Echelon

That title has nothing to do with anything, so don't think too hard about it. So much for a stable schedule. Just when I thought things were working their way into something solid, the schedule decides to get jumble-icious. All for the better, I suppose. Too solid and I'd get even more bored there than I already am. At least there are a couple people there who aren't completely xenophobic. I wouldn't call them friends yet, but they're cool. Wouldn't mind spending a day with 'em. Not much new to report otherwise. Day in, day out, things are the same as ever. Nothing happens in this town. Wait, I shouldn't say stuff like that. Knowing my luck something will happen (and not good, if past experience is any indication). *shudder* I Hope I didn't jinx myself (or others) by saying that.

People always ask other people, "Where do you see yourself in five years?". I never could answer questions like that. I can't plan that far ahead. I, however, am surprised by where I am now. Even back then, I would never have guessed that I'd be where I am now. Which also is a tad disappointing in a way, but that's another story for another day. It does drive home the point that all of our plans are for moot. While I don't read into that saying fully, it reminds people that you basically can't see things coming until they're right on top of you.

Strange how quickly you can go from having boundless energy to completely dog tired. In the blink of an eye, really. Too much to consider and not enough time to do it. Ah, well. I should go to sleep. It's getting early.

Drawl

Well. I guess you could say a lot has happened. Compared to how "much" goes on with me, however, it's still not all that much. I did get that job at Wal-Mart. While it's not much and the pay is much lower than what I was used to, it's still a job. It's easy work, and the days seem to go by a little fast. I don't see myself staying there any longer than a year at most. I don't love the job, but I don't hate it, either. I do know that it's not very fulfilling. I mean, I feel as though my being there accomplishes nothing. A job is a job, though and as it stands I have little right to complain about it.

I've just spent an hour staring into space trying to think of what to type up next. If it's taken me that long, then I'll just turn in for now. Again, not much has happened at all. Huzzah for double time, though. I had to work on Labor Day.

Catalog

Well, I had a job interview the other day. Sure, it's with Wal-Mart (personally, I was aiming for something else), but a job's a job. I'm in no position to simply turn them down. I've already went through both their preliminary and secondary interview plus a drug test. According to my sisters, who both work there by the way, for all intents and purposes that should mean I have the job. Because this isn't exactly the job I was looking for, I'm not really all that excited. I need a job though, so I can't complain. Otherwise, things are the same as they always are. Heat, humidity, lack of rain. I'm not sure, but I think it's been a full three weeks since it has rained here. And I think I've run out of things to put in this one...

Barge

Words...

Never there when I'm about to type up something. Ah, well...

Accountant

(Unrelated stuff regarding look of other blog site). As for the title of this one, it's a new project. Starting with this one and for the next 25 entries, I'll be picking a random word for the title. Each starting with the next letter in the alphabet. Today is "A". Next entry will be "B" and so on. My birthday has come and gone with little fuss. I was surprised at the amount of people that showed up for the party. Sure, it was a double party, but incidentally, my friend has the same birthday I do. With the staggering heat (it got up to at least 103 Fahrenheit) not much could be done outdoors or in, so everyone just gathered around and talked. Because of the heat, there was a lot of cake left, but no ice cream at all. Anything liquid was quickly gone as well.

Enough about the foodstuffs, though. The job hunt is not going very well. The few interviews I get, I either never get called back or (politely, at the least) turned down. I'm not quite sure why, though my appearance may or may not be a factor. For those who don't know, my hair goes nearly to my waist. It used to be longer than that, but I gave it a trim recently. I'm thinking that might be the reason why. It's likely just paranoia or some sort of overreaction, but I am frazzled enough to seriously consider cutting it completely. Not the shaved head thing, but short. If I'm right (can't be sure) then chopping it might be a necessity, although I know more than a few people who would be less than happy if I did. In fact, they'd be much more than unhappy. Weird that my hair is my biggest ordeal at the moment. A year ago at this time, it was fretting over bills and car insurance that never seemed to drop in price despite my good record.

Speaking of cars, mine has hit the fan again. The brakes were acting up as usual and I was nearly out of gas, so I let it sit for a couple weeks. To my surprise the battery died while it was sitting there. It was a new battery, too. So gas, battery, and new brakes (possibly new wheels) along with a myriad of tiny but potentially large problems. There is no way I have the money to get that done. I'm not going to ask for favors either. I owe enough to people as it is now. I've been typing this since about 6:30. It's been over an hour. As you can tell, it takes me a long time to think of coherent banter. Which is somewhat of a contradictory term in and of itself.

Headlines

Maybe I should have made an entry when I got back from the trip (the 10th, is when I got back). It was good to get out of state for a few days. Being cooped up in one place for too long does the same thing to anyone. Regarding the job hunt, I basically have been forced to go for the places that are sure shots. The problem with those "sure shots" stems from the fact that they are all places I wouldn't even consider going to in the first place. For example; Wal-Mart, restaurants, or even my old job. If it must be done, though....

That aside, things are back to how they were before the trip. Having had time to unwind, though, I've gone back to indifference instead of frustration or boredom (bad grammar on this sentence?). At least I know my spelling is good this time. The web browser on this computer has magically gained a spell-checker. Much in the same way mine had before. This computer, however, won't be giving out anytime soon.

A project I was thinking about seeing through, I've had to re-shelve. Well, I didn't have to. I just kinda stopped. Reestablishing old ties takes more work than I would have thought. I'm not saying I'm not up for it, I think it would work a little better if I had more to talk about, though. This drought period isn't a good topic to start with. So's I figure I just wait until things are back on track. Then again, there's probably a reason why I haven't kept in contact with said old contacts. But, whatever. I'll concern myself with it only if I need to.

P.S. I have much more albums on hand than my entries may lead you to believe. The only reason why I repeat so many is that they've stuck in my head and I repeat them until something else pops in mind. Those pops are usually something that I've been repeating before, though. It's a strange loop.

Pluh

It appears I've been turned down for that job I applied for. I suppose that it might be a good thing, though. If it worked out the way I thought it would have, then I wouldn't have been able to go this weekend since I likely would have been either in training, or at least in orientation. Not gonna concern myself about it, for now. I'll just resume the job hunt next week once I get back from the Minnesota trip. Meh. I thought I was going to go into a long ramblathon, but I got nothing. Ah, well.

Activities

Well, not much is happening. I had a job interview the other day, it looks promising. One problem, my dad is getting married again next week (parents split a long time ago. dad's second wedding, this is.) and I was invited. Problem being that it's in Minnesota and I probably won't be back until the 8th or 9th. So if I do get a call back I'll have to tell 'em how long I'll be out, which I hope won't be a problem. If it is, then I'll have to start all over again. That will not be fun.

The rain.

If left unoccupied long enough, my thoughts start swirling with memories of all sorts of things. Everything good and bad. For the most part, I can't pick out any of them to concentrate on. Though with a few of these, the last thing I'd want is concentration. So many memories. Most as vivid as the day they occured. Which leads me to my next point. This past year, out of the 15 or so that I can remember, is the most uneventful year of my entire life. I'm tired of doing nothing, yet thus far, nothing is all that I can get. One should not dwell on the past, however. Even as I consciously look forward, my subconscious keeps looking back. Why that is, I don't know. Any sentence that might invovle the word "try" will likely make that sentence sound like I've given up. It'll take a lot more than this to make me give up. I've just grown weary of this loop.

Beets?

(Note: Posted this two days ago but forgot to mirror it here. Whoops.)

Le sigh. Things are the same now as they were in all of my other posts. Just one difference. That difference being that I don't have to babysit anymore. It's come to my attention that myself being without a job leaves me with far too much free time. I have contracted acute boredom and without my own computer I've no way to regulate it. Street wandering becomes commonplace if I'm in this condition. Of course, it's not really a condition or illness of any sort. All that means is that until someone calls for an interview, I have nothing to do and nowhere to go. Which is very, very, very, very, very, boring. Only thing that's happened was myself going to a movie yesterday. Now, I won't be giving my own review of what I was taken to see. I'll just leave a quick comment. "Pirates of the Carribean: At World's End." Decent movie, but long. Very long. (I've officially used the word "very" too often in this post.) Also of note: I don't know what to type in this thing for today. Concerns abound. Concerns that I think I'll be keeping to myself, however. For now, at least. Something everyone should know (by now) is that if anyone has any questions about anything I type in these entries, simply ask and I'll reply when I can.

Question: When has anyone reading this last used the word "wonderful" in a sentence?

Well, it appears I've rambled myself into a corner again. I'll just stop this entry now before it starts making even less sense.

Border states

It's not like I've forgotten about this. It's more like not very much has happened that's worth writing about. There is one thing though. In a strange turn of events, everyone in this house is suddenly unemployed, and now it's a race against time to find jobs quickly. There's enough saved up to keep us up for a couple months, but things are going to get tight. Basically, I'm done with babysitting and am now forced to find a job as quickly as possible. No browsing around finding something I might like, or finding a friend to work with. I have to take what I can get as soon as I can get it. Regardless of the wages. My deadline is two months, but I'm giving myself a week.

At least I can say that I'll hopefully be getting back out there within the next couple months. Other than that, nothing else happened. I'm certain that the next few months are going to be quite eventful, though.

Well...

I've said this months ago, and now it appears that it's finally happened. My computer has apparently had a stroke and died. I know a stroke is not a laughing matter, but that's pretty much what it looked like when it finally went down. Now everytime I attempt to turn it on, it'll get so far before it comes to a white screen saying it'll need to be restarted. No matter how many times you try, it'll always go back to that same screen. Before that, though, the monitor would go crazy and the screen would apparently freeze in place. The keyboard and mouse would then go dead. If the screen would apparently freeze, then how would I know that they were dead in the first place? Easy. The scroll wheel on my mouse lights up when it's getting power. After the screen froze, the mouse would lose it's little green light, everytime. They both still work on other computers. With that reaction on my computer, however, it just reaffirms that my computer can no longer function. It's had a great run, though it appears I can't get anymore out of it. A few months ago, I mentioned that my entries would get further apart with those minor computer problems. Well, they didn't. Now that my computer is seemingly dead, that statement has come true. I have less ready access to a computer, so my entries will probably get further spaced apart than this one and the one before.

My tax return came in yesterday, though it's nowhere near enough to get a new computer. So now I'll have to get a job and save up big time if I'm going to get a new one. When I say "new one" I mean it. The one I have (or had, I suppose) was second hand. It was a gift from an old teacher of mine, but it was still a computer. I had all of my important files backed up, so I'm not worried about that. The computers that I'm looking at are well over $900. I don't need much in a computer ('net access, music playback and CD burning, maybe some DVD action), though what I'm looking at is still a ways up there. Something I wanted on my old computer that I was thinking about getting for a new one is Adobe Photoshop. That, however, is quite expensive. Effectively doubling, or even tripling, the cost. No matter what I end up doing, it'll be a few months before I'm posting regularly again.

Obviously, I'll be finding ways to post in the meantime. It'll be some time, though. Until then, a temporary farewell and good luck to all.

Speakers, amps, cables, and other sound equipment.

"Hi [Username at other site]! It's been 131 days since you joined [Other site]... won't you support us by [Upgrading account]?"

Last time I've seen that message, it was only at 55 days. Seventy-six days later, I'm still in pretty much the same position. This sucks horribly. With the way everything has been shaping up so far, I'll more than likely still be stuck at home until the school term lets out. This is not my original plan. Nowhere near it. My family has been struggling with money issues for a while. With a two year old and our current situation, a real sitter is out of the question. Just like before, when I finally do get time enough to get out and look for a job, I get stuck with other obligations. I hardly ever have that free time for myself, much less for job searching. This is a conundrum. I don't have a job. I should have all the free time in the world to find a new one. Instead, I'm busier now than I was at my old job, when I was averaging 50+ hours a week. Again, ruts are not fun.

Ouch, yo.

So, yesterday, I was hanging with my brother and his band while they were practicing. Now, my brother likes to show off while he's playing guitar. He tends to flail around, and kick, and the like, while he's playing. Yesterday, while I was watching, he did something I didn't really expect. He thrust his guitar over his shoulder, head first. I didn't know he was going to do that. In other words, I got bashed in the face with the pointy end of a guitar (Lots of pointed edges on his guitars). I was hit on the right corner of my right eye. There's a small cut on my eyelid from the guitar. Had I been standing just a quarter of an inch to my right, the guitar would have hit me dead in the eye, and I would likely be missing one. Because of the cut, and the tears (Tear, in this case. Singular.) that naturally well up when one gets struck in the face with a guitar, everyone thought I really had lost an eye. It didn't really hurt as much as it apparently looked like it had. The damage, like I mentioned before, was minimal. Everyone was amazed that I took the blow without falling over or screaming my head off. My only response was a quick shout from just the surprise of the hit. The only tear was from the initial blow (I think I felt the edge of the guitar go in to my eye socket).

The singer for the band ran off immediately to grab some ice. It was a good thing he did, or else it would have swollen up much more than it has (Bruised even), and the cut would have looked much, much worse. As it is now, my eye is only slightly swollen on the far right side, and the cut is a little hard to see. The swelling causes a little discomfort when I look around, but that's nothing. I've taken hits much worse than that one with even less of a reaction. Examples: accidental self-laceration on a major artery on my ankle, 50 lb. weight dropped onto my neck, getting flung from a bike headfirst into a tree (Truth be told, that one knocked me unconscious and left me with a concussion. Didn't really hurt, though), and other injuries like that. Contemplating such things made me realize that I haven't broken a bone yet. I hope I haven't jinxed myself saying that.

My state tax return has already come in, and it's already gone. It was only around $150, so it didn't last very long. If the state has come in, then the federal shouldn't be too far off. Which is a relief. With it, I can finally get my Jeep back on the road. Anyone notice that my paragraphs get shorter as my entries carry on?

Addendum

Barely got everything filed through that efile business with less than five minutes to spare. If everything goes smoothly, I should be getting a small return in about two weeks. Crisis averted, it seems. :D

Trouble

Today, I'm in a state of near panic. Why? I haven't turned in my taxes yet. I don't think I've even started. What makes this super important is that, last year, I completely forgot to file. I need to file this year or I may be in some real trouble. Here's the kicker: I think I've lost the W-2 that I was supposed to file last year. I have the two from '06, but not the one from '05. I need to get in gear, but I still have to watch the little brother until 3 pm. Leaving less than two hours after that to get all of it filed. Wish me luck. I have to dive headfirst into this.

Groan

I've been trying to come up with something to put in here, these past four days. I still have nothing, so this entry's purpose is mainly to state that I've apparently run out of any sort of inspiration. Under normal circumstances, I can rattle on about absolutely nothing. Technically, this is the same thing. I can't think of anything else, though. Feels as though I've been running in circles, lately. I need to get out of that, but my hands are tied right now. This is getting pretty frustrating...

Symmetrical?

Well, this week seemed to be sailng along smoothly until today. For some reason, today was filled with indirect badness. Sort of beyond description. If anything, I'd describe it as a bad day for no good reason. Well, it might have had something to do with the fact that my little brother, the one I babysit everyday, somehow shoved some small pins into my mom's printer some time ago, and messed it up real bad-like. I didn't know he'd done that until that printer was turned on, which just happened to be today. It wasn't new, by any means. They've had it for a year. I got yelled at because I didn't notice he had put those pins in there. I just thought he'd managed to climb onto the desk. But, whatever. What's done is done. Two year olds always manage to get into things when you're not looking (though, I admit I was preoccupied with something else). Printer is working again, by the way.

Still don't know what's gonna be going on tomorrow. Weather is only slightly better. Still nothing on the job front. I still haven't filed my taxes either (that's gonna be loads of fun). Lately, I haven't been able to find many of my friends. Got me a little weirded out. I need to get to sleep.

Lemon-lime

I'm still absolutely dumbfounded by how quickly the weather has changed. As I type this, it's only 14 degrees outside, and this window isn't very well insulated. If I throw on a jacket, or even a sweater, I'll probably get warm enough to the point where I'll fall asleep again. I definitely need it, but I have a two year old to watch. So that'll have to wait until later today.

After taking a look at the inner workings of my computer, I've concluded that it's simply filled with enough dust and such that it prevents air flow, causing it to overheat so easily. However, there isn't much I can do about it, at the moment. I would have to open the whole thing to get in there, but opening the whole thing would likely be very hard, Not only to open, but to get it back together. Harder than a normal computer, that is. See, mine is an old iMac. Very old. I mean 1999 old. Well, very old in technology terms. It's almost like a safe. But, I can manage with it, so I'm in no hurry to clean it out.

As far as I can tell, there isn't anything planned for the Easter weekend, at the moment. If there is, I haven't heard anything about it. It appears to be too cold to have an egg hunt for the little ones. They can probably just have it indoors, though. Anyone else have any plans for this weekend?

Profiles and other odds and ends.

Wow, that's a weird title. I don't know where that one came from, just to let you know. One thing I've noticed about other's pages, whether it be here, on Myspace, or other places like that, most everyone has highly personalized pages. Some look pretty good. Some are a little too stylized. Some are just plain awful. With all of them, it shows how much time they put into it (some put in more than others). As you've noticed, mine is quite simple compared to most others. All I've done was change the font and adjust the colors a bit. Now, with each of my accounts that has customizations such as the one's here, I always have aspirations to make it much more complex. When it comes down to it, however, I usually end up just sticking with the first look that works. That one would also be the most simplistic, most of the time. Not exactly sure why that is. Note: I would use more red colors, usually, but they kind of hurt your eyes after a while. I usually just stick with blues, more often than not.

This creates a problem with some of the ideas I have floating around. I've always had trouble drawing what I see. Some of the ideas I have are almost hopelessly complex when compared to my limited abilities. Which is why I haven't drawn any of them out. Wait, I've explained that before...

Weather is suddenly cold again. As little as two weeks ago, there were temps in the upper 60's and low 70's (great stuff). Now it's back below freezing, and there's snow and ice again. With the way the weather's been progressing, however, this should be the last time it does this until late autumn. No one can precisely predict the weather, though. So there is still room for surprises.

Normally, I would put an update about things going on with me here. Update-free, this time. Yeah, that little is going on.