Craziness

Work was nuts today.

Today I received all the supply orders I have placed, starting with the first one (dated 1/8/07). All of them. At once.

These orders are not just for me. Oh, no. They're for all 10 units in our department. When I took over the supply ordering, I set everyone up with instructions, the departmental catalog, and custom-made PDF forms to make the process as painless as possible, and told them that I would only process orders during the first week of each month. Because the person doing the supply ordering before me was a little bit, oh, let's just call her "busy," when people heard there was a new person doing it, they all got right on it, and started ordering stuff.

So I got right on it and processed all those orders, and placed about 7 of them.

And today? All that shit arrived.

So I'm not sure if I've told you, but my counterpart - my co-worker - my boss's other secretary - well: she's a pack rat. This woman keeps everything (for example: when I first started she had just finished "cleaning" out some file cabinets for me. Most of the contents of her file cabinets were placed on the floor between our cubicles. This was in December. That shit is still there today. Anyway, one of the items was a disgusting old blue dish sponge. It was dried up and not really blue anymore. And that thing was sitting there about 2 inches outside of my invisible wall [if I were Less Nessman, I'd have masking tape on the carpet delineating my space from hers, but I'm not that crazy yet]. It was grossing me out. How old was it? What hundred year old goo had it wiped up? How much of that scuzzy goo was I inhaling with each breath? So? One day in a fit of grossed-out-ness, I threw it away. She never noticed). Anyway, her stockpiled crap left me no room in which to process all the 30-odd boxes, so I had to find another location.

That in itself was a bit of an adventure, because the office remodel started a few weeks ago, and things are upside down and crazy just from that. However, I was successful in bribing someone to let me use their office and their Student Worker (I gave her my bag of 10 baby carrots. She's in Weight Watchers too), and getting the boxes all unpacked and sorted was easier than I expected.

Anyway, I was pissed off before I even started opening boxes, because I got to see the original order that our procurement section placed with Corporate Express, and when do you think my almost three month old orders were placed?

March 23.

It's dedication like that that makes me... Oh, I can't even be sarcastic about it. It's just sad. Nobody cares anymore.

There was another incident today that's similar to this one... we need to order a special chair for someone, an ergonomic chair that her doctor wrote up a whole justification on, and this poor woman has been totally getting the runaround. Instead of ordering the chair like they're supposed to, the so-called "Health and Safety" office has informed me that they're not normally involved in "ordering equipment" for employees, and that this person's supervisor is supposed to do it. Well, it's a long story but to get to the bottom of it, nobody wants to do their job, and now my boss is involved, and she's pissed off. Order the goddamn chair already is my opinion, but of course that's not the way it seems to be working out.

So who do you think is going to order the chair?

The person whose job it is? The supervisor? Nope. A clerk who works in a totally unrelated section is going to do it, and I will have to sit in on the proceedings to ensure that if this happens again, I can do it too.

I mean, I appreciate gaining all this additional experience, I really do. But it kind of sucks.

20 Mile Bike Ride: Mission Accomplished

Today was the day. We went on our bike ride. Before we left, Patty had me try some of this crazy stuff she has called "Zipfizz." It's this stuff you add to your water, and it supposedly has all these vitamins and crap to make you exercise better. I have no idea if it worked, since I hd nothing to compare it to.

We started out in Culver City at about 2:45... If you've never been on the bike path through Culver City: the path makes several dips down and up again under about six major streets until you get to the Marina. Those dips were surprisingly difficult. Remember: I grew up riding this bike path, going to school, to Missy's house, etc. - it used to be pretty easy, and a lot of fun. However, today? In my old and decrepit state? Hard work, to say the least.

After that, you're riding mostly along the coast, south to El Segundo, which is where we were headed. I thought it might be easier when we started going south (the wind was pretty strong in our faces the whole way to the beach), but, well, I was wrong.

I have to admit that it was a bit of a blow to my ego: I was really working hard today, doing something that used to be a lot easier. Granted, I wasn't riding my own bike, and it has been a long time since I did anything really strenuous, and I'm a lot older and fatter than I used to be... but I guess I did expect it to be a lot easier than it was. There were actually moments when I was breathing so hard, I was almost wheezing!

So we made it there in about an hour and a half. I needed a few breaks, which, it goes without saying, I never needed before. The wind was pretty strong today! Anyway, once we got there, we found a couple of benches to crash on, and we sat for about a half hour and drank some water and got our breath back. Then we turned around and headed home.

It was easier heading back home... the wind was mostly at our backs, and that helped. Patty was still about a whole block ahead of me, but I was able to mostly keep her in sight, unlike the way down. We agreed on that before-hand: I didn't want my slow pace to drag her down! And she was super encouraging whenever we took a break, and would cheer me on as I very slowly pulled up to her. There was one spot where I just couldn't pedal the bike up the steep incline going under Inglewood Boulevard, and again: haven't had to get off and walk since I was a little kid! Anyway, the ride home took only about 70 minutes, which was better.

But now? My butt hurts.

Bike! Part 2 + A Host of Other Unrelated, Probably Uninteresting Topics

Patrick got my bike all pumped full of air and ready to go for tomorrow. I'm sitting here on the loveseat in the living room, looking at it. Man it's ugly.

It's been a really long time since I've gone for a ride. I hope I don't look stupid riding it! All uncoordinated and awkward! Or worse yet: whine-y. My friend knows where to turn around so that our ride from her house to this certain point = 10 miles. We're taking the bike path to the beach and then back again.

Not sure how I'm doing on Weight Watchers this week. Today we went to El Taco in Downey: it's another taco stand (we love 'em. Next time you're in Culver City, check out Tito's!). I had two potato tacos, which were super yummy. I guess I have to count the potatoes, the tortillas, and the cheese (lettuce, tomatoes = 0 points). Anyway, the reason we were out there is, we had to take my car back to the window tinting place, because the passenger side window was kind of messed up. I was disappointed. I really hope I didn't make a bad decision in getting my windows tinted. I love the way it looks, but man, if it's going to peel or look bad...? Not cool.

Anyway, while we waited for them to finish the window, we drove around to Downey and had lunch, and then went to Home Depot to look at paint.

Yeah, this was supposed to be the weekend we painted the bedroom. Awhile back we painted one wall a sort of brick-red, but we never painted the other walls. I really like the red wall, but the rest of the room is looking dingy by comparison. So we're looking for something complimentary but not as bold for the rest of the room. In fact, I think I'd like the rest of the walls to be in the white family. I've been browsing the Behr website, and what white could possibly be better for me than "Popped Corn"? Anyway, still working on it.

Right now we're watching an old Jimmy Kimmel from last week, when Milo Ventimiglia and Incubus were on. OK, so I admit it: I love Incubus. The song they performed, "Dig," is one of my favorite songs on the radio right now. I'm probably going to be buying "Light Grenades" any day now.

Another band I've only heard on the radio (Indie!) and am a little bit interested in is "Clap Your Hands Say Yeah." I heard "Satan Said Dance" on my way home from the window tinting place on the radio, and it was pretty cool. Will have to look into them some more. All the reviews on Amazon.com pretty much say, the first album was better. I haven't heard it. Also? I hate buyer reviews. I don't know these people, or what other music they like... who cares what some random dude "Jayloo" thinks? I'd rather listen to the samples on Amazon and make up my own mind.

Anyway, screw it. Maybe I'll just buy a Tom Tom Club CD.

So after possibly blowing it with the El Taco tacos, I had a salad for dinner. Not bad, actually. We added some chow mein noodles (1.5 points for 1/4 cup) and mushrooms, cherry tomatoes... and low fat dressing. It was really good, actually. The chow mein noodles made it crunch. Followed that up with some hummus (2 points for 2 T!) and crackers (10 = 2 points)... I think I deserve some chocolate (I have some mini Reese's peanut butter cups that are just one point each). And some water.

Forgot to metion that yesterday was my RDO... it was nice. I went to the spa and had a body treatment. I've been getting facials from this same girl since I moved here. She's been in four different locations in the seven years we've lived here, and I keep following her from spa to spa. She's terrific, a very nice girl, and I like her a lot. I think what she did on me yesterday was a salt scrub. It was pretty intense. Usually when I go for a facial, I change into this little terry cloth chemise thing, and then cover up with a robe for the walk to my room, but for the body treatment, I had to strip off everything, and wear these horrible disposable undergarments (if you click on the link, the ones I wore are #82520B) under the robe (I really don't like their robes, or their throwaway slippers. The spa is very elegant and nice, but the robe and slippers are kind of cheap and not very comfortable). I've worn the panties when I get waxed (again? too much information?), and they're bad enough. It's like a piece of tissue paper strung on a piece of string. Maybe waxed paper, not tissue. The bra was worse: a paper sling that covered me, but just barely. Luckily I trust my girl totally; I was a little embarrassed about my belly, but got over it. I don't think I'd like that treatment from anybody else, but it was really good. I felt so clean and smooth afterwards. And my skin was totally soft.

Am thinking maybe (maybe! it's a big huge MAYBE) giving up Diet Coke soon. It can't possibly be good for me. I drink a ton of it. Two or more a day... And, as much as I love it, I've been noticing that my mouth has been a little sore lately. I don't know what's up with that. Maybe I've been grinding my teeth at night? Or maybe all the Diet Coke is eating away at the inside of my mouth. Is that too much information? Well, it's what I've been thinking.

This week have had a bunch of weird dreams. No use describing them, really. They were just strange. Franny has been waking us up a lot during the night with her overly aggressive playing... she's been running around a lot and making noise. Not bugging the other cats, but jumping on the bed and being a pest. So maybe that's it. And then if I get up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom or something, I've been getting that old creeped-out feeling I used to get. I don't mind coming home alone late, like when I have a really late night at my flute lesson (sometimes we eat dinner, or I go to karaoke, and Patrick gets tired and goes to bed before I'm home), but for some reason, being asleep, and then being awake, in my own house in the middle of the night, freaks me out sometimes.

Anyway, that's all.

Good night.

Bike!

I've made plans to go biking this weekend, and now I want a new bike.

Before I learned to drive at 22, I got around town on my red & white Univega 10-speed. I loved that bike. I could carry it over my shoulder, it was so light. I rode it to school, to work, my flute lesson, in the rain... I got so confident on it I was making left turns in the left-hand turn lane! Then I finally learned to drive, got a car, and my poor bike was abandoned.

It was left out on a balcony for some time, where it acquired quite a bit of rust, and then my dad - ! - got rid of it. Since then I've been riding my brother's butt-ugly turquoise Nishiki mountain bike. It's a little too big for me, and is this amazingly hideous turquoise color (with hot pink accents! It's Don Johnson's Miami Vice bike!). I don't ride very often, though, so I didn't see any reason to purchase a better bike of my own, one specifically for me.

Yesterday I made a date with my friend to go biking on Sunday, though, and she has a glorious new black & white bike (she looks like a cop on it! I love it)... and I got jealous. I'm not moving on getting a new bike just yet, but I was curious to see what was out there, so today I stopped by the bike shop and checked them out.

I was helped by this guy named Diego, who asked me a bunch of questions, and took me over to the "fitness" bike section. I had told him that it was really important to me that the bike not be too heavy. The first bike he showed me was the Trek 7.2, woman's version of the bike one level below the one I'm showing at the beginning of my blog. That bike was black with pink lettering, and honestly? I'm not feeling the pink. Also, I've always, since my first blue & white banana seat bike when I was 8, had boys' bikes. I'm comfortable on a boys bike (wait a minute...!), and they seem sturdier (even if that's a my own misconception, who can argue with feeling steadier?). So I dismissed that one with a wave of my hand, and he showed me the one pictured here. They didn't have a small enough one for me on hand, so I only looked at it. It's pretty. Shiny. Lots of gears (I think Diego said 24, but how is that possible? My old 10-speed would feel very outclassed). Fancy 21st century materials. And only $529.

So I'm going to wait and see how Sunday goes (I hope it doesn't rain), and start saving my money. Actually I already have enough in my savings account right now but again, I don't want to be hasty.

I don't mind you coming here and wasting all my time (time)

Work!

Oh, man, there's a lot of it. Busy. My stack of stuff is about 12 inches high... that bugs the hell out of me. This is the busiest I've been at any job, and it's been my practice to complete everything in my In-Basket by the end of each day... I haven't been able to do that for a really long time! I know what I have to do, it's just finding the time to do it. And lately my boss has added tracking some of my co-worker's projects, which kind of sucks, because you know what? She makes more money than I do.

Anyway, in spite of having a lot of stuff to do, today at 3:30, I went for a 25 minute walk. I was feeling very proud of myself. Earned 1 point!

Now we're watching "I, Robot" on TV... Patrick didn't really want to watch "Dancing With the Stars" (though I am curious to see what Steve Sanders looks like in the year 2007...)

Franny!

Well, everyone knows that the only reason to have a blog is to talk about your cat...

And here's... Franny! I haven't posted any photos of her in awhile. Isn't she big? And cute?

It's been a nice, quiet weekend. Friday I was in computer training here in LB most of the day. It was intermediate Excel training, and that was pretty interesting (just so you know, I'm watching Cops on Court TV, and this guy was in pursuit of a dude on a motorcycle, and he got a flat tire right on some railroad tracks, and wouldn't you know it? There's a train coming! I thought it was funny that the camerman didn't seem interested in helping him push the car off the tracks. Now all his cop friends have come to mock him). I knew most of the stuff covered, but there were some things I hadn't done before. We were a pretty dull group of trainees, but still, it was nice to be close to home rather than at work!

Not much happened today or yesterday... We got the windows in my car tinted... Patrick and I went shopping and got us both some clothes, and today, some groceries. I went a little nuts and cleaned the bedroom and rearranged the furniture, and made plans to finally paint the last 3 walls in there (I don't know what to say. We couldn't choose a color). I think that'll be next weekend's job. Oh, and I'm doing the neverending laundry.

Other than that, we've just been hanging out. It's been nice.

2hgvovcf=yo

Tonight Patrick and I went to the supermarket and to Golden Spoon for some 1 point frozen yogurt (yummy). Franny was hanging out with me, sitting on the laptop (I forgot it was still on). She's interested in ice cream and cold things, but she won't eat them. After he finished his yogurt, Patrick changed the kitty litter. The cats were so excited to have fresh litter, and Franny leaped from the laptop is such a flurry of feet, she created this search.

=yo indeed.

Weigh In No. 1

Well, it was my first week of Weight Watchers today. I didn't do too bad: lost 1.8 pounds. I was a little disappointed; thought I might've done more. My co-workers, the ones who knew about my week at Weight Watchers, were all really excited for me. I think they were kinda expecting more. Oh, well.

Work has been really busy lately, so I haven't had time to take my afternoon walk... I really have to make sure I keep doing that.

Today things got a bit tense... my co-worker is having trouble with a certain project, and I felt a little bit like I was put in the middle of it all. It's hard to keep track of someone else's progress - and I don't really know what's going to happen if she didn't make some headway after I left. Tomorrow is actually my last day at work this week; I'm going to some computer training all day on Friday.

Anyway, the thing is, right now? I want some ice cream.

Starman

Tonight I watched a movie called "Starman." Jeff Bridges was in it. It was an okay movie. What made it interesting was Jeff Bridges. I'm not accustomed to him being so darned good looking. I mean, where the hell have I been?

Is that shallow?

No, really. He's a good actor.

Anyway, it was interesting. Karen Allen was pretty good in it, too.

Also, tonight I discovered that an order of small fries from Del Taco = 8.5 Weight Watchers points. Fucking shit! Wish I'd known that before I ate them. Guess I was rebelling a little. Will have to watch it tomorrow.

I Wanna Rat!

So the garage sale was a bust, for me, anyway (I think everybody else did OK) - I made $4. Well, maybe a bit more, but I had to pay for my two Tito's tacos.

Anyway, it gave me some cash so that I could tip the guys at the car wash, which is where I went when I left.

After lunch, I went across the street with my mom to visit with the three little girls who moved in a couple of years ago. My parents are friends with their parents: my dad's always helping their dad (a lawyer) with some household chore or another. That guy isn't very skilled with tools. Anyway, they have something like 24 pets, and one of the pets (they have fish and rabbits and cats and a dog, and I don't know what all else) is the cutest little rat, named Dumbo.

At the last garage sale, they brought out Dumbo but I didn't hold him. Today they let me hold him, and he scampered up my arm and sat on my shoulder, hiding in my hair.

I am in love with Dumbo.

I want a rat.

Flute choir concert, Weight Watchers, 9/80, & another garage sale: pick a topic, any topic!

Last night was the flute choir concert. Not that big of a crowd this time, but we did a good job. I was feeling a tiny bit unprepared - we had our concert one week early this quarter, and we really did need that one extra rehearsal, but it went well. In fact, I think we played better than we've ever played anything this time around. The big hit of the evening was our version of "Salvation is Created," which I had never heard. It's beautiful. We also did a medley of songs from "The Sound of Music," which I know seems totally silly, but was actually lots of fun. The reason we couldn't have the concert next week is, one of our players is going out of town, but the rest of us are going to meet up anyway and go out to dinner. I'm looking forward to that. Hopefully I will have a good week when I weigh in at Weight Watchers on Wednesday, so I can celebrate a tiny bit.

Speaking of Weight Watchers... They've tweaked things a little bit, and I have a couple less points per day than I did the last time I did it. You wouldn't think a thing like a point or two would make that big of a difference, but it does. I've been tracking everything, and I have the same attitude I did the first week the last time I did it: I just want to know what I'm eating, and control it a little. I've been dipping into my 35 extra points (I hardly ever did that before), but have only gone over a few points each day: no big deal. Also, I've walked and earned a couple of points, which helps. Work has been so busy, that by 3:30 I'm feeling a little nutty, so I've been going for short, 15 minute walks outside. I call them my "mental health breaks." It's been so beautiful outside, that that small amount of time really makes a big difference. I love the sun, and seeing the blue sky. There are windows in my office, but I don't get to really look out much. And: fifteen minutes = one point! There's my 1 point low-fat (but yummy) fudgsicle right there!

In the middle of last month, right about when we went to Colorado, I changed my normal schedule to 9/80. I worried if I would like working nine hours a day, but it turns out I have enough work to keep me occupied for the entire time, and then some... I'm definitely not bored. And getting to work at 7:30 isn't as hard as I thought it would be. It's nice to work 15 minutes from home for a change. So... I work nine, nine hour days days, and then every other Friday, I'm either off or I only work eight hours.

Since technically I was on vacation when it started, today was my first real "regular day off." Let's see, what'd I do... slept in a little, hung out with Patrick - he's getting my Honda windows tinted for me, and we were looking for a place to get it done, so we drove around a bit doing that. He has to work tomorrow, so he had today off, too. Found a place in Bellflower that seemed fine. Then we went to Lowe's, then we went to Old Navy. Got some t-shirts, and a pair of capris. Oh, and new flip flops. 2/$5! I've been needing some.

Then we came home, he took a nap, I read my book (am re-reading A Prayer for Owen Meany, and it's just as good the tenth time), and then I went and got... a facial. Haven't had one in ages, and I wasn't disappointed. My girl Lily is the best.

So, now I'm home, and getting ready for yet another garage sale at my mom's. Looking forward to seeing my mom, and my cousin Monica is bringing my Aunt Mary - it should be fun. I don't have that much to sell this time around, but that's okay. I might just sit in the sun and read.

Back to Weight Watchers...

So I finally made my way back to Weight Watchers. Last week I noticed a sign on the bulletin board at work that there would be meetings in our building on Wednesdays. Today I went to my first one.

The good news is, I think having it at work will be really easy. Towards the end when I was going before, I hated going to the meetings. It was just such a pain to take the time and sit there. And the last few leaders I had were pretty lame. But today was pretty cool. Just an hour, during lunch. The other people were pretty nice, one lady from my section, and the leader was enthusiastic and realistic.

The bad news is, I've gained 8 pounds since I last went to a meeting, and even then I had about 25 pounds to go until I got to where I wanted to be. So I'm not exactly starting where I stopped, am I? Anyway, my current goal is to lose 15 pounds, which seems like a LOT.

And guess what? I'm hungry! Patty gave me a goofy recipe for "1 Point Chili," which I made Monday night. It's not that great, but I'm gonna go eat 2 points worth for dinner. And have some Fritos, too. Better go calculate the points of those...

Off to the marathon / Photo added, finally!

My friend Patty is running again in the marathon this year, and I've offered to try to meet her at Mile 23. She's worked it out so she knows approximately what time she'll be hitting that spot. They've changed the route this year, so I'm going to a totally different neighborhood; last year, it was in Koreatown, where I used to work, so I knew the area pretty well. This year Mile 23 is near Soto St. and Whittier Blvd., in Boyle Heights. Last year Patrick went with me, but right after we got down there, he "remembered" that he hadn't turned off a pan he'd left on the stove so he left me there and ran home to check (everything was alright); however, we had gotten down there so darn early, by the time he got back, she still hadn't gotten there.

You might think it sounds boring, waiting for someone to hit a specific spot, but it was actually kind of exciting. There was a lot going on - bands were playing - and the people watching was pretty intense. I had a good time, and it was so cool to see her come running towards me out of the group of strangers.

So I'm off again, with two Oreo cookies and some kind of weird Clif Shot - it's this stuff she gave me to give to her, it's like a weird gel or paste stuff, supposed to give her energy. Looks kind of gross to me, but hey, I'm not a runner.

Pictures later.

...

Update @ 5:23 p.m.

Met up with Patty at Mile 23 as planned. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to go directly there - didn't know if I'd hit any road closures or anything, but it worked out perfectly. I took the 5 North and got off at Soto Street. Parked on Soto, and only had to walk about 2 blocks. At the intersection of Soto and Whittier the cops were using a fire hydrant and a hose to shower the runners - it was hot today.

I got there at about 12:15, and walked up to the mile marker. Let me just say right off the bat that I've never been to Boyle Heights. The walk to Mile 23 was through one of those old school Mexican neighborhoods that I've never spent a day of my life in. I passed a guy selling bootleg VHS movies in front of his house. The only title I recognized was that Jennifer Lopez movie, "The Cell." Why would anybody want that? In somebody's yard I saw a chicken: a real, live, big ol' brown chicken, walking around, pecking, acting like any other family pet. I heard Mariachi music from a few houses.

Mile 23 was actually in the middle of a bridge, with a fine view of the downtown LA skyline. Since I didn't really know what time she'd be passing through - I think the marathon started at 8:15, but since she's not one of the elite runners, and there are tons of other runners just like her, her actual start time could be anything after that. I think she said last year she got out of the gate at around 8:45. Anyway, we had estimated that she'd be there between 1 and 2, but I was secretly hoping she'd get there sooner - I was hoping to see her come running toward me at 1:15.

Well, that was before I realized how damn hot it was today. So I'm watching all the runners, and it's pretty cool, to see all the different people who run the marathon. There were a lot of kids, and a lot of old people. One guy in an Afro wig. A couple of guys dressed as Elvis. There was a blind guy, tethered to another guy who must've been his leader, except: I couldn't tell which one of them was blind. Some guys in wheelchairs. A girl in a Superman cape. Some other girls in tutus. A man wearing a paper version of a winged helmet. A couple of runners came up to me and asked me to take their picture with their throwaway cameras - they wanted LA in the background. Each time I'd give the camera back to them and say, "Now go! Run! Good luck!" One man, when I was sure I'd missed Patty, and was standing there shading my eyes with my hands and what was probably a concerned look on my face, told me "Smile!" So I did. Another guy told me, "Don't ever do this!" Some people collapsed right by me: one guy must've hurt his knee; he stopped and sat on the curb to my left. He sat there for a long time until another guy ran up and asked him if he was okay. They both left running, the first guy limping a little, grimacing a lot, but running. Another guy pulled up behind me, and was, I think, trying to throw up. He didn't.

So 1:15 came and went, and I started thinking I had missed her. Last year, Patrick was actually the one to spot her; by myself, I wasn't sure what my chances are. My vision is pretty bad, and sometimes a lot of people came by at once. This year he was working on a home improvement project (installing a much-needed fan in our bathroom), so I went by myself. When we'd talked about where I would be, Patty asked me to be on the left side of the street; when I got there, I realized that to get to that side, I would have to cross in front of the runners. I decided that was a bad idea, so instead I stood right under the marker, on the right side. No one was on the left side, and I thought she might see me there. Anyway, I finally spotted her at about 10 minutes to 2, and dashed through the field of runners. She was running (last year she was walking at Mile 23, but ran after she saw me), and so I had to jog to keep up with her. She didn't want the Clif Shot (I don't blame her: I just tasted it, and it was nasty), but did take a couple Oreos with her. I kept up with her for awhile, but started to get too hot (imagine how she felt!), so I told her to stop talking to me, and run! Run! I pulled over to the side and took some pictures (coming soon!) of her back, caught my breath, and headed home.