RANT: Waiting to hear back from this job is tying my stomach into knots. I had a final interview last Friday morning, and they said they only had one more after mine. They're open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week, before closing for the holidays until Dec. 27. The HR lady said they wouldn't make a decision until after Christmas, but she was wrong by a week about the time lapse between the first and second round of interviews, as well. They also want whoever gets the job to start Jan. 3, so in order to allow for two-weeks notice they'd almost have to notify a new hire today or tomorrow. Yes, I know I'm dreadfully overthinking this. I've been unemployed since August, except for some freelance writing/editing contracts, and this is exactly the kind of job I need to launch my desired career. My fucking phone needs to ring already.
Semester is over, ahead of schedule with work, it's dead around the office and I'm bored, coming down with a cold, and my in-laws arrive tonight. I'm leaving in 7 minutes and going to bed.
Rant:This. How could Christmas Vacation ever, on any list, for any situation, be deemed the worst Christmas movie? This is a sacrilege.
RANT: Fuck you Telus. I have no Cel coverage at my house right now. I have no land line, either, as I've always had 5 bars for the last 3 years ever since they put the tower up right across the lake from me. Wind storm last night. Something went wrong. Now I'm getting panicky emails from family asking if I'm ok as I'm not answering my phone.
Rave/Rant: I got stranded by a buddy at a strip club on Sunday. Had a great time but spent a ton of cash. Rant: Still feeling the effects of 13 hours of Sunday-Funday drinking. Absolutely no motivation to eat, work, workout or, most importantly, pack. Rant: Speaking of packing/moving, I still haven't found a place to live yet. Hopefully will have that figured out by tomorrow, though.
Rant: Was relegated to the (unfinished) basement today. Wife has the day off of work and wanted a day to sit around and catch up on "Big Love," so who am I to tell her no. Rave: Basement, though unfinished, does have a pretty decent TV and couch, along with my PS2. Spent the day lounging, watching Big Bang Theory, and bullshitting online. Rave: Chicken tacos for dinner. Fucking amazing. Just threw a few boneless chicken breasts into a crock pot with a bottle of salsa, a salsa-bottle of water, and a pack of chicken taco seasoning. Let it cook all day on low, shred it, and go nuts. Fucking delicious. Good day.
Rave: Finals are OVER. Kicked the shit out of my Ochem final, too. Rant: Have to wait on final grades for however long it's going to take from my Med Micro professor. I need a B.
Rant: Don't be a mobile xray tech and chug an iced coffee before you leave for work. Hilarity does NOT ensue with heavy traffic.
Rave: Was listening to the radio on the way home and some loon called in to elaborate on how Obama was going to declare himself dictator in 2016. These people never stop cracking me up. Rave: Got Thursday off work. I have a phone interview at 2, but other than that I can sleep in and lie around all day doing whatever I want. It's not much of a Christmas vacation, but I'll take.
You know you're getting older when news of a peer's engagement is less of a "Jesus, really?" moment, and more of a "Yeah, makes sense" kind of thing. Frankly, I don't care for it. Not one bit.
Last night I held a party for those in my class that goes out of town to stay with their families during the Christmas holidays. They all brought ridiculous amounts of beers so we had to use my balcony for storage. Rave: There was a lot of beers left on my balcony after the party ended. Free beers for me! Rant: Turned out the temperature dropped to minus 20C (-4 Fahrenheit) last night and I forgot to move the beers inside.
Rave: I GOT A JOB!!!!! After months of looking, numerous interviews, I finally broke through and got the job. Rave: Headed to the hometown for a few days for Christmas. Days filled with good food and relaxing with no worries. Rant: 14 hour drive home is gonna suck. Rave: At long last, a 14 hour drive is really all I have to rant about.
Rant: I'm going to a funeral this Thursday. One of the men who saved my life, today took his own. I've written on here quite a lot, I think everyone knows at this point, that a few years ago I was in the hospital dying of a brain tumor. What I haven't written about was the strings that were pulled to keep me alive, mainly because it wasn't relevant. My family is (fortunately) connected within the medical community; several extended family members are doctors, as well as a few more family friends. One of the most experienced of these doctors came to visit me during the hospital, offered some tremendous advice, and just as importantly, helped to expedite my own surgery. After all, he understood where I was coming from -- he was a brain tumor survivor himself. He committed suicide today, leaving behind a wife and two children. Post-traumatic stress disorder, it sounds like. The same thing I have, and we developed it because of the same reasons. I'm tempted to say that suicide is a shameful act, but I've been where he was right before the decision. I know what it's like, and we've walked eerily the same path, except one just took it a step farther. It wasn't shameful, at the time; it was a way to make the pain stop. So even in light of the man's decisions, I respect him. Saved my life, and took his own. Welcome to the real world. Not internet world. This shit happens to all of us.
Rant: My trip to Exmouth has been cancelled because the roads are flooded... Disappointed to say the least, I was really looking forward to getting up there.
Rant: The girl and I are done. She can't put in the time during her residence year. I think that's a bunch of bullshit but what can you do. It sucks I got her Christmas presents. Rave: At least I get some of her Christmas presents out of the deal. And, I had a feeling this was coming so it softened the blow. Oh well, plenty of other women out there.
rant: after feeling like shit since sunday morning, I was finally diagnosed with strep throat today. rave: I felt well enough to appreciate alcohol tonight. rant: I got so shnockered that George Lopez is funny.
Rant My uncle passed away a couple days ago and the funeral is tomorrow. It didn't really hit me until I sat back and thought about how much he contributed to where I am now. We weren't all that close, saw him maybe 3-4 times a year but even as a little kid he was always encouraging me to build balsa wood airplanes and little models and always kept up on my artwork and what I was doing fabrication-wise in school. I didn't really fit the pieces together until now, but between him and my grandpa (who is still alive, thankfully), they were two of the biggest influences in me choosing Industrial Design as a major. He never came out and said "This is what you should do..." but it's just the little nudges or the 15 minute discussions at family gatherings that always left me wanting to know more about physical problem solving. How does glue x react with wood y, why does this weight distribution work better than that one... Nothing earth shattering but little questions that kept me interested in building things that culminated in me choosing a line of study that challenges me and intrigues me on a daily basis. It's a re-occurring theme on this and the RMMB- "What should I do with my life?" and while I may not have that answered, his influence has me on a path that I love doing. On a side note- the guy was a fucking human tank. He fought in WW2, survived the French hedgerows and became an electrician. He was up on the power lines when someone forgot to shut off the transformer. He was electrocuted and hurled to the ground from the top of the truck ladder, lost his left leg and got Hepatitis from a bad blood transfusion. He survived a few small strokes and near-failures of his kidneys before finally calling it quits on Sunday. Those are some elephant nuts. I hope one day I'll have the character and moral carbon fiber to deal with situations like that. Rest in peace, Burrell. The pain's over. Rant Another uncle's best friend died today at age 34 after a two year battle with brain cancer. He and my uncle were like brothers. They both hit it big in the music management and promotion business in Nashville and even through the cancer, Kendall was still by his side the whole way through. Kendall's Facebook status today almost brought me to tears: "RIP Alan. You were my best friend since the very first day we met 13 years ago and you fought like a champ for the past 2 years. I love you, and we will ride once again someday." Fucking hell, right before Christmas.