Can someone tell me why a tiny plastic replacement head for an electronic toothbrush costs $9.99, when the entire electronic toothbrush (with the original head) only cost a total of $19.99. The replacement brush is just a little piece of plastic with a few bristles and a hole where it gets inserted and connected to the electronic thing. I mean, am I missing something here? A new toothbrush (the regular kind) only costs $2 or $3, why is this thing so much more? I hate feeling like I'm getting ripped off. Bastards.

It's a friday night, so I think a beer (or three) is in order.

Latest diversion: Smack the Penguin. There is something deeply satisfying about this game.

As I become more and more obsessed with Animal Planet and shows like Animal Precinct, Animal Cops, Adoption Tales and Pet Story, I start thinking more and more about looking into studying to become a vet technician and/or animal behaviorist, trainer, etc. I love animals and have always had a way with them. I actually get along better with animals than I do most people. This sitting at a desk hour after hour, day after day, year after year is killing me. I wish I could figure out a way to make changing my future (and where I live) more realistic. The logistics of it all stops me in my tracks every time. Paul and I commuted in together this morning and both of us spun our individual fantasies about leaving our company and NYC. I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels the way I do.

I'm not even going to talk about my commute this morning, it was just too horrible and this is getting redundant. I am curious, however, about why they were announcing "weather-related equipment problems" for this morning, when the snow storm wasn't last night, but the night before. Yesterday, the delays weren't too bad, only about 10 mins. I think they just thought, "hey! there was a storm this week, let's just use that excuse" Figured that they'd get some mileage out of it. Bastards.

On an unrelated note, I was hoping to talk my wings & beer friends into a wings and beer session for this weekend. It's been a long time since we've had a chance to do so. But no such luck, they're already booked for the weekend. Looks like another boring-ass weekend in Queens for me. My social life totally sucks.

Craving a margarita. And I could have one too, got all the makings of, right here. Not going to do it though, no I'm not.

I was really hoping for a snow day today, but it wasn't meant to be, I guess. LIRR was actually running on a reasonable schedule, maybe about 10 minutes behind. Can't complain too much about that when they consistently have worse delays on the best of days. By the time I was at the station this morning waiting for my train, the sun was actually out. Between the sun and the blinding white of fresh snow, sunglasses were in order (ah, to be on top of a ski mountain on a day like today). Spent the extra ten minutes griping about the LIRR to this British guy who has befriended me, joined together by our mutual hatred of all things LIRR. Before I left my apartment this morning, however, I was trying to find some information on what was happening with the train schedules. I assumed there were delays of some kind, but I wanted to know what to expect before running through the streets (cuz, let's face it, none of the sidewalks are shoveled yet) for the train. The MTA website is useless for this sort of thing. You would think they would post about delays, etc. here, but the trains could be completely shut down for whatever reason, and there is nothing on their website. Tried to find some information on the local news channels, but they were all too busy reporting about all the damn school closings (like I didn't know this since last evening), not one word about trains. Even if they were all on schedule, a quick blurb about that would have been nice. At the very least in the streaming text at the bottom of the screen. I mean, how many people commute by train into Manhattan each day? Hundreds of thousands? Millions? Everyone I mention this issue to just gives me a blank look. Sometimes I feel so alone.

Snowing pretty hard out there. Even though they're only predicting 4-8", NYC public schools have already declared a snow day for tomorrow (declared at 7:30 this evening, right after the snow began to fall). And really, I don't know how they're only expecting a max of 8" anyway, when I was just outside with Lola and it seems like there is already around 6" out there at least. And they're saying they expect an accumulation of an inch+ per hour. Seems like 8" is an underestimation, at least from where I'm standing. But whatever happens, I'm sure the LIRR will be all kinds of screwed up in the morning. Maybe I should just plan on working from home (for which I'll be forced to take a vacation day or something anyway).

Osbournes, Season Three begins tonight at 10:30. Don't miss it (unless you've got something better to do).

Train ride home tonight: After a series of abrupt, sharp and jarring stops in the tunnel (sending numerous standing people flying) it is announced that they are experiencing equipment trouble, that the speed control mechanism appears not to be working properly. But that it should be okay to continue. Well, that's comforting. Did make home in one piece, albeit about a half an hour behind schedule. Damn LIRR.

I just received the latest New Hire Sales Training Agenda, looked for my name to see when my demo is to occur (there is a stock demonstration I give every time there is training session) only to discover that apparently I am presenting with the director of my department! Yikes! What's up with that? As if these things don't make me nervous enough as it is. Sheesh!

Okay, I'm an ass! It wasn't 20 below zero last night, but 20 degrees. I was looking at the freezing mark (32*) as if it was zero -- duh.

On an unrelated note, I wonder if Cher knows about the Today Show contest to win a trip to accompany Matt Lauer on his "Where in the World is Matt" trip around the World. Matt Lauer groupie that she is, I would think she would be all over that.

Not that she would blog about it or anything...

Julia said (over on her blog):

"IM
As in Instant Messaging.

So I download the whole stupid thing and I gather names of my best of friends and I take the time to enter all that crap and I come home ready to talk and who is on line? NO ONE!!!!!!!!!!!

ARG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Oops. I forgot to log on tonight. Well, too late now, I'm going to bed. Maybe next time. I didn't have anything interesting to say today anyway (as is obvious by the quality of my blogging)

Ack! I just looked outside at my thermometer and it says it's something like 20 below zero! Is that even possible? (plus the thermometer doesn't measure windchill) It didn't seem that cold when I was out there a few minutes ago.

And why is blogger truncating my "current posts" page? I know it has something to do with adding the haloscan and sitemeter links to the sidebar. I added a few html breaks to gain some space, but it is still cutting the page off. Annoying.

Looks like we're supposed to get another big snow storm tonight or tomorrow or Wednesday (depends on who you listen to). I caught something on the radio that said maybe 16". Can only imagine what that will do to the LIRR schedule where this morning my train was 20 minutes late for no good reason that I can see, other than it was about 20 degrees outside. Perhaps everything will shut down and we'll have some kind of a snow day. Of course the last time that happened (last year) my company made no statement to that effect and so I ended up having to eat a vacation day for it. Bastards.

I think I'm finally getting over this virus or flu or whatever that I've been struggling with for the last week or so. Still have a bit of chest congestion and a cough, but at least I feel tons better. Finally. Maybe I can start working out again soon, my muscles are starting to atrophy.

bored, bored, bored...

I just stopped by Carolina & Janos's new apartment to see how it had shaped up. They finally moved yesterday after months and months of this ordeal. I can see that in the end this is all going to be worth it. They plan to stay with Carolina's aunt and uncle (who have a big apartment in the same building) until they can finish up the last of the painting, etc. but all of their stuff is moved in and you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Anyway, it was wonderful to see the almost-final result, it is a beautiful place. And it is totally enviable to have so much space. I think people from other areas of this country don't appreciate space the way a New Yorker does, where the tiniest apartment costs a fortune. I mean, I can't even afford to have a bedroom! And here they have a huge, three-bedroom apartment (they'll be using one of the bedrooms as an office/den/guest bedroom) with two full bathrooms, a foyer area (in addition to the entrance hall) that could be used as another room, huge living room, kitchen with separate dining room, AND a balcony.

I hate my life.

Chrissy was back to work from maternity leave this week (as you can see from our IM conversation yesterday). So we went to lunch yesterday to catch up a bit and because it was Friday. During the course of the lunch I mentioned something about my desire to move out of the area, maybe to Albuquerque. And she said oh well, at least I would have my sister not too far away (2.5 hours) if I moved there. That it wouldn't make sense to move to, say, Seattle not knowing anyone in the area. And my response is, "why the HELL not?" I know plenty of people here in NYC, yet my social life at this stage consists of sitting with my dog on the couch and watching netflix movies or what I've recorded on the DVR. Or maybe taking a walk with said dog. Most of the people I used to have a social life with now have children and never go out, they're all wrapped up in their new families. Or if someone has a party, it's just to sit and watch a damn movie while the kid sleeps. I can do that at home, and at least at home I can have my dog with me. How would moving to Seattle or someplace else, put me in a position where my social life is any worse than it is right now? And my thinking is, at least I might live in an area where it is easier (not to mention, safer) to get out and do fun and outdoorsy things. Like ride a horse, or take a hike, or ski, or walk a nice trail, or swim or any number of things. And there is always the potential of maybe meeting like-minded individuals when you're doing something you enjoy. I think Chrissy was a little taken back. But really, she herself has two kids now. When was the last time we went out together? (other than a quick lunch during working hours). It's been years. Literally.

Julia said (in her blog this morning):

"So the latest news on the various blogs has to do with books.
So I decided to review my list of books.
I especially like going over The One Book List.
I also like Project Gutenberg where you can download books for free.
So I decided to take another look around for lists of books and found a good one that encompasses 54 countries. "

So, do you think Julia is going to share any of these lists, or at least a link to?

Okay, she took my hint, so... good.

In reviewing the list below, I did a lot of exclaiming (yes, out loud, if you have to know): "WOW, I can't believe I haven't read this book" and "WOW, I've always meant to read this book" and "WOW, I forgot about this book" or "wow. I can't believe this book is on the list." Of course I suspect that since this was a survey, this list comprises a combination of best books with most popular (the fact that Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is number 5 on the list should be evidence enough of this). Of course, were this survey done in the USA, I have a sneaking suspicion that a few Danielle Steeles, Jacki Collins, not to mention the ever-popular tell-all expose and an occasional self-help manual would have made the hit parade. Some of the notable books that I see missing from the list are (in no particular order of rank):

- The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway
- A Farewell to Arms, Ernest Hemingway
- Light in August, William Falkner
- Howard's End, E.M. Forster
- Room with a View, E.M. Forster
- Out of Africa, Isak Dinesen
- The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton
- Marjorie Morningstar, Herman Wouk
- The Last Convertible, Anton Myrer
- Goodbye Columbus, Philip Roth
- National Velvet, Enid Bagnold
- Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman Capote
- The Winds of War, Herman Wouk
- War and Remembrance, Herman Wouk
- The Good Earth, Pearl S. Buck (how can The Good Earth not be on this list???)
- The Red Pony, John Steinbeck
- Sophie's Choice, William Styron

All of the above are just a short list of some my favorites. Of course many represent highlights in American literature, which may be part of the reason why they are missing from the British list.

This blog that I read, quoted this blog, who referred to this website which lists BBC's Big Read Search for the best 200 books. These were voted the top 200 in Britain.

Here is the list. I am highlighting the books I've actually read:

1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien -- Actually read this for the first time last year -- LOVED it (althought probably not my #1 book of all time)
2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen -- Read this one for the first time recently too, about 2 or 3 years ago.
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams -- So long ago I can barely remember it.
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë -- can't believe I've never read Jane Eyre. I've added it to my Amazon queue.
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller -- Loved it.
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger -- reread this a couple of months ago. Love it still.
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott -- I read this book more times than I can remember. Although, not as an adult. Might warrant an eventual re-read. One of my favorite books as a child and teenager.
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy -- Never had the strength to tackle this.
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell -- read a couple of times. Still have a couple on my bookshelf (falling apart).
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien -- Read it years ago. Why I did not go on to read The Lord of the Rings at that time is beyond me.
26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving -- One of my very favorite books and was a huge and pleasant surprise for me. Someone gave it to me and then it sat on my bookshelf literally for years. I finally picked it up one day because I had nothing to read and I loved, loved, loved it completely. Even more than The World According to Garp, which I didn't think possible beforehand.
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez -- haven't read it, but picked it up and just couldn't get into it.
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens -- Can't believe I've never read this.
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher -- Can't believe this is on the list.
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett -- I know the story, etc. But I don't think that I actually ever read the book. Not sure.
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King -- Another book I've read multiple times. Maybe 3 or 4.
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell -- Another favorite growing up.
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden -- One of my newer favorites of all time. I've already read it twice.
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens -- Another book I can't believe I've never read.
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind -- I don't understand what all the hoopla is about this book. It was sort of interesting, but whatever.
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding -- Loved it, but then, didn't everyone? Don't think it belongs on the top 200 books though (but I don't think a lot of these books do)
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce -- okay, so I've only read a little bit of it, but who anywhere has actually read the entire thing? Comeon.
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons -- I guess I should read this.
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac -- Can't believe I haven't read Kerouac. Added this to my Amazon Queue.
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie -- Ack! It's sitting on my shelf! In line to be read.
101. Three Men In A Boat, Jerome K. Jerome
102. Small Gods, Terry Pratchett
103. The Beach, Alex Garland
104. Dracula, Bram Stoker
105. Point Blanc, Anthony Horowitz
106. The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens
107. Stormbreaker, Anthony Horowitz
108. The Wasp Factory, Iain Banks
109. The Day Of The Jackal, Frederick Forsyth
110. The Illustrated Mum, Jacqueline Wilson
111. Jude The Obscure, Thomas Hardy
112. The Secret Diary Of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾, Sue Townsend
113. The Cruel Sea, Nicholas Monsarrat
114. Les Misérables, Victor Hugo -- Been sitting on my bookshelf for years. I'll probably never read it.
115. The Mayor Of Casterbridge, Thomas Hardy
116. The Dare Game, Jacqueline Wilson
117. Bad Girls, Jacqueline Wilson
118. The Picture Of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde -- Another one I've always meant to read.
119. Shogun, James Clavell
120. The Day Of The Triffids, John Wyndham
121. Lola Rose, Jacqueline Wilson
122. Vanity Fair, William Makepeace Thackeray
123. The Forsyte Saga, John Galsworthy
124. House Of Leaves, Mark Z. Danielewski
125. The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver -- hated it (although I like her other books)
126. Reaper Man, Terry Pratchett
127. Angus, Thongs And Full-Frontal Snogging, Louise Rennison
128. The Hound Of The Baskervilles, Arthur Conan Doyle
129. Possession, A. S. Byatt
130. The Master And Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov
131. The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood
132. Danny The Champion Of The World, Roald Dahl
133. East Of Eden, John Steinbeck
134. George's Marvellous Medicine, Roald Dahl
135. Wyrd Sisters, Terry Pratchett
136. The Color Purple, Alice Walker
137. Hogfather, Terry Pratchett
138. The Thirty-Nine Steps, John Buchan
139. Girls In Tears, Jacqueline Wilson
140. Sleepovers, Jacqueline Wilson
141. All Quiet On The Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque
142. Behind The Scenes At The Museum, Kate Atkinson
143. High Fidelity, Nick Hornby -- Added it to my Amazon Queue.
144. It, Stephen King
145. James And The Giant Peach, Roald Dahl
146. The Green Mile, Stephen King -- Someday I'll get around to this. I thought it was a short story though. What do I know?
147. Papillon, Henri Charriere
148. Men At Arms, Terry Pratchett
149. Master And Commander, Patrick O'Brian
150. Skeleton Key, Anthony Horowitz
151. Soul Music, Terry Pratchett
152. Thief Of Time, Terry Pratchett
153. The Fifth Elephant, Terry Pratchett
154. Atonement, Ian McEwan
155. Secrets, Jacqueline Wilson
156. The Silver Sword, Ian Serraillier
157. One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, Ken Kesey
158. Heart Of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
159. Kim, Rudyard Kipling
160. Cross Stitch, Diana Gabaldon
161. Moby Dick, Herman Melville
162. River God, Wilbur Smith
163. Sunset Song, Lewis Grassic Gibbon
164. The Shipping News, Annie Proulx -- Really enjoyed this.
165. The World According To Garp, John Irving -- Another old favorite. Would probably be higher on my personal list.
166. Lorna Doone, R. D. Blackmore
167. Girls Out Late, Jacqueline Wilson
168. The Far Pavilions, M. M. Kaye -- One of those books I really loved when I was young (maybe a teenager?) Read it multiple times. Also another book of her's, Shadow of the Moon (also read multiple times).
169. The Witches, Roald Dahl
170. Charlotte's Web, E. B. White
171. Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
172. They Used To Play On Grass, Terry Venables and Gordon Williams
173. The Old Man And The Sea, Ernest Hemingway
174. The Name Of The Rose, Umberto Eco
175. Sophie's World, Jostein Gaarder
176. Dustbin Baby, Jacqueline Wilson
177. Fantastic Mr Fox, Roald Dahl
178. Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov -- I think I've read this book, but I'm not 100% sure.
179. Jonathan Livingstone Seagull, Richard Bach
180. The Little Prince, Antoine De Saint-Exupery
181. The Suitcase Kid, Jacqueline Wilson
182. Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens -- Can't believe I haven't.
183. The Power Of One, Bryce Courtenay
184. Silas Marner, George Eliot
185. American Psycho, Bret Easton Ellis
186. The Diary Of A Nobody, George and Weedon Grossmith
187. Trainspotting, Irvine Welsh
188. Goosebumps, R. L. Stine
189. Heidi, Johanna Spyri
190. Sons And Lovers, D. H. Lawrence
191. The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera
192. Man And Boy, Tony Parsons
193. The Truth, Terry Pratchett
194. The War Of The Worlds, H. G. Wells
195. The Horse Whisperer, Nicholas Evans
196. A Fine Balance, Rohinton Mistry
197. Witches Abroad, Terry Pratchett
198. The Once And Future King, T. H. White
199. The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle
200. Flowers In The Attic, Virginia Andrews -- Was surprized this made the list as well.

Looks like I've got some reading yet to do. I'm particularly lacking in my Dickens reading.

I have been so ever-freaking-cold all day long today. And that's a lot coming from the person who is always hot.

IM with Chrissy this morning, about our mutual friend Chris (the same one I walked from Manhattan with, the day of the Big Northeast Blackout):

chrissy: so listen to this Chris O just told me about her night last night
chrissy: your not even going to believe it
chrissy: she is a lunatic
me: Chris O'H?
chrissy: she gets home and is walking her dog, her neighbor who she is friendly with comes out of the house begging her to come in a hang out
chrissy: yeah
me: ok
chrissy: so she says ok goes into his house and realizes he is wacked
chrissy: so she starts drinking with him
chrissy: he is crying
chrissy: apparently he is mental or has mental problems
chrissy: has been drinking for three days straight
chrissy: lives with his mother who was annoying him the other night while he tried to sleep
chrissy: keep waking him up complaining that the fridge is cold
chrissy: mind you he is 46 years old
chrissy: so he had it with her (she is senile) and he pushed her and she fell and hit her head on the raditor
me: OMG
chrissy: had to go to the hospital so now he was afraid that his brother was going to come over and beat him up (brother is a detective)
chrissy: so he was crying to her saying he was going to kill himself
chrissy: had bullets all over the room
chrissy: apparently he has a shot gun which chris has seen before
me: OMG
chrissy: so she calms him down and he promises he wont hurt himself
chrissy: so she goes home and is cooking dinner, hears the gun go off
chrissy: runs outside to find him in the street screaming
chrissy: he shots the gun again
chrissy: in the air
chrissy: so she is out there yelling at him to go home
chrissy: which I guess at some point he does
me: jesus
chrissy: why she didnt call the cops who knows
me: that's what I was just going to ask
me: also, I can't believe that someone didn't call the cops
chrissy: so later on she is out walking the dog when she thinks to herself gee its awfully quiet
chrissy: so wait
me: I'm sure plenty of people heard the gunshots
chrissy: all of a sudden she is surrounded by a swat team
chrissy: full gear
me: OMG
chrissy: shields, machine guns
chrissy: etc
das3222: jesu
chrissy: they run her up to her house, tell her to stay low and get in the back room
me: OMG
chrissy: they evacated the 2 houses next to this mental guys house
chrissy: she is screaming that you dont know him he wont hurt anyone
chrissy: apparently the dude was holed up in his house took the cops 8 hours to remove him
chrissy: was on the news this morning
me: well, shooting a gun into the air, I don't know
me: gah!
me: wish I had been paying attention to the news!
chrissy: right me too
me: did they get him out okay?
chrissy: guess so
me: did chris have to give a statement?
chrissy: oh i didnt ask
chrissy: maybe
me: I wonder if she told them that she had been into to talk to him earlier in the night
chrissy: and was drinking with him
me: I would think they would want to know about the conversation
me: and what happened
me: right
chrissy: she said she was doing shots with the dude
me: and where was john during all of this ?
chrissy: maybe they did talk to her but she was probably wacked herself
chrissy: I asked the same thing
me: right
chrissy: he was home on the couch
me: lol
me: omg
chrissy: lol
me: asleep?
chrissy: telling her to mind her business
me: or just clueless?
me: oh
chrissy: nah probably drinking
chrissy: she went over I guess had some drinks
chrissy: went home
chrissy: john came over to the dude's house apparently to pick up some smoke while chris was there drinking with hin
chrissy: he saw the bullets and the condition of the dude but left chis there
chrissy: she eventually came home and was cooking when the rest happened
chrissy: she said he is very nonchalant was like oh chris will be fine with Doug
chrissy: she said he has been arressted before I guess they put him in a menatal hospital for a while
chrissy: imagine? what a bunch of crazies
me: my god
me: little suburban Long Island town
chrissy: the detective brother must be mental himself not to get the mother out of the house or put her in a nursing home something
me: Chris always seems to find the psychos
chrissy: i know
me: or they find her, more likely
chrissy: and they all like to drink so they become fast friends
me: oh, of course
me: guess she's going to have to find a new drinking buddy
me: sounds like this guy may be away for a while
chrissy: yeah she was like well, he needs sleep
chrissy: so he'll get it now
me: lol
chrissy: lol
me: hmmm, there might be something in that... I could use some sleep myself...


Just another quiet, weekday evening on Long Island.

New comments section -- YAY!

I'm finally emerging from this sick fog I've been under for the past week -- thankfully. Obviously my blogging has suffered. For those of you out there who wait for my installments... I would apologize, but my inclination is really more to say, "get a life!" In any case, I have very little to report as I have spent much of the past week sleeping and mindlessly watching TV. Well, that sounds like business as usual for me, but trust me, the quality was different.

Seen tonight on my way home from the train:

Man "jogging" in full-puff parka, complete with hood and white tennis/cross-trainer-style sneakers. Any true runner knows that this is not running gear, even on the most artic of days (and tonight it was about 35*, a warm spot before the next chill). So the thought that came to my mind as I watched this guy was, 'Can you say: New Year's Resolution?'

I was calling all of you out on it, so there.

Still sick, bad cough that won't stop. Feel as if I'm going to hack my lungs out through my throat. Yet, here I sit at work waiting to be hit with all the pre-sales meeting craziness. Basically all the sundry divisions clambering for reports and numbers looked at every which way so that they can all justify their existences. And of course no one is looking at the same report, or even looking at any report the same way, so everyone has different data and I am inundated to build yet more reports and also to explain old ones. And need I remind you that when a division wants a report, it also requires building an involved html/asp page so that they have every sorting option and screening criteria possible. Not to mention all the drilldown options that must be built into the report as well. One damn report might as well be 20, by the time you are done building in all the variables and drilldown options. Gaaaah! Why did I even get out of bed this morning?

Oh and another thing, Carolina & Janos want me to take a vacation day tomorrow to help them with their apartment (basically for the last push before they finally move). I normally wouldn't care too much, and have repeatedly offered to help throughout this whole ordeal, but do you think maybe one person could have called me to see how I was feeling this past weekend? As I lay miserable and dying of some deadly crud.

Oh, and it appears that my comments section is dead, dead, dead. I guess you get what you pay for.

So sick this weekend. Horrible and weird sore throat. Even drinking water causes a stinging sensation at the top of my throat (in addition to the more typical throat soreness). When I looked into my mouth, I had inflamed redness almost to the point of welts inside my mouth and the top of the throat plus white spots throughout. Thought maybe I had strep, but I didn't have a fever, until this afternoon where I've developed a small one (like around 100*). But I've also developed a little bit of a cough, so that makes me think that this is maybe more of a virus of some sort. Anyway, I've been miserable -- jello & soup has been my best friend. I'm been even more of a baby because I haven't been really sick like this in probably a few years. Even every garden variety type cold I've started to develop in the last year or so was gone within a day or two, almost before it could even take hold. So I've just been lying around and watching movies, as well as other stuff that I've recorded with the DVR (I don't know what I ever did before I had this thing -- if I ever move out of the area, I'm definitely going to have to get a tivo). Today the weather keeps switching from rain to snow and back again, so it's a great day to stay inside and cuddle with a warm pug. If I have to be sick, it's at least a good day for it AND I don't even have work tomorrow, hopefully after all this loafing I'll feel better by Tuesday.

I wish some people would update their blogs, though (I need entertainment). You know who you are...

Weird night last night. Lares's last day, so a buncha people went out to this bar we all used to hang out in. Past few days I've felt some virus coming on like a freight train, so it was my intention only to stay maybe for an hour. Yeah. Right. I was the last one to leave. Even the Man Of The Hour left before I did. Got home around 11:00 or so (I had gotten to bar at 5:30). Now I can't talk at all. Or swallow. Jello is looking awfully good to me at the moment.

Anyway, so last night, lots of sloppy sentiments, etc. At one point Lares told me that he loves me (don't get your panties all in a twist he's not in love with me, he loves me as a friend, etc. he does have a very nice wife afterall). And so I had to screw with him and so I said, "yeah, but I'm not as smart as you" (heh) and he answers, "well, very few people are." Cracks me up. Dan, a colleague of mine from my department was also there last night and I know I spent a small part of the evening talking about work stuff with him. I just hope now I didn't say anything about work or our department (ie: something bad about our director, or a complaint about my job) that will come back to bite me in the butt later. Oh and one other thing I remember from last night was Lares trying to sort of set me up with a bar friend of his. He was pretty transparent about it. Guy gave me his business card when he left. Does that mean I'm supposed to call him? I don't even know. So the whole night was rather weird. It's coming back to me now in bits and pieces. I'll post more about it if anything new comes to light.

and... what the Hell happened to my comments section??? Grrrrrrrr

Ran into Paul this morning after waiting on the freezing platform for over 40 minutes in the snow storm. Ranted to him about my horrible co-op meeting from the night before and then finally said, "every time I see you, I seem to be ranting about something." He replied, "Yeah, you have issues." I just get so frustrated about things when I feel helpless, that there is nothing I can do, I just have to accept all the shittiness. The director of my department at work also happened to be on the train, coming in from Long Island. There she was all coiffed and made up, pink lipstick and all, and there I sat with snow melting through my lashes, my still wet hair, frozen into chunks in it's ponytail from having to stand in 5* + windchill temperatures for so long, hoping that a train would finally stop. I'm always a mess.

Freaking co-op bored, I mean, board meeting tonight lasted two and a half hours. GAH! I worked late, ran Lola out and pretty much had to go straight there, so I didn't even get a chance to eat anything. Oh yeah and they brought up "the pet issue" -- basically pets are not allowed, but everyone ignores the rule, myself included (obviously). This rule I think pisses me off more than anything else. You live in NYC, everyone here is completely isolated (especially single people) and a building is going to tell me that I can't have a pet??? And of course dogs come under fire more than anything else because they are the most visible. Oh, and yet the people above me can have a child that runs back and forth across the floors from 7 in the morning 'til 10 at night, with no rug covering at all, and that's perfectly okay. The co-op board president is the really the force behind this pet rule, for some reason she's got this thing against pets. Anyway, I don't care. Don't care if I never go to another co-op meeting as long as I live either. Two and a half freaking hours, sheesh! Never buy a co-op.

I can't sleep so I figured that I would log on and complain about my shitty grocery store.

The place is small, only four aisles and one of those is all paper products and cleaning supplies, so needless-to-say, there isn't a lot of selection (AND it's expensive, but that's a whole other story). But when you don't have a car, your options are limited. Anyway, this evening I stopped in to pick up a few basics. I go to the meat section with the intention of picking up some ground sirloin, in addition to my chicken breasts. I find it good to have some ground sirloin on hand, I split it up into patties and freeze and then can easily defrost one pattie at a time. Easy to make a burger on the Foreman grill if I can't think of something to have for dinner (or there's nothing in the apt). Also easy to throw into a chili or a sauce or any number of things. And I feel like ground sirloin isn't that bad for you, as long as you only eat it once or twice a week. But my grocery store, of course only had ground chuck (too fatty, not worth it). All packaged in the convenient 10-lb family size, I might add. But what they did have in stock were veal livers and hearts. Yep, a huge, honking veal heart wrapped in cellophane and sitting there with a sticker, pretty as you please as if it were a flank steak. Now what the F* am I going to do with a damn veal heart??? (besides shudder as I pass it by) Damn shitty useless grocery store.

Rant of the Day: To the man who sat next to me on the train coming home: Is it really necessary when your considerable bulk is already taking up far more than half the seat, to then sit with your arms akimbo so that your elbow completely juts into my ribs??? And then to completely lean on top of me to pull your wallet out of your pocket (instead of maybe standing up to retrieve it) and then again do the same to put your wallet back, causing me to have to lean at an unnatural angle to avoid being more intimate with you than I already, uncomfortably, am??? I mean, is it too much to ask to have a little common courtesy? I know it's a crowded commuter train but, comeon. Why do some people insist on making a miserable situation even worse?

I hate commuting.

So The Today Show had a segment this morning about "blogging". I'm not sure if I should feel insulted that this was touted as this crazy thing all the teenagers are doing. What about those of us bloggers who are adults? Should we feel silly and immature?

Damn. I just discovered a hole in my jeans. And these are my favorite jeans too. Brings a whole new meaning to business casual. Argh!

Maintenance person just knocked on my cube door to see if anyone had been by to fix the fluorescent light over my desk. Damn thing finally burned out -- don't fix it! ACK! Those lights suck the life out of you, as if sitting in this cubicle all day long doesn't do a good enough job of that alone.

Another company announcement today. Our health insurance co-pay is going up to $20 per doctor visit (up from $10). I was actually holding my breath waiting to hear that there were now going to be payroll deductions to pay for the insurance, so I guess the news could be worse. Things still suck though.

It was announced this morning that my company is now only going to be matching 25 cents on the dollar for our 401K. Why even bother??? Things just suck all around.

Out for drinks last night with Lares and some other people. Lares feeling sentimental because next week is his last week at our company, as well as his last week in NYC.

Me: some comment I don't remember.
Lares: "You know, one of the only things that bothers me about you is how you downgrade your intelligence."
Me: "Whatever."
Lares: "I have to tell you something. I feel like I'm made 4 really good friends while I've been here and you're one of them."
Me: "Aw, that's so sweet."
Lares: "I don't know why, maybe because I feel like we can talk about anything."
Me: "Maybe because I am as intelligent as you and so it is reflected in our conversations."
Lares: "There is no why you're anywhere near as intelligent as I am."
Me: "Oh."

Rode the train in with Paul this morning. We (well, I) spent the morning bitching about our company and about living in NYC. At least he didn't try to get away from me this time.

Classic Female Humiliation: Wait on crowded line at DD at rush hour for coffee. Reach into bag for wallet. Pull wallet out along with tampon that goes flying. Just great.

Damn BMW high-pitched car alarm that keeps going off outside my window. What do you want to bet that this continues all night long? I would call the police, but the NYC's policy on car alarms is pretty useless. Basically they will come out and look at the car with a flashlight (presumably to make sure it's not being stolen or whatever) and will do nothing about making it stop or go away. Oh, they might leave a ticket on the windshield or something. If they feel like it. When I lived in Hoboken (NJ) they would tow that car so fast -- it was a beautiful thing.

Rant of the Day: Why do I appear to be the only damn person on my entire floor at work who changes the damn water bottle on the cooler???

For some reason, Joe calls me "The Comedian". I don't get it.

I'm one of those people who hates to see Christmas decorations up once the holidays are over. It all just looks so... tawdry and tacky. January 1st and that crap should be out of there. So you just know it's driving me crazy on Januart 5th to still be looking at it everywhere. Especially in public areas like Penn Station. I suppose it could be worse, they could now be putting up the Valentine's crap to replace it.

Well, I've managed at least to keep busy today fixing application problems for with all the year-end orders coming in, etc. It's kind of tedious work (although not mindless), but the perfect kind of thing to do on a day where I wasn't all that self-motivated. And it's made the day go quickly, so that's a good thing. I can probably expect more of the same throughout this week, so I can plan on being busy, but won't have to think too hard about what I'm doing -- just solve each puzzle as it is put before me. So, I guess I can't complain about that. Otherwise I am just hiding in this cubicle and being more or less anti-social. So not into any bullshit chit-chat right now.

Just put on a lot of dark eye makeup to match my dark mood.

Did anyone happen to catch the new episode of Sex and the City last night? The thing with Samantha and hottie boyfriend Smith was the sweetest thing I had seen in a while. It made me cry (as these kind of things usually do). I'm such a sap.

So depressing to be back in this hell hole this morning. The cold, pouring rain we're experiencing today fits my mood perfectly.

This weekend has been a bit of an escape from reality for me. Four days (and five nights) of uninterrupted loafing. A bit like an oasis in the middle of an otherwise endless drone of working weeks. I've spent a lot of time fantasizing about what I want to do when I grow up (ie: when I get the courage to leave NYC and go back to school or whatever). I swing between pursuing as high a psychology degree as I can endure and going from there (perhaps into psychotherapy) to becoming a vet technician (along with dog trainer, behaviorist, etc.) because I love animals so much and really treasure every waking moment I can spend with them (be it dog, cat, horse, etc.). With the exception of monkeys. Monkeys creep me out. Anyway, the latter option would mean schooling of only about two years, yet I don't think the earning potential is too impressive. Not that making bookoo bucks is my top motivation, but I still have to live. Living somewhere other than NYC makes the money thing more flexible, of course, but there still has to be limits.

I've spent less time this weekend thinking of some goals and objectives for 2004. Which really, probably would have been time better spent. Probably better to zone in on some concrete goals first, rather than all the lofty fantasies.

What is with people and stereos anyway? Particularly people who live in apartments. Do they truly believe that all their neighbors just love them for providing thumping bass through the walls and ceilings, etc.? I don't know if it is a case of complete cluelessness or that people are so self-absorbed, that they have no concern for anyone who has to live around them. Bastards.

Ah, there's nothing like that grand ole' tradition of taking a spin on the porcelain bus on the morning of January First to start the new year off right.

Here is a picture of some of the people I was with toasting with a shot of tequila (in baby jars, no less). I abstained from the tequila, but managed to more than make up for that in beer and champagne. UGH