Everyone and their brother has the day off tomorrow except me. I am stuck here...but thankfully a lot of people will be out so I can scamper out of here a little early at 5.00! Wahoo. No late train for me.

Right now I am reading Memoirs of a Geisha. Wow, that's some good stuff, after reading a very disappointing Catcher in the Rye. Again, someone please tell me why people like this book. Tell me why it is on the their list of best books.... It's like that time muddled through Jonathan Livingston Seagull...and scratched my head...wondering what? What did I just read? And more importantly, am I going to risk my imaginary reputation of a somewhat intelligent person by saying I didn't get it, and therefore it sucked?

I am really tired this day. I woke up this morning tired. I went out last night to celebrate Kate's birthday at the Red line. I made chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting and pink sprinkles (they were so cute!). I met this old lady...who does indeed look very young, but claimed she was in her 60's. She was trying to sell Bugboi and I on the idea of renting her three bedroom flat for a mere $2,500. Yeah right. A mere....I don't care if it has three bedrooms...and she says "Well, you never know what might happen in a year... you might double your incomes." While this would have been true two years ago...(in which case we damn near tripled our income....) it is not going to be true now. Come on people, I work at a university!

What does the H stand for in the curse "Jesus H. Christ"?

This weekend, I saw Blade II with my darling at the Evanston Theatre, the movie was a lot of fun, and I had WAY more popcorn than I need for several months. Afterward we stopped by the Lighthouse for a pint and then went to bed. Sunday I stayed in all day, never actually changing into real clothes, I worked on a letter to Sarah, read Catcher in the Rye (who the hell said that was a good book again? I wanna take you out side for a moment and introduce you too....kidding. No I am kidding. Jesus H. Christ, I said I was kidding!!!), did little word puzzles and watched My Dog Skip, True Lies, Independence Day and that Oscar crap fest a little bit and then went to bed with the sound of the wind HOWLING outside my window. This morning, when I looked out I saw that my little birdie chimes hit the dust. Both the remaining dingers were off, and all that remained was a ceramic husk. I should go look for the chimes...see if I can find any. But then a gain, the chimes were only a buck at the Hatfield Flea Market, and I could always use another reason to go and get myself some little horsey chimes or something.

I didn't go to my long awaited dentist appointment yesterday. My coworker drove me over to the place after work yesterday (I had never been there before). I didn't think it was possible that there was an ugly side to Evanston, but I found it. And my dentist was nestled amongst it. Garbage, loiters, terrible houses everywhere...disrepair, and no care that they would ever be in better condition. I imagined myself getting out of the doctors appointment in an unfamiliar neighborhood wandering around with a brightly, colored wacky coat, not knowing where the train or buses were located. It was not a pretty picture, so I decided not to go. OH bugboi couldn't pick me up later either, because he was still on his washington business trip until 11, that night when he finally came home. Now, this would be a perfect example, why I should go and get my frickin driver's liscense. But I know bugboi wouldn't even park the car on Howard street, much less there, so I guess it wouldn't matter anyway.

I have a new salad dressing passion--Ceasar. Wow, is that stuff good (even better than ranch!). And yes, I know it has anchovies in it...that must be what makes it so good. Kind of like Erika's apple and brie mix.

I just remembered a little snitchet of a dream I had last night. I was in the middle of the wilderness, at night during the winter. The night was lit from the moon and stars reflecting off the snow. I had reached this valley with two kids who wanted to slide down the hill to the middle. The path looked like it has actually been sledded on a little, but I didn't think it was safe and said no. Alex, my little brother's brother, was with me as we neared the bottom and looked back up the hill and started crying (he is a bit of a cry baby). He was upset because Cody (his older brother) was sliding down the hill with a big grin on his face. Alex continued to cry, so I said he could walk halfway back up and slide down on his butt. I walked with him, but as I got there I started to convince myself that it wouldn't hurt anything if I went down too (especially since I had a red sled in my bag), or at the very least go with Alex. And that is where the dream ended. Me wondering if I had the guts to face my fears of sledding. [For those of you who don't know the sledding story, I seriously broke my back two years ago sledding].

Ahhhh I am in a web training class, and it just tripped into the usual pitfall of people talking about personal problems, which eventually devolves into the teacher making comments on his personnel opinions regarding macs vs pcs, the usefullness of aol and webtv, and what is going on in the "industry." ...later.....boy was that class another immense waste of time and money. Not like I am any big expert myself, but spending three hours on the very basic of html...was very unnessary.

I went to a Science Career Forum today to take pictures, and got this awesome goody bag. Even though I wasn't looking for a job, she gave it to me upon the promise that I will continue to use their products. What products did I get you ask? Inside the bag is this great hand lotion that smells so nice. I actually needed some for work. I usually don't need lotion but there are sometimes when I do need some because my hands got so dry. And now i have my own. 8) It says it smell is supposed to be primrose...but it smells better than that. Yum.

Then there was a sample of Skippy peanut butter with chocolate chips, hellman's mayonnaise, q-tips, a mentadent tooth brush, Vaseline lip therapy, onion dip mix, chicken bullion cubes, a sample size of Lever 2000, Wisk dual action tablets, and travel size saloon sassoon shampoo and conditioner. Neat, then I also got a bunch of crappy pens, an sheet of stratch paper I am going to use as stationary, a squishy brain stress relief kind of thing, two bottle openers and this weird multipurpose letter opener type thing [Cutesy of PanVera: The Protein Company.....oh it's a pet! and I can feed my Screen-A-Saurus a healthy diet of paper, staples, pop tops, dust and CD cellophane. My little Screen_A-Saurus says " Let me take a bite outta yer Work. *URP*" Ooooooo catchy.

If anyone wants to send me little freebie stuff, or even just plain out letters, email me! I love writing letters, it's one of my hobbies.

Tired this morning. My head feels kinda...stuffy or something. ON the train this morning, the man who has the same exact outfit as bugboi (tie, shirt, pants, etc.. aka creepy old doppelganger) sat in a seat up and across from me. Keep in mind this was a fairly crowded train because the purple line, as always was late again. Suddenly I hear a noise I hadn't heard since my freshman year of college from the room of hell Cory. The sound of someone trying to suck snot from their nose through the back of their throat. You all know that noise, that one that you can make without making an expression. I looked up and around discreetly trying to find the culprit of this dispicable act, when I see him. He's looking as innocent as ever, and I start reading again. Then he starts again, up to three snot snorts in a minute. Whose he kidding???! We all know it is him. Eww....

Then we get to Davis and tons of people get off, and tie snorting dude changes to the seat across from him with disgust (trying to pass the snot noises blame to person he was sitting next too). So, now he is sitting next to the girl that I have wanted to talk to for weeks, but have never said anything too and one minute later starts mumbling. At first I am in shock that he is talking to the interesting girl, but then I realize that he isn't talking to her but some random woman sitting three rows down. "Quit fucking staring at me. I can see you staring at me, which your fucking sunglasses." Mumble, mumble.... I look at the woman, and I don't think she is staring at him, but I know I am. In fact I think I think I stared at him most of the ride after he put his back to mine.

I was going to tell you my dream this morning, but I can't remember it. Even though when I woke up I ran it through my head like three time. I was sure I was going to remember it. But then as I was about to cross the street, I realized I couldnt' remember it. I could only remember that there was a bus in it. I rode a bus...but it was a lot more surreal and interesting than that.

Does anyone remember what that was called when they brought brand new books to your elementary school and put them in a gym or a room, and everyone would get a chance to go through them and pick one? A brand spanking new book! I remember the first one I got was The Secret of Nimh, the second was Journey to the Center of Earth, and then 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. That program was brilliant, I was so excited to read a brand spanking new book. But then, that was back when I was little, as much as I love books now... I would much rather use my hard earned library card to borrow a book and enjoy reading without feeling like the book has to valuable in any sort of way...by that I mean...deep knowledge, looks good on a shelf....really great literature. Library books open up a world of reading without the guilt, the shame or the ... I dunno. Back to the question at hand though, what was the name of that program?

On another note, I woke up this morning at 5.30 with a raging headache, and my jawline hurting (no doubt from grinding my teeth). But what really woke me up was the nightmare I was having. I was in house, and soon knew that outside the house there were bad things. So I went around and started locking the doors and such. I had just gotten to the front door and had barely shut the screen, locked it, and shut the door, and did all three manual locks before I took the time to actually put a key in it and deadbolt it (from the inside??) the dogs had come. They were pushing against the door and everytime I locked it, the lock didn't work. I couldn't not let the door be ungaurded because then the dogs would come though. And then, just like in Resident Evil, I turn around to see that there are already two more hell dogs behind me (gotten in through the other faulty doors and windows, I'm sure). Then I woke up. 8)

I checked my email this morning and what do I find? Well, two weeks ago or so, I had spent a good many hours on the internet (when I stayed home 'sick') and had become obessed with trying to find anyone that I could remember from Boyceville highschool with a online presence. I had found only one person with an email, and that was as a job posting. Luke B, moved to Boyceville his senior year (my freshman). For Christmas that year, he got my friend Melinda and I a Playgirl, which we promptly opened up on the church steps across from the school. Luke was also the first person that I ever went a coffee house with, he was already worldly and knew that when the coffeehouse has a band, then it is going to be loud (so he brought paper and pens and started to draw and write) leaving my friend and I at a loss of what to do. Well, for a few minutes anyway before I spied the guy with really cool hair. Further on in the night I ended up talking to cool hair guy, and ..blah blah blah..that is a long story and getting off the topic of Luke. ANYWAY, he emailed me that he was in Tokoyo and going to South Korea today. How interesting. When you think of Luke you think of him in a 1940's sepia movie type setting. It has been 9 years or so since I thought of him.

Funny, I was using Pacific time.

Never again. As long as I shall live, I shall never do this again. And this time I mean it.
Yesterday was a complete waste. I hung over....I slept...felt like crap...watched some terrible TV and ... oh I did get to see Jeremiah on their replay (on Showtime). It was pretty good (I think the Theo part was a little over done), but overall I love apocolyptic (however you spell it) themes. I would like to say more right now, but after the entire waste that was yesterday...I need to take a shower, drink some tea and do all the shit I was unable to even THINK about yesterday.

Stupid after hour. Never never again.

There. I am happy with this. I might keep this for a while. Besides, it's about time I actually do some frickin' work. After all, I am not paid to sit here and look pretty. Although I am sure looking busy is partly in there. I am available if anyone needs help or something like that. OH and yesterday Bugboi and I drove to the library and picked out our glorious library card! WahOO! Evanston Library, here we come. But maybe next week because today is rather busy.

Today I got a corsage! The first one I ever did git. It is a white carnation surrounded by little sprigs of baby's breath, and fern, attached to it (and since removed) was a yellow ribbon type thing. I thought it looked guady, so I cut it off. Of course I am wearing it with an oversized black shirt, so it get's kinda floppy and stuff. But if I don't move much, then it looks nice. Dooby dooby doo. ..... I decided to just put it on my wrist...since my wrist just kinda sits there most of the time anyway. It smells nice. work damn you

Yah! Bugboi is picking me up from work! I don't have to ride the wretched train. This might call for an after work drink at ye Olde Lighthouse!

My site mysteriously has disappeared. I wish I knew why. The server must be having some difficulties, which kind of sucks because I wanted to do stuff. OH well, I suppose it can wait until I get home. If it isn't up then, then I am going to get good and mad, and protest the best way I know how---write a bitchy email.

Ok. So I got this as spam today. It's faintly amusing, and I guess I don't have to credit it because it is ...well spam.

PROFESSIONAL QUIZ -- Good luck

The following short quiz consists of 4 questions and tells whether you
Are qualified to be "professional." Scroll down for each answer. The questions are not that difficult.


1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?

The correct answer is: Open the refrigerator, put in the giraffe and
close the door. This question tests whether you tend to do simple things in and overly complicated way.

2. How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?

Wrong Answer: Open the refrigerator, put in the elephant and close the refrigerator.

Correct Answer: Open the refrigerator, take out the giraffe, put in the elephant and close the door. This tests your ability to think through the repercussions f your actions.

3. The Lion King is hosting an animal conference. All the animals
attend except one. Which animal does not attend?

Correct Answer: The Elephant. The Elephant is in the refrigerator. This tests your memory. OK, even if you did not answer the first three questions correctly, you still have one more chance to show your abilities.

4. There is a river you must cross, but crocodiles inhabit it. How do you manage it?

Correct Answer: You swim across. All the Crocodiles are attending the
Animal conference. This tests whether you learn quickly from your mistakes.

So, when I DO get my library card, are they any good recommendations that anyone has to read?

Yesterday I got it into my head that I was going to get a library card. Since Evanston is a rich suburb, I figured that the library would be beautiful, and decided to go on my lunch hour (the first time I have left the office in over two weeks or so). I walk ALL the way down there, only to walk in and have a little man manning an island tell me that since I don't live IN Evanston I need a Chicago Library card that can be registerd in Evanston.

I was shocked, and so disappointed. He managed to crush my library dreams in all of a minute and half. I walked out, had a smoke and called Bugboi. He said that he would go to the stupid Chicago library with me after work. So, after work we take the train and extra stop, walk and extra hundred miles and finally get to ...well a Chicago public library. When walked in there two people behind the counter, and it was packed full of kids. We filled out a sheet, and the lady said "It will take about 15 minutes, why don't you go look around." I say "OH good, I thought you were gonna say 15 days." We laugh. It's funny.

Ok. We go and look around, and show up at the counter 15 minutes later. No card in sight, and the line has gotten bigger. We stand there for 25 mintues, and she says "Wow, 15 minutes is really stretching." Ha. Ha. I go out for a smoke. Come back. Nothing. Ten minutes more, Bugboi is getting very irratated, as is I. And I tell her "We will come back another day and pick it up."

To which she feels bad and says "I can get one. I can do one really quick if you just wait a few minutes more." (Not possible, because she is the ONLY one there, and the line has since tripled.) Bugboi says that's alright and we leave. Defeated. No libary card for us. 8*(

Not until Saturday anyway.

This morning was a little ruff because of Tim's mood and ...well his mood.
Almost put me a bad mood, but really, couldn't anything beat yesterday? I am wearing contacts again today, inspite of my inner voice telling me I should have worn glasses. But, it's COLD out there. And I just hate how the glasses fog up when you go outside, to inside to outside, or when you actually use your scarf to breath, and it condenses on your glasses, and then you have nothing to clean them with, because everything is kinda wet and cold and it just smears the wet all over the place dipositing lint willy nilly.

So now my eye hurts whenever I blink or rub my eye. It probably doesn't help that I am wearing my contacts because I have no other choice. I would very much like to go out for a smoke, except that is it SO cold outside.

Then to top it off, when I get to work someone had been playing around in our office. The coffee machine was broke and unplugged, the bottled water emptied, the candy dish raided, expensive AV equipment was left on the floor and the humidifier was almost out of water. Hours later, while dispensing a key to someone who had lost their electric key for the third time, I accidentally flipped the card stock I was holding and the corner of it hit me in the eye. Pain, and tears ensued...all the while an uncomfortable graduate student asks if there is anything he can do.

Not unless you can fix my eye immediately. Moments later, my supervisor walks in to tell me that the contractors outside hit another water main, and I have to go and tell fanatically scientists to stop researching stuff because there is no safety water (showers, eye flushes, etc). And of course, all these people tell me how awful and inconvient it is for them, and what I can do to help them out. Sorry, but until I get the power of cleansing water by touch (in which I wouldn't be here), I can't do shit. Walking around, with a hand over my eye talking, telling people to stop working. Normally a fun activity, but not today.

I did get to see an ablino frog today. They (the scientists) bought it that way. I took a picture. Let me see if I can russle that up for you later.

Today is totally sucking. I mean it started out sucky...with the train. I hate the redline/purple transfer at the Howard stop. There are TWO tracks with three different train routes competing on it. I really don't know what I hate more...the skokie/yellow line taking up space because it comes from the trainyard (which is located at the howard stop). It comes straight from the yard and just sits there taking up room, so that the red lines that constantly come through has only one track to use. This is further exasperated by the fact that the purple line is ALWAYS late. So it gets to go in front of the redline to the station. That is how I watched two purple go right past me, since I get on the Jarvis stop (which is one stop before the Howard platform). IF I could walk that distance, I would, but the neighborhood isn't the greatest and walking for 25 min defeats the purpose of taking the train right?

I hate the train. So, since the purple line doesn't stop at Jarvis, (but only at Howard and all the stops in Evanston), I had the pleasure of watching two purple lines pass me. Once while I was on the Jarvis platform, and another while I was on the redline train with a conductor that was upgraded from driving the short bus. Then, on the coldest day of the year (-16 F) I wait for a total of 50 minutes. While I third purple line, convienently out-of-service pulls up and hogs the left side track for another 10 minutes. Twenty-five minutes after it is apparent that the purple line is late, the stationmaster mumbles. "there has been a delay in the purple line express, coming in the next five minutes." 13 mintues later it does arrive, and three minutes after that, another purple line goes through. What the fuck? I wish I could car pool. I wish I could, but no one seems to live around where I do, or they live actually IN Evanston and drive. I wouldn't mind the purple line so much if I could just get on at Howard. This connecting is bullshit.