and my router at home blew up during that nor’easter we had this week. so i’m at work, at 430 on Saturday morning, catching up a bit before actually, uh, working.
if i lived in a metropolitan area, and had access to several major ISPs, i’d unload Verizon in a heartbeat. their “customer service” is the worst. ever. my other option is to switch everything to Comcast. but then i’d have to get cable. the horror.
several months ago, we received a very long winded message on our home voicemail regarding rooms for rent, brochures to send, vacation planning. we thought it funny, and actually sent out a few hotel/motel brochures from places around the island, as the caller had left his address.
last night, around 930, the house phone rang. i had been sleeping, and struggled out of HappyLand to answer the phone.
“mmmmm ‘Ello”
“i’m interested in booking some rooms”
“mmm…i’m sorry? what?”
“yeah, i wanted to see if you had rooms open for Memorial Day weekend”
“um, i’m sorry, this is my house, not a hotel”
“the hotel gave us this number as their reservation line”
*OH. NO*
i mumbled an apology, but because i was 1/2 asleep, i neglected to ask “which hotel?”, so that i could nip this in the bud. between this new development, and the previous phone # holder (who has such bad credit, he’s being sued right and left — i call all of the creditors to let them know that no, i am NOT the person they’re looking for, and NO, i DO NOT know him, because if i did, he’d be on my crap list as well) it’s going to be a “sorry wrong number”, kind of summer.
it’s official, i now twitter. while initially resistant to the minutiae update, i’ve totally gotten sucked in. i’m easy like that.
i’ve had several mysp*ce accounts over the years, but end up deleting them within a few months. there’s just something about that site that irritates the living crap out of me. maybe its all of the bright flashing lights and blaring noise. it’s toooo much! i dig faceb*ok. it’s put be back in touch with some people i actually DID like in high school as well as some of you and other folks from the ‘net. nifty little apps, but nothing overwhelming (and that’s a good thing in my world).
my favorite two places to go are last.fm and flickr. last.fm keeps track of all the music you’ve listened to (including your ipod!) and creates super little charts that are updated weekly. perfect for the stats-lover like myself. plus, in my ever present quest to find new music, the site makes recommendations based on your listening tastes. its been totally handy for me personally, and for work, where one of my responsibilities is buying new music for the store. and i’ve been introduced to some pretty interesting folks through their “weekly neighbor” system, who’s tastes are compatible by varying degrees. it’s been great for rediscovering music too. like, seriously, when was the last time i listened to Aztec Camera or the Housemartins?
and flickr? well, that’s easy, considering i’m spending more and more free time alone with my camera. i’ve made a lot of new contacts through adding photos to different pools who have given me some excellent creative feedback. and to be honest, i crave it, even the constructive criticism. plus, i’ve recently fallen in with some folks w/ wicked senses of humor. they keep me laughing daily.
my friends “offline” don’t necessarily have the same musical tastes or a new found passion for photography, but i’m terribly grateful for these two sites for keeping me interested.
while scouring a yearbook for something in particular a few weeks ago, Chris and i became engaged in what people had written in our yearbooks. or rather, my yearbook, as i was the only person who wrote in his. and then i fell out laughing.
“Barb - we made it through another year! remember health class with Katie? she is soooo whipped! call me over the summer! - Becki”
I have no recollection of Becki (who dotted her i with a heart), or the aforementioned Katie. it was the “whipped” that got me. a derogatory term that meant “foul” or “stupid” or something along those lines. from this smallish seaside high school, i remember “rad”, “bogus”, “gnarly” and other slanguage we used (and admittedly i still do). i was inspired. i’m bringing it back, with the appropriate derisive south jersey girl sneer.
you know what? this not being able to get knocked up situation is whipped.
we did our taxes today. Porkchop graciously checked Chris’ math. we’ve discovered she’s been taking online classes to get her CPA.
nope, i haven’t fallen off the face of the earth. there’s just nothing to report.work has been crazy-batshit-nuts, as i’ve been pulling double duty for a co-worker who’s out on medical leave for an indeterminate amount of time. while i dreaded it initially, i function well with teetering on the brink of being overwhelmed.i’ve been taking lots of photographs and finding endless joy in that for the time being. a little inspiration goes a long, long way. and give me something fun on which to focus and explore different facets of what i can do. hopefully, there will be something “more” in the works soon.
ever have one of those days where everything you touch turns to crap? yeah, i’m totally having one of those! but what i wanted to ask was more of an etiquette question. yesterday i received an invitation to Chris’ cousin’s wedding shower. he hasn’t seen said cousin in several years, i’ve never met her, and the shower is 3 hours “up the road”. i wouldn’t know anyone there except for my mother in law. am i required to send a gift if i don’t attend (which i probably won’t)? thanks in advance, etiquette mavens.
i’ve been keeping to myself these past few weeks. we still haven’t talked about what i’ve been referring to as “the incident”. but we’re both a little gun-shy, both a little more sad, handling each other with extra care, like acquaintances.
in a fit of irritation & frustration, i threw Taking Charge of Your Fertility aside for now. its now residing on a stool, beneath some albums (albums no less, for real!) in the kitchen. screw the temp taking & the CM studying. if it happens right now… it will be luck. and that’s fine.
i told my mother a few weeks ago, and my mother in law last week. both have been waiting anxiously for the Good News - - and i felt like i was disappointing them, even though that’s untrue.
what lingers in the back of my head is Dr. Pink & Pretty Barbie (she looks JUST like the doll, except in a white coat rather than a pink stole) telling me at my “follow up” that if they didn’t see me in the next six months with a “positive”, they would refer me to a fertility specialist. while i’m not getting ahead of myself, i have to consider whether or not that’s a road i want to go down if necessary. and wouldn’t that just be the dickens?
sweet baby jesus. the laptop arrived on tuesday, but i’d already left work. so i took it home yesterday, fired it up…and…it is HEAVEN. all of my small business files imported properly, the itunes library synched up flawlessly, and its FAST.
everyone told me how intuitive the Mac is - - and they weren’t lying! after the initial weirdness, i felt like i’d always used a Mac. and i’m a laptop newbie - i didn’t even find the “mouseless-ness” troublesome.
yeah, it will put a dent in my finances for a few months, but its a hell of an investment. i promise this is the last post of my technological grinning.
i did it. i bought it. (this one! just like the picture!) i nearly had a panic attack while ordering it online: sweaty palms, shaky legs, dropping my credit card. in fact, it took me about an hour all told to actually complete the transaction. i kept walking away and thinking some more. when i hit “confirm order”, i nearly vomited.
i’m funny about big purchases. not impulsive by nature and hyper-aware of cash flow & bills, i justified it 10,000 different ways (it will be good for the business! i can do more with photography! i work really hard! tax rebate can help finance it! i’ll have it for years! i’ll learn new skills! you get the point…).
i did a lot of research - message boards, sites and talking to other Mac users. both my boss & sis-in-law have been extolling the virtues of the Mac for quite awhile to me. thank you everyone who commented on the last entry & gave me advice. oh, and Meira, i may still take you up on that offer…sounds…perfect. i did have iWork preinstalled.
my first ever laptop. oh boy. look forward to my learning curve (or lack thereof) in the next few weeks.
Listening to..
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