Like an urchin (hey)

With a depressing $32 left in my checking account and no food in the cupboards, I had no choice but to do my grocery shopping at Big Lots. I bought the staples (rice, pasta, canned veggies) and the not-so-staple (Spaghettios, Ravioli, Pop Tarts). When I came home, I made a nice rice dish with veggies and mushroom soup and put it in dishes to take to work today. Then I left home without it. Sad and hungry...and sick. That was me.

Well, I must have looked especially pathetic because the CFO gave me some pizza from CPK and my friend Terry came back from lunch at Yang Chow and gave me the rest of her slippery shrimp. I felt like Oliver with my bowl out asking for more. Terry even gave me some Emergen-C, which may be a little late, but the thought was nice. It's nice to have friends when you're an idiot who leaves her lunch at home. Thanks, guys! [edit] Terry also brought me some CFL bulbs she snagged at the recent Women's Conference in Long Beach. That Terry is okay in my book.

In other news, I have pretty much spent the whole day trying to schedule a meeting at a time that is most convenient for about ten people and guess what--nothing is most convenient for ten people. Come on, folks; work with me here.

Damn my work ethic

My head is woozy and floaty. My sinuses are blocked and most likely swollen. I feel as if my face is a big puffy mess, although the mirror and my friends assure me this is not the case. My eyes have packed their bags and left them sitting, and have given their focusing team the day off. I'd put the glasses on but the aforementioned swelling makes wearing them painful. All in all, I should be home in bed resting, drinking tea, getting better. Instead I am here, filing, scheduling appointments, drinking tea but not feeling any better despite the heavenly chai.

I am still debating attending SnB tonight. I don't want to infect my knittahs, if contagious I be, but on the other hand, I feel like I've been neglecting y'all. We'll see how it goes by 5:30ish. In the meantime, I'm knitting my way through the lunch shift at the front desk before burying myself in the filing room again.

Soup. I should get soup, too.

Six Minutes

I fell asleep and now I only have six minutes to fulfill my NaBloPoMo requirements. Here goes:

No ANTM so I watched "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium" instead. I wanted more. The little boy, Eric, was adorable, but the whole beginning narrative was annoying and unnecessary as they told the whole story in context throughout the film.

Boss is out today and tomorrow. So why have I talked to her more today than I have in the past two days when she was actually in the office?

I think I'm coming down with something. I no feel so good.

Posting now. Don't kick me out.

How was your polling place?

After waiting 40 minutes in the long, long line outside, someone finally came out and told us "If you're voting at the Green Table, come inside. There's a separate line." Woo Hoo! I'm Green! I got in line behind a man I shall call Creepy McThreeteeth (because he was creepy and had three teeth) and in front of the idiot couple who was JUST getting around to reading the booklet. My polling place was at the Gay & Lesbian Center on Shrader. Mrs. Idiot said--very loudly--"Oh, I don't want THOSE people to have the right to marry. I'm voting NO." I didn't tell her that a no vote means Yes to gay marriage. If she can't read that's her problem. When one of the poll workers said "Handicapped voters can come to the front of the line," Mr. & Mrs. Idiot went up. I guess that meant mentally handicapped, too, because they appeared to be able bodied.

Creepy McThreeteeth kept asking me the time. Then, he said, "What's your sign? Are you a Capricorn?" When I said, No. He waited and stared until I finally said, "Sagittarius." "Oh, a fire sign. I should have known." I showed no interest in why or how he should have known and the conversation died there except for the continuous time check. At the table, the woman checking our names said to Creepy, "Hey you live in my building. You should come over and visit me. I'm very lonely. I live in 517. I'm always home." Ew. Lady, he's gross. No one is THAT lonely.
As I was leaving the poll worker was once again telling folks about the two lines and nearly half the line had no idea whether they were green table or orange, nor did they know how to find out. Am I the only one who reads the booklet?
As I was walking back to my car, a man in a Porsche pulled out of a space, hit a traffic cone and continued to drag it up the street. I called out to him and said, "Sir, you have a cone stuck to your bumper." "I do?" How did he not feel that?

Thank you, Starbucks, for the free coffee. Did everyone else get theirs?

OMG I'm so mad I could smash something

So, I got a call on my cell at work, which I ignored because, you know, I'm was at work. When I checked my message, it was Frau PITA who said, "Your rent is not in the box and it's the third. I am going to have to charge you a penalty. I try to reach you and you're never home. I don't even know what number to call." Okay. 1) I wasn't home Saturday because of the fundraiser, but I was home all day Sunday. and of course I'm not home on Monday. I work. 2) my check has been in that box since 8:00am Saturday. 3) She reaches me on my cell phone every time and yet, she always says she doesn't know how to reach me.
I called her back and told her the rent was in the box. She insisted it was not. I told her that it WAS in the box because I put it there first thing on Saturday and that she needed to check the box better. She insisted that she checked it three times and used a stool to look inside. You may remember another time when she insisted that I didn't pay my rent and how she "looked several times," only to have egg on her face when I reached in and pulled out my check. I told her I'd leave another check in the box when I got home and she told me to "cancel the check." So I have to pay $30 to cancel a check because Frau is too short to reach inside the box and find my check? Hells to the no.
THEN, even after we established that I would leave another check in the box, she kept talking about how I haven't paid my rent and how she is tired of having to come over to look in the box. "My check is in the box. I put it there on Saturday. I'm sorry you can't find it but I swear it's in there," at which point she cut me off to tell me "No, it's not. And I knocked on your door but you didn't answer." "BECAUSE I'M AT WORK. I will put another check in the box when I get home." I hung up before she could say anything else.
There was a message on my home phone that said, "I hope you didn't go out of town and didn't pay your rent." I might add that today is the first time she has tried to contact me. The phone has rung three times since I got home and I've ignored it.
[edited 11-4] Guess what Frau found in her mailbox? Yep, my original check. BITCH!

Moray Eels never cease to be the creepiest creatures ever

Except spider crabs--those things gave me a major case of the heebie-jeebies. Yes, folks, I survived the big fundraiser, which was held at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. It was lovely. The rain moved the registration table (my job for the evening) inside but since the doors were open, it was still brrrr chilly, and clammy. I had planned on blowing my hair out and then curling it with the spiral curling iron, but the on-and-off rain made me decide to let it air dry and just use a headband to hold it back. Good call--I had serious Roseanne Rosannadanna hair by the end of the evening. (Photos were taken. Photographers were injured.)
We had some time before setting up for the event, so some of the girls and I set off to explore. We saw shark eggs about to hatch, fish that change sex in times of stress, humongous lobsters and far too many eels which are just plain ugly and creepy. Esther made friends with a puffin who followed her every move and I got totally annoyed at a bunch of kids who were teasing the sea lions. Kids are mean and parents are idiots. Sadly, the otters were sleepy and listless even though the recorded message kept saying how playful they are. Ha!

All in all, it was totally worth the weeks of planning and sleeplessness. I was outbid for the tattoo at Sunset Strip Tattoo and a bike from the show "24", but I won a Baby G watch.

The Big Fundraiser is TODAY!!!

Oh My God! I have done far too much for a Saturday morning. So far, I've gone to the party store to pick up large rolls of cellophane; gone to Target to purchase a garment steamer, hand soap, toothbrush, mouthwash, and birthday card; pedicure; steamed my dress for tonight; joined NaBloPoMo; shaved my legs, and now...NOW I have to do my hair and makeup so I can be in Long Beach to help set up by 2pm. Phew! Normally I wouldn't even be out of bed at this hour. It's going to be a long night. Hopefully, I'll have photos for you tomorrow.