Don't Try This at Home, Kiddies

Rizzo finally has a clean bill of health. What stranded me on Sept. 3rd was overheating because my radiator fan broke and then the fan motor burned out. Monday, Sept. 13th, after that had been repaired, I drove into work and the M.I.L. came on. I did find my gas cap was loose, but the light stayed on. Mom took the car back in yesterday and the mechanic found a loose vacuum hose, which he fixed for free. HUZZAH!

So at home and I finally cleaned out the computer tower with the second bottle of compressed air. It was dirtier than it should be, but that's not where I spent the first bottle. I stopped at WalMart yesterday morning and bought the air and food for lunch. When I got to work, I only brought the food in with me. I came back to an empty can that had exploded some safety cracks and shot the nozzle head off. I'm extremely lucky it didn't bust any windows in my mother's SUV when I did what the warning message on the can tells you not to do. *headdesk* A second trip to WalMart on the way home was a small price to pay.

I moved the computer to the desktop and put the front cover back on it. Hopefully that'll cut down on the amount of dust that gets inside. Dad replaced the fan over the graphics accelerator, so all the fans are running now. But my monitor has gone green. Seriously, Cain's pants are now olive, all my blue bars are emerald, and I haven't opened up a blank white document to see what color it turns into. I think the monitor plug may be damaged, but I will borrow a monitor from Dad tonight to make sure it's not the video card. Right now, I'm letting the computer run to see if it turns off again. If it doesn't, I have to figure out where to keep the tower and replug everything. The cubby is a pain in ass to try to plug anything in and if I need to get inside the tower. On the desktop takes up valuable space. :p

As of leaving out at 6 a.m., the computer hadn't shut itself off or tried to reboot itself. *Crossing fingers.*

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The BookWorm

I'm Back

Back home and had a great time. Rizzo is fixed, *crossing fingers.* Home computer is shutting itself off. *headdesk* Haven't figured out how to fix that. Bloglines is packing up shop, so I'm moving all my feeds to Google Reader.

And today was a bad day to not pack my lunch.

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The BookWorm

I Meant to Do This Before Now

An updates blog post, that is. Had the idea on Friday and then Rizzo (my car) overheated to the setting alarms off on the dashboard degree. That killed Friday night.

Saturday morning, I had the intentions to do so much computer work including blog posts. But then the computer went wonky and by the time I had cleaned it, my desire to do more computer stuff had died.

Sunday and Monday: enjoyed the time off.

Tuesday: back to work.

So now it's Wednesday and since I'm taking a mini-vacation Thursday and Friday, it's update day!

Mom got some free hotel nights at a casino resort in Shreveport, so we're heading up there. There are some free exhibits in the area so I won't have to play the slots the whole time. WOOT! I'm hoping she wasn't exaggerating about a spa being available and hoping for a pool too because I suck at slot machines. Mom finds them relaxing and can spend hours playing off her winnings. Nothing against gambling, I'd be better at it if it was more like a video game. And that's saying a lot considering how bad my hand-eye coordination is.

I don't know how much writing I'm going to get done off grid. I have a week left to the "Phantom Highwayman" incorporate the brand-new zag (as in just thought of it and almost derailed this blog post) and submit.

Problems with Rizzo: her AC went out last Thursday. I didn't freak out about it, just planned on rolling down the windows until I got paid and then have some coolant put back in. Then Friday's afternoon commute, her temperature warning light went off in the middle of stop and go traffic. Luckily, I made it over to the next exit, parked at Chick-fil-A, and waited for my parents. Then they took it to the mechanics Tuesday since I had to go to work, but he can't look at it until today. So I still don't know what is wrong and how much to fix it.

Sept. 7th also marked the start of a 30 Day Primal Challenge and that couldn't come at a better time. My insurance decided I don't need Byetta anymore and there's a manufacture's shortage of my dosage of Glumetza. What I really need is to get off the drugs and control my blood sugar and lose weight. So time for a lifestyle overhaul. So if Blank starts looking like a food diary, this is why.

Second component of this will be thirty days of Primal Fitness. So far, I only missed this morning's workout but I'm planning to make it up when I get home as long as I get home three hours before bedtime. :p

Off to noodle now.

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The BookWorm

Five Years Ago Today

I was at my baby sister's apartment in Natchitoches, having evacuated from a gal named Katerina. Mother Nature has decided we needed mood weather to remember and the thunderstorm hasn't stopped yet. The leak in my back bedroom is worse and now running down the wall. *head desk*

I guess I should start calling for estimates on a new roof that I know I can't afford because I have some outstanding debt to pay off first. I wanted to hold off until I could afford to extend the back half properly. I'll figure something out, eventually.

Now in honor of five years of rebuilding: Vince Vance's "I am New Orleans."


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The BookWorm

Why does my house think I have money?

I just watered the backyard for thirty minutes because the washing machine never got off the fill up the tub setting. *head desk* It worked once I moved the dial, so the load I put in should get washed. But I sure don't want to put another load in. I'll have to borrow Mom and Dad's so I'll have clean work clothes for next week.

It's one thing to know that you'll have to replace appliances because they wear out. It's another thing when they break and the budget is so tight it's squeaking.

Mom and I examined it. The verdict is it could be the timing belt since it worked after I moved it manually. So I'm testing it by running another full cycle and see if I'll have to watch it from now on.

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The BookWorm

Hello Projects! I'm Baaack!

My cubicle desk is cleared; all assessments snug in their folders inside the filing cabinets. I'm blinking at the light reflecting off the now-visible surface and hit with the what's up now? feeling. Don't get me wrong, I have other tasks to do on my paying job but suddenly my brain matter is free to go back to writing. And maybe I'll have time to put words on paper.

Yeap, I need a moment to process that.

While I processing, Mez came through with some totally unexpected submission calls: Our Haunted World and Cthulhurotica. The first could be a good home for my phantom highwayman story and the second, LOL. Upon looking at their guidelines more closely, my Lovecraftian-rift story won't work even adding in new erotic material. I like Lovecraft, but I don't know if I like it that much. However if I actually submit to one market, I will be improving my current submission track record by a hundred percent.

So state of writing:

• Edit the phantom highwayman story for submission
• Edit the Hyrueliana
• Add stuff to the Zy Novel Wiki -- This I can do right now; I have everything with me

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The BookWorm

Scary!

Google disabled me for hours, but once I got back home I was able to prove I am me and get everything back. *wipes brow*

Now excuse me while I do some backing up.

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The BookWorm

Weird but this still works

I'm kicked out of Gmail for some reason but I can still blog. Tres weird.

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The BookWorm

Not on the agenda

I had my list of things to do today. Despite staying in bed two hours more than I had thought I should, I was really cruising crossing off stuff. I exercised today, cooked and ate breakfast, and was in the middle of rinsing dishes and loading the dishwasher when I felt a bang under my foot and the hot water slowed to a trickle. The bang wasn't bad, it felt like a vibration of something hitting the floor. Nothing dropped in the kitchen so immediately I thought the pipe had burst and hit the floor under the house. My house is built off the ground, maybe about two feet.

My uncle found me sawing through the stupid vinyl lattice so I could see if that theory was correct.

Luckily, it wasn't. The problem is the valve for the hot water under the sink has gone bad. Secondary problem: going to town wasn't on my list! I did that yesterday!

So for those of you keeping track of everything I need to fix.

• New roof
• Replace the back portion of the house with something built to code
• More efficient plumbing!
• Remodel the bathroom
• Remodel the kitchen

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The BookWorm

The misson if you chose to accept it....

I didn't have a choice. I was down to 2 pairs of jeans that fit comfortable and one of those I can only wear around the house because of the holes in them, and another pair that fit sorta. I could close them, but they and my tummy fought about sitting arrangements. Both of the non-holey jeans are cut so the waist below my belly button; I'm just not sure if they're supposed to be hipsters or not.

So this means TORTURE clothes shopping.

First pair, the fly never could meet. Back to the store for another one.

Last week, I got a pair in the same brand and same style as the ones that fit but went up a size. Tummy should have more room. This was a lie because I had to do the lay-down-on-the-bed trick to get the fly to meet, and then the zipper pulled apart at the bottom. Pants off, fixed zipper, same thing. Pants off again, fixed zipper and it doesn't yank apart with my hands, put wax on zipper to oil it, same thing happens once on my body. Stuffed pants in bag to go back to store.

So this morning I was faced with the choice of sitting all day at the job in a pair of jeans trying to reach my spine while my tummy resists or go REALLY early to Wal-Mart and find a new pair of jeans. I walked into Wally World at 5:45am with "third time's the charm" vs. "three strikes and you're out" in my head.

So I ended up leaving with two pairs of jeans in two different brands and two different sizes. I think my assumption is if one doesn't work the other HAS TO. And praise the goddess of denim, the Just My Size FIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not only is my tummy happy, these jeans also have a waistband on my natural waist instead of my hips. They are too long in the leg (I nearly stepped on them after shoes were on) but that is NOTHING to hem. I can live life with two pairs of jeans fit for outside the house. :D

Weekend plans: I don't have to clothes shop now, but I do have to fix the caster on the dishwasher. Other than that and some other housekeeping chores, I need to respond to a lot of emails and write. Worse ways to spend the days.

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The BookWorm

Another fangirl moment

Benny and LINK?!

Yeah, I'm cackling hysterically at this. The way I feel, it doesn't take much to set it off. And no, I won't be making it part of my fanon.

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The BookWorm

Light at the end of the tunnel

NO MORE OIL!!!!!!! *Snoopy dance*

We've been under a massive heat index and I think the triple-digit temps have melted my brain. It's been harder than usual to remember everything I need to do.

Plus side, I got less than 20 assessments outstanding (i.e. the companies haven't paid yet). I never can remember the tally of how many companies we assess in total, but trust me this is so nothing to worry about. I may actually get my Monday nights back!

Hopefully, I have enough energy to cross off items on the to-do list tonight when I get home.

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The BookWorm

I can be such an odd fangirl at times

And it's the little things that make me happy.

No one's going to take me alive
Time has come to make things right
You and I must fight for our rights
You and I must fight to survive -- "Knights of Cydonia" by Muse

I treated myself to a Muse CD. They've been on my to buy list ever since I first heard "Knights of Cydonia" and claimed it for a Biker Mice song. Cydonia is an area of Mars, made famous by the Face on Mars controversy. So I was pleased to squee a little to find a photo of Mars under the CD in the back cover.

I played it on the commute into work and think that a few songs on the album might be applicable to BMFM soundtracks.

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The BookWorm

Let's hear it for Central Plumb It Yourself!

At work today, I mapped out three plumbing supply stores on my route home to look for an adapter to make the connection between my sink faucet and the new portable dishwasher. Took all my manuals and the aerator, and faucet adapter. Felt like crap all day, if I could have curled up for a nap, I would still be asleep now. Finally got to leave work at 4:20 (after arriving at 6:55 this morning; don't ask). And last thing I wanted to do was go shopping, but wanting a working dishwasher won. The first stop was Central Plumb It Yourself.

I walked into a bathroom showplace and sighed internally, but made a mental note that I might want to check their prices on bowl sinks when I'm ready for the project. I figured I had gotten a decorating store that specialized in bathrooms. A saleclerk came out of the employee section and I explained that I was looking for parts. "Oh come on to the back, the girls back there will fix you up." And led me through a door labeled "Parts Dept."

Now the store reminded me of a hardware store, racks of plastic enclosed plumbing doodads. I explained what I needed, she took the parts, opened up a tool box, got another employee's expert opinion, and put the new adapter onto the faucet adapter with a washer and rung me up. Took about fifteen minutes. Total cost of the dishwasher now is $68.22.

So now I'm finally getting to test the dishwasher! There is a leak at the faucet, but none from the machine, WOOT! I figure I didn't tighten the faucet adapter enough and it's not shooting out and making a mess. Mustard's not sure what to make of this noisy new white box, but I find it's not any louder than any of the window AC units I'm running. (I'm worried about the office one, it sounds horrible.) Once I've made sure all the water has drained out, I can start my first official load!

SQUEE!!!!!!!

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The BookWorm

Tropical Storm Bonnie

Tropical Storm Bonnie should be making landfall Sunday. *Crossing fingers* Hopefully, it won't intensify. It will be going through the oil spill zone. Though luckily they've been having trouble finding oil floating in the Gulf since the cap has allowed them to catch up, the radio DJs just told me.

I still think somebody needs to invent the submersible rig from the Abyss. Underwater operations could continue, even if the ships had to skedaddle.

Saturday I'll probably have to spend cleaning the porches. Hopefully, I can find the parts I need for the dishwasher today so I can get the pile of dishes cleaned before I lose power. I have a generator now, but I'd rather not turn that on just to do chores. *SNORT* Looks like I won't get the plate rack built this weekend either.

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The BookWorm

It only took ten years!

I got home and found this waiting on my back porch. (Picture taken once we moved it inside the house.)



Mom dragged Dad to the local Habitat for Humanity ReStore today and spotted it. The portable dishwasher has never been used. Their price? Sixty-five dollars. I wrote Mom a check for it as soon as we got it in the kitchen.

Now I'm off to actually do my dishes! BWAHHHH!

EDIT: Foiled by technology! The dishwasher has faucet adapter that you screw to the faucet (once you remover the aerator). The hose to the locks to it to get the water. And it's too big for my pipe. *headdesk*

So I spent an hour at Lowe's, picked up the last of the items to build the plate rack (cross your fingers on that), and finally get some customer service to find out they don't have a part to make that adaption. "Another lady was in here earlier with the same problem."

ARGH! It's not so much that they don't have it. Lowe's is hit or miss with small items so specialized. It's that this took an HOUR, thirty minutes spent waiting for a sales clerk. Me patient? What the hell is that?

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The BookWorm

The Toxic, Hidden Toll

Andrew Sullivan's post alerted me to this short film by Thomas Mortan on the impact of the oil crisis. Follow the link and watch. "Our nation's most well-spoken rednecks," oh that made me grin. He does call it what he sees "a total clusterfuck."

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The BookWorm

Assessments are kicking our butts

Assessments are a lot simpler than how they were done when I first took this job a decade ago, but the sheer volume with the new system kinks adds up to overtime Monday and Tuesday. My sleep schedule has been shot, but hopefully, I can even up tonight and wake up on time tomorrow. Maybe.

I really haven't gotten to start on anything writing-wise. I'm supposed to be finishing the edits to Hyrueliana, but it's so hard to find the energy. I don't want to promise my weekends to anything because that hasn't been working lately.

Lunch is over, back to the grind.

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The BookWorm

Hello World

It's been over a week since the new program to classify the revenue debuted at work. The list of 2- to 25 items of "FIX NOW" to "this is annoying" degrees of importance is down to 12. Not to bore you with the details of how this has been so hair-pulling frustrating, I'll sum up with this:

Whoever's bright idea it was to start using a new fiscal program at the beginning of the new fiscal year when the books must be balanced and the assessment invoices go out should be fired, so we don't get any more bright ideas from idiots them.

I'm not overly thrilled with the "show off what we've built while building and then the users are trained and have given us input on how to improve it" operating procedure. Too many issues are glossed over until the users actually using it break the program. The good news is after week of breaking it in, it looks like we have found most of the bugs that stop the program cold. Then they put out a new build to fix the bug and lock us out of our job functions with security features. (About the fifth time first day that I went down to the programmers office my question became "what did you give us permission to do?!") Any way, they got the whole list of 12 today and I don't care if they have to work all weekend. I don't want them to, but nothing will run right on Monday either.

An important life lesson: Programmers never realize how many times they click on the mouse. So when they say they'll make the program so you click less, just smile, nod, and feed them more caffeine. Yeah, today's meeting we were told that everyone else loves the multi-screens and pop-up windows telling us were good and we don't because of the repetitive nature of our job. Yeah, okay, whatever. Our jobs suck and thank you for rubbing it in.

Sheesh, I am SUPER grumpy. I woke up this morning and something up between my shoulder blade and spine decided not to work and grab hold of all other muscles so turning and bending my neck is impossible and stretching my arm out pops my spine. That's not normal. I already iced it down and I'm saving more ice for when I go to bed. I haven't decided if I'll stay home if it doesn't clear up tomorrow.

Adventures in Wood Building
I need a plate rack. I have been needing a plate rack for a long time. I found a plan I liked in Great 2x4 Accessories. I bought the materials and then promptly let it get buried.

I uncovered it while cleaning up the sewing debris before the 4th of July long weekend. It still isn't built yet. I had planned to build it while fogging the house. The screws had gone missing, and I discovered this much too late to buy screws. Bought new screws during the week to build it July 10th or 11th. Then after that shopping trip, my parents take my sister in Texas their jigsaw I had planned on borrowing.

Sunday I go buy the jigsaw. Then I wait for it to get a little cooler. Then decide that isn't going to happen and get started. My extension cord is in use charging a car battery without my knowledge it had been borrowed. Okay, rearrange the sawhorses to reach the outlet with the jigsaw cord. Then I decide I should mark the stuff shown on figure two before cutting and my tape measure refuses to roll back up. I pulled all 25 feet of it out completely trying to make it roll back up. Then it starts thundering again, so I pack it all back inside so my wood doesn't get ruined by my leaky porch.

After all that, I double checked my drill bits and found I still need a 3/8 one for yet another step. So that means yet another shopping trip. And I don't know if my back will want me working with power tools.

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The BookWorm

New Month

Don't have any real lofty plans for the month of July. I spent my three day weekend liberating my house from sewing debris and the back bedroom from fleas so I could store the sewing stuff again. And whoever fixed the vacuum valve on Space Bags is my new bestest friend in corporate America. No more losing the cap! And the seal is much better now. And while I was having fun storing blankets, I also went through the garb closet and got rid of a basket's worth of things I don't wear and probably won't ever wear again. Then moved the winter clothes out and now I have room in my wardrobe.

The only bummer news I have is I think the leak is getting worse. *Pulls hair* Second bummer news: I would like to use the back bedroom as a sewing space and a workout space. I only have room for one or the other to be the priority. And even then, it's a tight fit.

When I replace the roof and the back half of the house, I will have to expand the footprint of the house. I need room to put a guest bed somewhere after all.

At the paying job, we're switching computer systems on how we track the money. Many things are breaking. I'm going home at 4pm no matter what; I don't care if we have no money to deposit tomorrow.

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KLCtheBookWorm