RAVE: Mom is out visiting, and we're enjoying 80 degree weather and lots of great wine. Put about 15,000 photos from dad's laptop/iPad onto her iPad, and we've been going through them for the past few days reliving some good, old memories. RAVE: A lot of people bitch and complain about their dad, but I had one of the good ones.
RAVE: I'm going to see Toadies and The Reverend Horton Heat in about a month! (Note: Jim Heath [the "Reverend" in the Reverend Horton Heat] OWES ME A GOOD SHOW. I paid good money for a show in Houston last November, and it sucked. He had some other guy sing half of the set. That's not what I paid for.) Spoiler
Rave: Paid off the rest of el husband's student loans. We are done, forever. No more school. Rave: A few days ago a friend told me that she met someone who had nothing but amazing things to say about me professionally. I had no idea who she was talking about, but it made me feel good. Rant? I figured out who she met. It was someone who's so full of shit he should sell used cars. This kid is fun, but I don't believe ANYthing he says. Nothing like a nice reminder to not pay too much attention to other people's opinions because most of the time they're worth what they cost.
Rant: A period of quiet/inactivity will go by, and I'll convince myself I have my anxiety regarding this lawsuit under control. All it takes is one random email from a friend alerting me to a change, though, and BOOM. I want to throw up, never eat again and if the world ended tonight it would maybe be a relief. I'm uncertain how other people survive this kind of shit.
RANT: Why couldn't I've been born into a normal family? And by "Normal", I mean a regular dysfunctional family. How do they keep finding me when I've made it clear I don't want to hear from any of them? I don't give a fuck about their problems, especially their problems that only myself (AKA my money) can apparently solve. But still, they're able to track me down, tell me their sob story and ask if I can bail them out. The answer is "No." Actually it's "Hell NO." I've had to change my phone number. Again. Maybe I'll change my name to make finding me again even more difficult. Commander Zach Pounders is probably available. (If I'm paying the $ to change my name, I'm giving myself a fucking title.) tldr: My family sucks
Rave: Flights booked and long service leave approved. I'll have a month off when I get back and 8 days in Brazil, 9 in NY and then a week in Whistler before a stop in Vegas on my way home. Few extra weeks off as well and my liver may very well call for emancipation and run away.
Rave: I spent the day on the beach. It was warm without being hot with a good breeze. Rant: I slathered myself obsessively with sunscreen - SPF 30, lotion and spray - and STILL got burned. Rave: I'm wearing an awesome black sequined dress tonight and sunburn or not, my boobs are going to look fantastic.
Rant: After dealing with all the mothers and other family yesterday, I decided late yesterday to do something for myself. Skip work, not tell the wife, go to the lake and rent a sailboat. Just enjoy life for a day. There is not a breath of wind. It's like a gnat fart out there, imperceptible. Not even the 2 mph gusting to 4 they're forecasting. So I'm at work.
Rant: A neighbor across the street from me had a medical emergency last weekend and has been in the hospital since. His car was left parked out on the street and on Friday morning I saw some little pieces of shit had thrown rocks at it from all angles then jumped on the hood and smashed the windshield in at some point. Stupid destructive vandalism is one thing, but to do it while a person is having serious health issues is beyond infuriating. Rave: The crab apple tree in my front yard was spectacular last week and while those pink-purple blossoms are now gone, the lilacs are in full bloom and thus I have several fresh cut bunches in the house. I love lilacs. Rave: To the woman who does lunges along the street in booty shorts every afternoon... bless you. Rant: Having meetings to prepare for other meetings and burning time just deciding when to put them on a calendar. For FUCK SAKES what are emails for??
Rave: If you're in the St. Paul and are looking for a place to eat, I highly recommend the Downtowner on 7th Street. My steak was excellent.
Rant: Work has been hard because of the new manager. Rave: I have someone who is helping me work through this, and this won't end up with me getting fired or quitting but me learning how to deal with this. In the past when these things happened I would get fired or quit, very predictably. Changing old ways is difficult though
Rave: Heard from an old friend last night. We had a falling out about 6 years ago and have barely spoke since. It was nice to hear from him. Rant: We have a very complicated past and while I'm excited to reconcile (I've been trying since the inciting incident, but had been unsuccessful) I'm afraid of the old feelings it will dredge up.
Rant: Duke Animal Clinic, you are on my shit list. We took Piggy there to have her glands expressed and her nails trimmed because we are unable to do these things ourselves. We were told she flailed too much and they were unable to do her nails. We get home, she is bleeding EVERYWHERE. Turns out they partially did the back ones and nicked her really bad. When I called to complain they were like "well, the vet was able to get the bleeding stopped here. And she flailed a lot, so you weren't charged." Really? That's their response? No shit, she flails. We took her in because they are supposed to be experts in animal care. We do Buddy's nails ourselves. Now she won't really even let us near her foot. It's going to take a long time to regain her trust regarding her feet. So not only do I have a bunch of blood to clean up, but now I have to do additional training with her to get her back at least to square one. Fuck! Spoiler: Pic spoiler'd for size
Rant: And I'm single again after 3 years... I've been unhappy for the last year in varying degrees and thought about getting out on more than a few occasions. Doesn't mean I don't love her, but I felt sooner or later we were headed for a break-up, and, feeling that, it would be unfair to continue the relationship... Still, hurts like a motherfucker. It's not like the love is gone all of a sudden, but it just wasn't enough...
Rave: Despite stresses and tension, life is pretty good. New girl clicked really well, girlfriend continues to be great, wife is adorable as we get towards the latter pregnancy stages. I assembled the crib today which felt good, especially for someone as unhandy as me. Business is still in up and down building mode but gaining some momentum. And various other projects are kicking up nicely. Rant: Summer means oppressive heat and bugs and it'll be here soon.
Rave: Fixed my own outdoor A/C unit without looking like I got hit by a War of the Worlds death ray! Rant: The big white rabbit that showed up in my back yard almost two years ago has been missing for weeks. He's only been gone for a few days before, and I think something happened to him. I also think something happened to the little orange cat he palled around with, but the cat was an asshole so I don't worry so much about him.