I am hanging in there for the final two hours of a work week that has seemed epic in length. I can't say what in particular has made it seem that long, other than the fact that once I plowed through all of my e-mails from the beginning of the week, I found myself all caught up in short order. There is one thing I have left to do that I cannot, because for some reason my login and password for that particular tool is not working. That task in and of itself will probably take two or three hours... and will have to be left until next week, now.

I do NOT do well when I am bored. It's not that I don't want to be busy, it's just at the moment I don't have anything much to work on. I suppose I could manufacture some busy work, but it will be a useless expenditure of time and will not produce any worthwhile result.

I'm talking WorkSpeak, now. Lookit me go.

Labels: boredom, work

Posted by Laura at 1:53 PM | Permalink | Comments

OMFG, you guys, I am, like, sooooo bored.

AcronymCo is probably not unique in its holiday work-or-lack-thereof cycle. Pretty much from November 12th until January 7th, there is not a lot of useful work done. I mean, sure, business continues. The fires are fought and the year-end whatnot is wrapped up. The day to day busywork is accomplished so that one can say, "See! I did (xyz) today! I earned my paycheck! Mostly!" But there is a severe and obvious lack of motivation. People are doing their Christmas shopping on-line. People are planning their holiday meals. People are counting down the days to their vacations on one hand. The lack of interest in, I don't know, starting anything new or dealving into a project, well, it is staggering.

Take today, for example. I did the necessary this morning. Urgent things were followed up on and people were updated. I was a Good Corporate Citizen. But the day is creeping by so slowly that I do believe it's now going backwards. It's 12:34 right now, and when I look again it will be 10:05.

I am down to my Least Favorite Things left to be done on my list. The things that are left until there is absolutely nothing else left to do. That moment has arrived. I can feel my brain cells leaking out of my head as I type this, and not in a good way.

I am thankful to be gainfully employed. I just wish that employment was somewhat less Corporate, and somewhat more, oh, Tropical. With drinks. And little umbrellas.

Labels: boredom, work

Posted by Laura at 12:29 PM | Permalink | Comments

Reruns of CSI on Spike.

Popcorn for dinner.

Bed at 9:30.

Aimless internet browsing.

Three books up, three books down.

Two discs of Battlestar Galactica: Season 2.0.

Pets don't talk back (well, except for Oz).

Transformers actually looks *good*.

Unanswered calls = immediate tendrils of anxiety.

Returned calls = sheepish confession of worry.

Sigh count: 1,352,547. Mostly generated by boredom.

Could work out... nah.

Give the dogs a bath? Nah.

Read another book? Might as well.

Labels: boredom

Posted by Laura at 7:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

I have a tedious and time consuming task to complete at work, and I am stalling (briefly) by writing an entry.

Michael (and, we suspect, a friend) drank all of Calvin's beer and the rest of his whiskey last night after we went to bed. That is a foul of major proportions and the child shall be spoken to this evening.

I am tired of juggling around my laptop, my purse, and my lunch bag as I go to and from work. Therefore, I purchased this, in navy. I was going to purchase this, but it wouldn't fit my lunch bag. Mama's gotta eat.

I heart eBags.

My Assessment of Prior Learning evaluation came back, and the stuff I learned at AcronymCo equates to 12 credits toward my degree. I think I'm done now, with the exception of maybe one or two last classes. Woot!

Calvin is leaving on a business trip for a week, in mid-June (is there a less cumbersome way to write that sentence?). That is poopy. But! I can cook "weird" things for dinner and watch reruns of CSI and Grey's Anatomy till the cows come home.

I got Calvin a 6-month subscription to the Beer of the Month Club for Father's Day. If Michael drinks those, he's a dead man.

I also bought something for our upcoming (five year!) anniversary, which I am eager to see how it turned out. Once I am no longer in danger of spoiling the surprise (say, in a week when I get it, even though our anniversary isn't until the 29th but you all KNOW how I can't keep a present from the person it's intended for until the date it's intended for) I'll tell you all about it.

Don't people that whistle tunelessly bother the HELL out of you? Once again I am turning in desperation to my iPod. I HATE working in a cubicle. But! I heart Luther Vandross. And also the new Finger Eleven CD that I bought.

Marie says she is moving out in two weeks. While not unexpected, it still comes as a shock to contemplate the thought that our youngest child is grown up enough to be on her own. Any danger (hah!) of empty-nest syndrome is unfortunately effectively crushed by the reminder that Michael ain't going anywhere until we're, like, retired.

Marie and her boyfriend, typical of all young couples eager to be all grown up and play house, have purchased a puppy from the local shelter (quoth Marie, "Hey, better a puppy than a baby!"). A very cute and sweet little pit-bull mix, who very kindly shared her kennel cough with Gadget and Gypsy.

Sigh.

Okay, I have to get crap done. Sigh again.

Labels: boredom, journal, misc, work

Posted by Laura at 1:31 PM | Permalink | Comments

001. When was your last kiss? Um? Yesterday? Hey, I'm gonna fix that right this second.

002. Do you have a pet? Two dogs, one cat (although really the cat has us), three lizards, one snake.

003. What are you dreading right now? My doctor's appointment on Monday.

004. Do you celebrate 4/20? Only in the way that I celebrate the 20th of any month. Except July. That's my birthday. Usually, I celebrate it by having my gallbladder removed. Or my wisdom teeth. Or some other needless part of my anatomy. This year? I'm betting on my appendix.

005. Only child? I have a half-sister who is 10 years older than me. I've been the "only child" in the household since I was six. Now? I'm the only grown-up.

006. Favorite ice cream? It depends on my mood. Sometimes I like plain ol' vanilla, other times I'm feeling complicated like Mocha Almond Fudge, and yet other times I just jones for chocolate. Then there's this Italian gelato place nearby and I always get half chocolate and half coconut.

007. When was your last doctors visit? Yesterday. And the day before that was the ER. And the day before that was the medical imaging center for a CT scan. And the day before THAT was my PCP. Today is the only day this week that I haven't gone somewhere medical.

008. Do you get the full 8 hours of sleep a night? Yes. Sometimes more. Lately, a LOT more.

009. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning? Exactly 40 minutes.

010. “First Loves Are Never Over;” is this true for you? FUCK no. In fact, "Hate is a strong word, but I really really really don't like you."

011. Think of all your exes. Would you take any of them back? See #10.

012. What if someone came to your house on your “lazy day”? That's pretty much the only time they'd find anyone home.

013. Do you talk to loved ones and friends graves? I'm an entire country away from the graves of my loved ones.

014. Have you ever been on your schools track team? BWAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!! Oh, my sides.

015. Do you own a pair of Converse? Actually? Yes.

016. Who did you copy and paste this survey from? From Bitchypoo.

017. Do you eat raw cookie dough? Why? Do you have some?

018. Have you ever kicked a vending machine? Shaken, not kicked.

019. Don’t you hate when the radio ruins good songs by playing them over and over? I love it for the first few weeks, and then I start to get tired of it.

020. Would you rather them play the whole video or just a clip? The whole video.

021. Do you watch Trading Spaces? Once upon a time, but it got old.

022. How do you eat oreos? Split 'em, eat the frosting off one side, eat that wafer, then eat the other wafer.

023. Have you ever stayed online for a very long time waiting for someone to sign on? No.

024. Are you cocky? It ain't braggin' motherfucker if you back it up.

030. Could you live without a computer? No. No no no no no.

031. Do you wear your shoes in the house? No, I take them off as soon as I get home.

033. At what age did you find out that Santa wasn’t real? I don't remember. Six, maybe?

034. How many phones, house phones and cell phones are in your house? Four cell phones, three house phones.

035. What do you do when you’re sad? Cry, and listen to my "Let's Be Depressed!" mix.

036. Who would you call first if you won the lottery? Assuming Calvin wasn't right there when we found out? Umm... probably my sister? Calvin's sister? His mom? I don't know, I think I'd just stand in place and shake for a while.

037. Last time you saw your best friend? He's sitting right here; or else, Heather just left last week.

038. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Right now, I just want to be healthy.

039. Last movie you rented? Via Netflix, Little Miss Sunshine, and Season One of Battlestar Galactica.

040. Who/what sleeps with you every night? Calvin and Oz.

041. Are you/have you ever been in love? Yes.

042. Pancakes or french toast? Pancakes.

043. How do you like your eggs? Over medium with triangles of toast to poke at the yokes and sop 'em up. With worcestershire.

045. Is anyone on your bad side right now? Not really.

046. What jewelry are you wearing? My wedding ring.

047. What’s the first thing you do when you get online? Check my emails.

048. Do you own any TV seasons on DVD? Grey's Anatomy Season 1, The OC Season 1, Sex and the City Season 1.

049. Do you watch Grey’s Anatomy? If watch = obsess.

050. How do most people spell your name? Most people call me a different name altogether.

051. Would you wear a boy/girlfriends clothes? I wear Calvin's shirts and sweaters all the time.

054. What was the first movie that gave you nightmares? Children of the Corn. Ugh.

055 Who’s your favorite celebrity couple? I HATE celebrity couples.

056. Favorite 80’s teen movie? Ferris Beauller's Day Off.

057. Is Justin Timberlake becoming the next Michael Jackson? Why, did you hear anything about him molesting little boys?

058. Do you know someone that wasn’t born in the United States? I know many people that weren't born in the US. AcronymCo is as multinational as a company gets.

059. Favorite name for a boy? Hey, kid.

060. Will you keep your last name when you get married? I didn’t, either time.

061. Your favorite restaurant that you don’t get to eat at much? Luke's. They serve the best Italian beef sandwiches and greasy fries EVER.

065. Have you ever cursed at a teacher or a boss? BWAAAHAHAHAH!

066. How do you eat your steak? Medium with A-1.

068. How do you get to school? On-line.

069. Do you have a dishwasher? Yes, and two backup dishwashers called Marie and Michael.

071. Would you survive in prison? Sure, I'd become the main bitch right away. Oh HELL no, I'm all kinds of a wimp.

072. Next concert you hope to go to? I don't know, I haven't perused Ticketmaster in a while.

073. What was the last thing you ate? Pepto.

075. Who did you last say “I love you” to? Calvin.

075. Who is the youngest in your family? Me.

076. If all of your friends were going on a road trip, who would be left there? Whoever was wasted the night before.

077. Do you know anyone with the same name as you? A couple, yes.

078. How many syllables does your name have? Three.

079. What does your license plate say? Like I'm going to tell you, stalker! It's a line out of a Josh Groban song, though.

080. When is the last time you ate peanut butter? Last week?

081. What service is your cell phone? T-Mobile.

082. When’s the last time you ran? Is that a joke?

083. What’s the last thing you purchased? Pizza from Domino's.

084. Do your siblings ever pay for stuff for you? BWAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!!!

085. Where is your cellphone? In my purse in the bedroom. Which is why I never hear it when Heather calls me.

086. Is your phone on vibrate or ring? Ringtone, "This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race" by Fallout Boy.

087. What brand is your trousers right now? Old Navy jammies.

088. Ever been to Vegas? No, and every time I mention that to someone they say, "You've NEVER been to VEGAS?!?" As if I said, "I never brush my teeth."

089. Did you have breakfast this morning? Yes, Calvin made me scrambled eggs and toast.

090. Do you like marshmallows? Sparingly, in hot chocolate or smores, or on Calvin's sister's yams. Heh. That sounds kind of dirty, doesn't it?

091. What irritates you most on the internet? Popups.

092. What brand is your digital camera? Sony.

093. Do you watch movies with your parents? I used to with Grandma.

094. Do you wear short shorts? BWAAAAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Damn, this survey is funny.

096. What song best describes your life right now? "Bitter Song" by Butterfly Boucher.

097 Do you own expensive perfume/cologne? Not expensive, no. Marie tends to get me stuff from Vicky's Secret, and Calvin got me a bottle of Happy last Christmas.

098. Are you taking college classes right now? No, but probably soon.

099. Who are you dating right now? Patrick Dempsey.

100. Do your parents know you curse? The first time I ever cursed in my life was when I was about six, in front of my aunt and uncle. My aunt looked at my uncle and said, "Yep, she's one of ours."

101. Do you like sushi? LOVE the sushi.

102. Do you get your hair cut every month? Every few months or so.

103. Do you go online everyday? When I'm not sick, yes.

104. Do your jeans have rips, tears, and holes in them? A few pairs do.

105. If you could look like any family member, dead or living, who would it be? I've been told I look like my mother and my grandmother.

Labels: boredom, meme

Posted by Laura at 8:27 PM | Permalink | Comments

Courtesy of my iPod:

"In the Meantime" - Spacehog
"Through the Wire" - Kanye West
"You Get What You Give" - New Radicals
"Sweet Caroline" - Neil Diamond
"Epic" - Faith No More
"Mmm mmm mmm" - Crash Test Dummies
"I'm a Loser Baby" - Beck
"Walking on Sunshine" - Katrina and the Waves
"Glory Days" - Bruce Springstein
"Santa Monica" - Everclear
"Rockafeller Skank" - Fatboy Slim
"These are the Days" - 10,000 Maniacs
"Steal My Sunshine" - Len
"There She Goes" - Sixpence None The Richer
"All Night Long" - Lionel Richie
"On the Dark Side" - Eddie and the Cruisers
"Brown Eyed Girl" - Van Morrison
"Ain't Too Proud to Beg" - The Temptations
"Never" - Heart
"What I got" - Sublime
"Hanging by a Moment" - Lifehouse
"Interstate Love Song" - Stone Temple Pilots
"Smooth" - Santana

Labels: boredom, misc, music

Posted by Laura at 12:59 PM | Permalink | Comments

Bringing you the world of miscellany, one entry at a time.

Ladies and gentlemen, my new favorite song (from whence the title came): "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" by Fallout Boy.

This right here is just all fucked up.

I'm stuck at work. Calvin is home right now, and he gosh darn well better be installing our new dishwasher. Maytag. Purchase inspired by the aforementioned washer and dryer lurve.

Here ye, here ye, Dawn says she's going to be writing again, once she comes back from a vacation to N'awlins. We'll just see about that, the damn tease. That's right, missy! You're a T-to tha-E-to tha-ASE. Word.

I am about to seriously RIP MY NOSE OFF. I moved to Arizona expecting my allergies to improve. Because, you know, that's just the sort of false advertising the AZ Chamber of Commerce likes to indulge in, to lure in us transplants. Check this out, just to be able to, you know, breathe while trying to go to sleep last night, I had to blow my nose seventy bazillion times, take two different kinds of nasal spray, take my inhaler, AND apply a Breathe Right strip. And I was still jacked up. That's just all kinds of messed up, right there.

Okay, that was weird. I just got off the phone with one of my suppliers - someone I speak with infrequently and only briefly, all about business matters. The conversation went a little something like this:

me: "Hey, what can I do for you?"
him: "I gave up sex for Lent!"
me: "Uhhh, good for you?"

Hmm. I'm sure professional courtesy is not high up on that person's list of amenable qualities. That was just really strange.

Yeah, I got nuthin' else. Calvin and I are supposed to go to Sedona this weekend. I'll probably take pictures. I posted some pics of our trip to the Ren Fair to Flickr if anybody wants to stare at corseted boobies.

Laura OUT.

Labels: boredom, journal, misc

Posted by Laura at 11:34 AM | Permalink | Comments

Friday, 3:00, before a long weekend. If anyone ever wanted to discover a way to slow down, stop, or reverse time, I think I have it. I'm not wishing my life away, or wishing that time would pass more quickly. No, I am wishing I was elsewhere experiencing this particular drag in the linear movement of time.

I looked up every possible spoiler that the Internet had to offer about the next episode of Grey's Anatomy. I read my regular journals, and I tried to find old journalers who seem to have dropped off the face of the earth (Footnotes, Shelleyness, Journalalia). I drank four (count 'em!) 20-oz bottles of water. I went to the bathroom six (count 'em!) times.

Oh, and I did some work, too. Typical of the past few weeks, the frenzy I have experienced all day every day Monday through Thursday settled down to a trickle by 10:00 this morning.

When I get home I'm going to soak for about three hours in the tub. Calvin and I have no specific plans for this weekend. We should probably do something productive, but will probably end up doing nothing whatsoever productive. We want to see "Wild Hogs". There's some DVDs from Netflix that need watching, too. And DVR'ed stuff that needs to be consumed.

I am very, VERY rarely bored. But at this second in time, I really, really am.

I'm going to buy some wine on my way home, for the aforementioned tubby goodness.

Gack. MOVE IT, clock.

Labels: boredom, journal

Posted by Laura at 3:11 PM | Permalink | Comments

I'm at home (drinking a beer - Michelob Ultra Amber, which isn't too bad but certainly not my favorite, that happens to be Fat Tire at the moment), waiting for Calvin to get here so we can head out on the motor to hit a sports bar and watch the Suns game. The deep freeze FINALLY lifted (in January, who woulda thunk it??) and it's riding weather once again.

Speaking of which (sort of), I was driving on the freeway this afternoon headed to the pet store to get some critters for the critters (rat for the snake, worms for the beardies, crickets for the water dragon, cricket feed for the crickets - reptile husbandry is a complicated and rather ookey business), and at one point hit a dead stop in traffic. It was stop-and-go for about four miles, and then wouldn't you know? The "disturbance" came into view - a patrol car parked in the median with its lights going, and nary a road blockage in sight. There was NO impediment to the flow of traffic, and yet it slowed to a crawl for miles (in both directions, I observed while passing the traffic piled up on the other side) just because this cop was sitting on the median.

But that didn't tick me off. Even though I was in traffic for an extra 20 minutes. I had my iPod and the windows rolled down to the 65 degree weather, so not much was wrong with my world.

HOWEVER. When I pulled into the parking lot at the pet store, I angled through the isles so that I could pull straight-on into a parking spot I spotted up front. Except that just as I pulled up another truck coming in a different direction squeaked into it just in front of me. Seriously, I had to stop short. And then, cursing, I had to circle around again and park somewhat further away.

Now THAT ticked me off. There's just no telling, with me.

Heh. Before I left home I was sitting in the truck in the driveway, hooking up my iPod to the FM adaptor and stereo, and finding a good song before starting out. I glanced down and to my left, and saw a teeny clear colored spider hanging from the thread of a web. I squeaked, and rolled down the window. Apparently, the web was hooked to the window, because as it descended, the spider descended. Eep. Now it was on the arm rest on the door. So I grabbed the pack of Trident that was on the console, hoping to coax it onto the paper and then flick it out the window. Except that as soon as I approach it, it LEAPED INTO THE AIR and landed on my leg. At which point I flopped in my seat (getitoffgetitoffgetitoff) and brushed at it, and it landed somewhere on the lower seat or floor.

I think.

I jumped out of the truck and jumped up and down on the driveway (getitoffgetitoffgetitoff), brushing at my pants. I didn't see it, on me or in the truck. Which means it's probably, like, in my bra right now or something.

I wonder if the neighbors saw me.

It makes no sense whatsoever that I handle worms and crickets and reptiles on a daily basis, and still beat myself to death when a little spider crawls on me.

(Song: "Luv 2 Luv U" - Timbaland & Magoo)

Labels: boredom, home, journal, lizards

Posted by Laura at 4:03 PM | Permalink | Comments

I'm on the bed, surfing the net on my laptop (Calvin and I are going to Maine! In May! I'm so happy I could puke! More on this later!). Calvin's on the PC on the desk in the bedroom, surfing (I am sure) unmentionable things. Marie's on her laptop on the loveseat in the living room, and from the sounds of Justin Timberlake and Nellie Furtado lilting from her speakers, I'd say she's downloading music.

I honestly don't remember what we used to do to entertain ourselves before we EACH had our VERY OWN computer.

Labels: boredom, home

Posted by Laura at 7:42 PM | Permalink | Comments

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

Labels: boredom

Posted by Laura at 4:48 PM | Permalink | Comments