replaced the piece of paper. So I had to go to the court house with an updated piece of paper, give them $25 and it all went away. No complaints because a ticket would have been a nightmare. She also chewed me out about my license which is totally understandable. I think next week I will go and get that addressed. Study the book this weekend, take the test next week. Get that done at least. I need it to vote anyway. She told me not to worry about the car. Since my plate is good until 2022 no one is going to be looking at that. But my license is a different story. Sigh. Okay. Thank you nice police officer for not dinging me with a huge ticket.

I finished one more doc yesterday. Have one more to work on today and I will be close to being done. I really just need to be left alone today too. I can't take another day of 50 emails. It's asinine.

I did have a cool conference call yesterday. A prospective new client in San Diego. 75 days of training pre-paid with delivery starting in October. It would take us through this time next year. I would get a shit ton of miles that's for sure. Enough to maybe finally hit the next elusive tier on American. Let's see if we get the bid. I am kind of excited about it. It would also mean people will leave me the hell alone because I will be tied up with their stuff for months.

The kid is currently in Seoul. She landed there about an hour ago. Next stop Bangkok. She should hit I think around noon my time. What an adventure!

Had spaghetti for dinner.

Now, it's time to pay bills. I finally got my expense check. Good times.

Y11 D74

Spent the day working on doc fixes. Got through one of four major changes. I need to get the rest done by Tuesday at the latest so we can send it off to the folks at UCLA. I was supposed to be teaching today and tomorrow but they moved it off my plate to work on this stuff. These guys haven't learned yet that I don't need massive number of days to do this shit. A couple of days would have been fine. Yesterday plus two days next week and I would have been good. Whatever. Add to that marketing is asking me to do their job. Fuck all of them.

Made coconut chicken for dinner. Watched some tv. Mounted a switch for B. Went to bed.

The kid is off to Thailand today. Lucky duck. She goes from Sac to Seattle to Seoul to Bangkok. Lots of travel, lots of changes. Then once they are there, they have a hopper to Phuket. Crazy stuff. I can't wait to see pictures. As of now, that's two countries she's been too that I haven't. Good for her! I am so pleased I raised a child who sees the beauty, fun, and joy in traveling. See the world, be the world, and just maybe you won't go around shooting up people.

On that note, I am sick and tired of these fucking spoiled brat white boys out there shooting people up. When will enough be enough to do something? Anyone who still stands behind this administration and the republican party in general is a complete idiot with blinders on. Or their greed has so eclispsed their morality that they have no soul. That or they simply are racist pieces of shit who don't see what these white boys are doing as wrong. None of those are good choices. So tired of all of it.

Y11 D73

We have a house guest, AGAIN. I am going to start charging her rent. Or at least a portion of utilities. Nah, that would be fucked up. So, check this - I think I have mentioned how this friend of B's just can't seem to catch a break. She's trying to do everything right, making up for past bad decisions, trying to do the right thing and get her life squared away. She recently forfeited on a car loan she had because she knew it was a bad choice and was costing her too much. The hit to her credit was worth the amount she would be able to save every month. She bought a car with cash, dumped almost $2k into it to get it running perfectly. She was so proud as she now had no car payment and 1/2 the insurance cost. Yeah, some dickhead rear ended her yesterday and totaled the car. AND because everyone here has shit insurance, she won't see anything. It's like seriously? WTF? I know that feeling. You try to do everything right. You try to play by all the rules and you still get fucked in the ass. So yeah, she can stay here for a little while until things get sorted out. I wish there had been someone to lend me a hand during my bad periods and if I can help someone, I will.

As for me, I taught all day yesterday. Finished around 4, made dinner, watched tv, went to bed at 10. My life is boring.

Today I start playing catchup. Expense reports. Write up from last week's delivery. Updating material. I have a lot to do and not a lot of time to do it. Hence why I am up early even on a day I don't teach. It's going to be a long one I feel.

Y11 D72

I am feeling very overwhelmed right now. On the work front, I have received more emails in the last month than I did in all other months this year combined. I can't take working for salespeople. It's driving me fucking crazy.  Too many CCs. Too many expectations of time. I do not work 24 hours a day you stupid motherfuckers. But what's the alternative? Find a new job here where I am banished to a cube and have to join the other lemmings as they go by my window every morning? Or just shoot myself in the fucking head? Both ideas sound equally appealing.

Taught day one of two yesterday. Good group. Two guys, both my age, both sharp. One more day of them today.

Made tacos for dinner. Watched some tv. Installed a new light fixture in the guest room that B found. Put in a new switch for the garage.

Went to bed. Whee.

Y11 D71

Some day I hope they find a way of recording dreams. I was having a very interesting one I think but it slipped away the minute my stupid alarm went off. I want to know what was going on in there. 

Spent the day doing stuff around the house. Grocery shopping for dinners for the week.

B needed a robe so we went out to find her one. 

Visited with her grandparents which is always nice. I like them. They're good people.

Had lefotvers for dinner.

Went to bed around 10.

Have two days of classes then the rest of the week is doc work in prep for UCLA in two weeks.

Been doing a lot of file conversions yesterday. I found a link to all the Doctor Who I lost. 26 seasons. All of it needing conversion. I am through season 5. Ugh.

Very tired this morning. Not looking forward to teaching.

Y11 D70

Had a good day yesterday. We did some house cleaning, found an actual Asian store, got some goodies from there, took a nap, B's friend came over, I BBQ'd steaks and corn, we all watched a movie, he took a chair from downstairs I've wanted gone, and went to bed around midnight.

A nice drama free, issue free day. No work bullshit. No other people shit. We dropped B's grandfather's truck back off. Washed it, put gas in it for them.

Steaks and corn came out really nice too.

Oh, we went to the library across the street finally and got cards. Really nice library. Good selection of stuff. Didn't have time to wander around, but maybe today.

B's friend is pretty cool. He might even be someone I could call friend too. We do have shit in common which is rare for around here.

Got my timesheet done but not my expenses. That can wait until Wednesday when I have a free day. I leave for UCLA in two weeks.

The kid leaves for Thailand in 4 days. Envious of that for sure. I think she is going to have a wild time. I wish I could send her a new camera to get lots of shots.

No plans for today either. It's a bit warm here so don't want to spend too much time outside. Need to get through August and the temp should start dropping back into the low 70s high 60s which will be right where I want it. Window temps. No more forced air.

I miss winter. I really do. No maintenance, no AC, people drive a little slower. Bring it back.

Can you believe we are almost at one year of owning this house? Only 29 more to go and it's mine. Whee.

Y11 D69

Had a rough night. Back in the land of no moisture in the house. Tonight I might see how our humidifier system works. Get some air flowing through here.

Had a long day yesterday. Didn't get home until 6:30pm. I got to the airport around 3:30 and needed to change my flight. Since there were no counter agents yet, I did it at the machine. The only options I had to make sure I was confirmed a 1st class seat were to change my entire flight. Not just the later DTW flight. Okay. I ended up changing both flights and ironically, went out 10 minutes earlier than my delayed flight.

I found out what happened with the delays. Stoms in TX and NC were both pushing things out and that same set of storms were all heading to OK. If I hadn't gotten out when I did, I would have been delayed even worse.

I had 4 hours to kill in OK, followed by 3 hours to kill in TX. Fun times. I had the bulkead on both flights too which I don't like. I want my bag near me. Meh. I survived. 1st world problems.

I had car service pick me up because I was smack in the middle of friday rush hour and didn't want B to deal with that. Her aunt was here when I arrived. They were cutting her hair. Apparently she confided in B that she is a lesbian, has a girlfriend, but is staying married. Okay. Whatever works for all of you.

We had dinner, did laundry, caught up on the week, went to bed around 11.

No plans for the weekend. BBQ tomorrow but otherwise, nothing on the agenda. I like that.

Y11 D68

Well, my day is off to a shit start. My first flight is delayed two hours making my dallas connection 29 minutes. When I get to the airport shortly I am going to see if there is a later detroit flight but that ups my travel day by a big margin. Sigh.

Yesterday was okay. Our material is too light. I finished with 75 minutes to spare. Yes, it was a small group, but that's too much time. We need to add more.

Had cane's for dinner, went to bed at 7, slept like shit. Leaving in 40 minutes. Hopefully I will get home today. Cross your fingers for me.

Y11 D67

Okay, here's how my mind screws with me - two things I pondered last night:

1. How is it that one company can offer me 60 months 0% interest on something while another wants to charge me 27% interest? I mean, I get that companies are in business to make money. I am not being stupid or naive or anti-money, but I am getting less tolerant of greed as I get older. Our AC was 6200 and they have no problem with charging me $100 a month for 60 months with no interest. Obviously they make enough money off this to stay in business or they wouldn't be able to offer it. Yet, my Best Buy card literally charges 18% interest on purchases not paid off in six months. WTF? Why can one do it and the other gouge you? It just doesn't seem logical or ethical.

2. Why do deaf people speak the way they do? I understand that in part it's because they have no point of reference to what a voice should sound like, but scientifically is there a reason? Is it lip and or tongue placement? Is there something going on we don't understand? Can a deaf person be trained to speak in a more 'standard' voice? Curiousity.

So anyway.

Got through day 2. No major issues. 11 students showed up. The material went well. I need to make some small tweaks to the class, but otherwise all good.

Had a steak for dinner. Was unhappy with it. Look, when I order rare, that doesn't mean cold. Idiots.

Finished all 20 bobbleheads in Fallout 4 last night. My big accomplishment.

Go home tomorrow. Teach 4 days next week from home. Looking forward to the weekend.