Saturday, July 7, 2001
Quota! Quota! Quota!
Must post this quickly. I have this stupid song that I'm addicted to - Jellystone - Money. It came on the radio on the way home from the movies tonight, and I started to sing at the top of my lungs to it, much to the dismay of the others in the car. "Ashley honey, shh..."
My younger bro dyed his hair blue. Wonders will never cease. Okay, I suppose I'm done now. I need to go get some gum.
Posted by Ashley @ 11:51 PM PST [Link]
So it is almost time to close my till, and my PIC comes and asks me if he smells like smoke. I tell him no. He's happy with that answer and then me being the inquisitive person I am ask him why. He tells me he went to this bar, well, uhm strip club up the street from my job and my eyes widen and I burst out, not thinking of course, that it was the same place I hang out and that I know all the dancers, bar tenders and bouncers personally. He does a double take and realises that yes, I am not old enough to be drinking. So he promises not to blow my cover and I promise not to tell his wife. We then enter into a long conversation about how incredibly gorgeous Angelina Jolie is.That, m'dears is probably the most exciting thing that has happened to me all week.
I was cleaning out my walle during my break and came upon the tattered relic of a phone number someone gave me earlier this week. I am tempted to call him, but I don't know if he will quite remember me because he was jut a bit intoxicated and my mom also told me not to get "involved" with customers. Things like that don't happn to me on a regular basis, and I know I will think this to death and probably never call him because I am odd like that. I have als been toying with the idea of emailing my ex-bf, but I don't know if I want to go through that situation again.
Well, I must sleep. Nite all
Posted by Meghan @ 11:36 PM PST [Link]
Sorry I haven't posted yet today Ernie, though I'm not sure why I've been concerned about it when you're not even here. I do hope you're having a good time though. I decided what to do for Tony today. A friend from college came in the store today and was telling me that her parents have a cabin up on Orcas Island. I asked her if I could go up there with her sometime. Her family is hardly even using the place this summer. She said if I wanted to I could go up any time I want. So that's settled.
When I was a kid my parents use to take me and my brother camping on Orcas and I haven't been there since. It's going to be fun to go and have a nice (and cheap) weekend getaway with Tony. He's coming home tomorrow. Anyways. I worked this morning, came home, turned on the television and passed out on the sofa. I slept for six hours. I guess I needed it. I'm going to have a hard time getting to sleep at any decent hour tonight though.
The news is on in the other room and someone punched Mayor Schell in the face! He's in the hospital with fractured facial bones and maybe a concussion. The guy who did it was protesting police brutality. As if we even have that here anyway. That shooting a couple months ago was a little wierd, but even if they did make a mistake they were only trying to do their job.
Since everybody is talking about music I have to say I don't know a lot of the bands mentioned. I mean I've heard of some of them, but I don't think I know their music. Lately I've been listening to a lot of Sarah, ABBA Gold since I saw Bjorn Again the other night, Dido and this band Nicole gave me for my birthday.
Nicole taught English in Tokyo for a year and she's a little obsessed with them even though she's not Japanese. It's these two girls named Ami and Yumi called Puffy Amiyumi. Go see their site because I just found it and it's really cool. They make me laugh even though only one song is in English. Nicole told me what some of the songs are about, but I don't remember. I wish I spoke a foreign language sometimes.
I've been a bit of a slob with Tony not being here. He doesn't really live here, he just stays here a lot since my place is a little nicer and closer to everything. I should put Puffy on and clean up the place before Nicole gets here. We're going to go dance tonight at Polly Esthers. Maybe I'll pop in for a bit when I get home though it will probably be late. Philo, I'm sorry that happened. A hug to you, David, Ted and especially Pete. Have fun tonight everybody.
Posted by Rachael @ 10:54 PM PST [Link]
My boyfriend called and made up with me. I probably should quit talking about him. It was basically just "Ashley, I'm sorry, I love you, please don't be mad at me..." and I melted. I'm such a sucker. Either way, I just got in. Imagine that, me, out, on a Saturday night! I went out for dinner to a semi-fancy restaurant, and then to see Swordfish - which would have been really good if they didn't bullshit their way through all of the computer sequences. It pissed me off that they claimed a bunch of stuff was possible, and added about 42 buzzwords to do with computers into every single goddamn sentence.
Work was okay. I had another irate customer, one who made me call infantwear three times to see if she could get the discount on a sale that ended three weeks ago. "403, paging infantwear, infantwear please call 403..." Sigh. I hate people. Bill was there today too, apparently we had the same shift... meow. Yum. He left my register alone today though, because I didn't have a buddy. When my manager came up to me after I'd cashed out for the day, I got praised and told that I "...worked the cash better than girls that have been here seven months." Thank you, I love you too.
I suppose I'll post again before midnight, we shall see. I have a quota to reach, damnit.
Posted by Ashley @ 10:45 PM PST [Link]
Being a part of Puppetmaster is rather strange, isn't it. I was thinking about the test tomorrow and started going through the "What ifs". What if I don't make the grade and am escorted off the island? I have my ideas, but that doesn't mean they're right. What if Shea gets the boot and she's not around to growl about her caffiene addiction? What if we never get more info about the mystery woman who was scratching Bob's back after Bob said he was single? What if Rachael's ejected and I never get to find out about what might transpire when she picks Tony up at the airport? Is he going to be willing to kiss a smoker again? In her case I know I would be.
For the record, that was nothing more than online reverie. When I honestly take a look out across Puppetland there really isn't anyone I'd honestly hit on in real life. As for the guys you're a pretty goodlooking bunch, but I'm not into men who aren't into, well, other men. Not at all. Zip. Zero. If I'm going to throw the ball I'm going to find someone who is playing on my team. In this case the only one who does is James and he's too young. While some older men in the gay community might look at such a thing as a major score, the same way some straight guys give each other a high five for bagging the high school virgin, that's not my style. A general rule of thumb for me age wise is give or take five years, possibly ten depending on who it is. That means there are zero contenders to be the genuine object of my affection here on the lower deck.
As for the ladies above you're either all too young as well, or you're not into guys either. It's great having Nancy in the house. We have things in common and I enjoy her in a way that guarantees I will be logging on to Nancy.com frequently in the future, providing such a place and person actually exists. As for Puppetmaster being a queerfest I disagree. Nancy, James and myself are the only card carrying contestants from what I can tell and a possible membership for Eva. The rest of you talking about queer life and gay issues seem to only be trying to create a smokescreen. Why? Well, I think we all know why.
I'm not a shark by any means. Ideally I'd like to meet the right guy, find a house with a slanted floor and not bring our mutual pets together due to allergies and go cohabitate somewhere in sheer utter bliss. Until that happens I don't intend to sit around and wait though either. I am, after all, a hot blooded, living, breathing American male with needs I fully intend to get met from time to time. For instance, Mr. 4th of July and I may one day stop playing phone tag and meet for dinner. That would be sweet.
It's not to say I don't have thoughts about sleeping with women. I do. When I was 15 years old I was abducted and raped by this man. At the time I was very involved in the church and was having ideas about other men and in some warped twisted way I thought this was God's way of punishing me.
If I hadn't been thinking about kissing another boy that school teacher wouldn't have locked me in his car and drove away. Years later in therapy I figured out that blaming myself for being a sexual assault victim is just plain wrong. Therapy rocked, but a leftover by product of it was realizing that my psychosocial sexual development had been severely interrupted. I have no doubt in my mind today that I am fond of other men, but maybe I would have been into women if I'd been given the chance to progress like a normal human being. I think about women at times. The idea of it is something I do find exciting, but the only girl I've ever had sex with was back when I used to drink, was drunk out of my mind after winning a Quarters championship, and I let her crash in my bed since A) she needed a place to sleep that night and B) she had cleaned up someone else's vomit who thought my bed was the toilet. I don't remember much about having sex with her, other than the fact that we did three times between bedtime Saturday night and crawling out together Sunday afternoon. Hmmm. I hadn't planned on going there right now.
I had class all day and got home awhile ago. I could tell you all about that, but I think I've revealed more than enough for today. As for the Belle & Sebastian question: I love some Belle & Sebastian songs, while others I find annoying. Radiohead: I liked Kid A. Question: Why is the Pete's Ernkitten and Eva's devilchildren pix not loading for me. Am I the only one?
Ernie and Belinda are off camping someplace making it sound like they were being forced at gunpoint. Who on Earth has to go camping? Bertie is missing in action and I'm missing her commentary. I like her. I actually like all of you, to varying degrees. Tomorrow one of us will be gone and at the risk of sounding a little mushy - when that happens I may shed a tear, especially if its me. I'm starting to feel a bit of a bond with you all, even knowing one of you doesn't exist. That will, inevitably, be a shame.
Posted by Philo @ 08:36 PM PST [Link]
Weird friggin' night.
First, I went to go see Cats & Dogs. There's a few hours of my life I will never get back. I would rather have spent the night watching a 24 hour play loop of Ishtar, it was that bad. However, the hundred or so ankle biters in the audience thoroughly enjoyed the film. Thoroughly as in instant birth control.
Now for the completely weird part, I had some sort of random blog reader encounter. I was washing my hands in the theater bathroom when one of the employees wandered over and said, "Oh my gosh, are you Shea?" I live in the same town I went to college in, and so I thought it may have been one of the freshman around during my short stint as part of the 'in crowd' [that fleeting 15 seconds]. So I completely faked it and gave that big nodding smile. "Sure, nice ta meet'cha. Let me guess, Big Sister/Little Sister? What year were you?" She got this puzzled look on her face, and then she asked, "What? Aren't you on PuppetMaster? You look just like her picture." The next sound was my jaw totally hitting the floor. I mumbled a bit and pretty much sprinted out of there with wet hands. I have that weird "Ohmigod, Clark Kent is Superman!" feeling. Is my S showing? I feel so naked. Oh wait, I am. No worries then.
So, are we supposed to cram for this quiz or what?
Posted by Shea @ 07:56 PM PST [Link]
Yeah, I'm still up. I didn't even go out tonight. After four nights drinking in a row, it was time for a rest. I did, however, go for a cup of peppermint tea and a long chat with the nice Canadian upstairs. The nice Canadian upstairs currently lives with this lunatic woman who charges her a small fortune for an unfurnished room, treats her like shit, and won't allow her mother to come and visit. Lunatic woman is currently away for a few days and the nice Canadian has succeeded in finding a new home, so she's going to escape tomorrow. The best thing about the lunatic woman is she appears to have a phobia of tunafish, so she ought to just disappear, take her stuff, and leave a few open cans sitting in the kitchen. She's even considered sewing bits of tuna into the lunatic woman's bedsheets. That would be fun.
"You know, this is going to sound weird, but if you had five people working steadily for three days, you could fill the entire room with tuna."
This is, in fact, the least offensive of the nice Canadian's flatshare nightmares since she moved over here. It seems that London is particularly full of nutters - among others, she lived with a psycho bloke who MICROWAVED BIRDS, and a woman who was covered in parasites and lived ankle-deep in old newspaper. She definitely needs to get writing those memoirs. Tonight I also learned about the love of her life, who she caught shagging his birth mother. Really, could I make this up if I tried?
Nancy: good luck with the cat/dog interface. If it all goes horribly wrong, you can always run away with me. I like your idea of a post-puppet blog. I'm there.
Ted: you like JTB even when they were Jawbreaker? Is there a living soul alive who actually thinks JTB are better? Truth be known, Jawbreaker are my favourite band. Shame I never got to see them. Now Radiohead, I could live without, but I don't really care either way. Although "Creep" was my favourite song back in the teen angst years.
I got an e-mail from aforementioned ex-girlfriend someone or other, who's already addicted to PM, wishing me to inform you that:
(as far as I know) haggis is actually oatmeal, suet, other bits of grain that's lying around, minced sheep liver, all mixed together in a bag that is the sheeps stomach. therefore is easy to make veggie haggis, you just leave out the liver and put it in something that isn't a stomach.
Also, it is absolutely delicious, especially with mashed turnip & potato.
OK, so nobody wants to write to the weirdo in the Ukraine. Oh well. I'm leaving you with one last item from our kitchen wall. This is myself and Flatmate 2 in the Snake Temple in Penang, Malaysia. As soon as we went in we got draped with snakes and they took our picture, and we felt like we had to buy it, and it's only the cheesiest picture ever taken, and I put it up in the kitchen purely so we could embarrass ourselves. Then the boys found these devil children to put on our heads. I think they were in an ad for Kodak. I mean seriously, would you want to take pictures of children like these?
(I hope this works. Tough luck if it doesn't. I'm going to bed.)
'Night, all.
Posted by Eva @ 07:39 PM PST [Link]
Don't really have much time to post today, but I will say this.
Eva and Nancy - I hope you two are real. I would gladly visit your sites daily if you are.
Everyone else - ready for that test tomorrow?
Rachael - you're absolutely gorgeous.
Alright, that's about all the time I've got for tonight .
Sleep well all.
Posted by Pete @ 05:33 PM PST [Link]
Fast food, yeah. Every three months or so, I allow myself to forget just exactly what it is I hate about fast food, but usually it only takes one visit to remind me. Coincidentally, yesterday was the day, and I dined on a Whopper and fries. Mmm, cardboard and ketchup on sponge bread, accompanied by hot sticks of starch'n'grease. The iced tea was okay. I'm definitely (urp) good for the next three months though.
After all that advice to Ashley about how she should be nicey-nicey to the customers, I started wondering what I would do in her shoes if I wanted to really stick it to someone. (I'm still not clear on what kind of a place it is that sells both cigars and Martha Stewart bedsheets, but that's beside the point.) Ashley, do you get to work the sales floor at all or are you stuck at the registers? On the floor you can always misdirect customers to the wrong part of the store, or make sure the most banged-up item in stock makes its way into their hands... but where they're handing you cash your options are limited unless you're really skilled at quick-changing.
Ted--True, Disney could've handled the whole Gay Days thing better...but that was a long time ago, relatively speaking; they've come a long way. They were one of the first companies to make spouse-equivalent benefits available to the partners of gay employees; that counts for a lot in my book. No, if you're going to brand Disney as evil, brand them as evil for their relentless homogenization and sanitation of children's entertainment, and their assimilation/mangling of all source material from classical myth to Chinese romantic poetry to historical fact.
You know, I'm not particularly put off by the idea of one of us being fictional. If you want to get right down to it, nobody here is really showing us a TRUE reflection of themselves. I hope to spend six or eight weeks interacting with you all, but at the end of that time I don't think I'll be able to say I know you, not really. Everybody has a constructed voice. I know I do. Some voices are more transparent, some more detailed, and some more contrived than others. One of us just has two voices. And a fake name and picture.
Okay, I can go out tonight (by myself, since I haven't made any plans), or I can go rent a movie or something, or I can do my dishes, laundry, and general tidying up which hasn't been done in forever and is threatening to turn my home into a Federal disaster area. I wonder which it's gonna be. At least I know I'll be keeping it real.
Posted by David @ 05:19 PM PST [Link]
See, if they hadn't said we could only post three times a day, I probably would have stopped at two today. Power of suggestion.
I'm taking my dog over to meet my girlfriend's cats tonight. Wish me luck. We're moving in together at the end of this month, so we figure it's time for the kids to meet.
The dog loves cats. Unless they run from her. Then she thinks they're ... I don't know ... toys? dinner?
The larger of her cats, whose name not-so-coincidentally rhymes with Satan, likely will not run. The dog should worry about being dinner. The other cat, Cleo (Wasn't that the cat in Pinocchio?), will probably hide all evening.
Anyway, have a great night, everyone. Send good cat/dog vibes. See you tomorrow.
Oh, and sorry about the MIDI in the link in that last post. I had my speakers off. I didn't know.
Posted by Nancy @ 04:04 PM PST [Link]
Well, one post from me. I've had this overwhelming urge not to log on today. I didn't get up unil 2pm my time, and then I sat in bed all day and watched Bikini Summer on E!. I ate and read and ate and read more. I felt really poetic or something. I sat in the window and read up until now. Right now I'm listening to Alien Ant Farm. It's a pretty damn good CD.
It's horribly hot right now. My dad went to go get like a friend's son or something to cut our yard. I'm really glad that he did, because I would have died. It's been like 90 degrees here at 9am. Thats why I'm determined to never have grass when I grow up. I want concrete.
This CD is rocking.
Now, I just want to comment on the game. I have no idea who the puppet or puppetmaster is. I'm blank, and I think that will cost me. Nancy and I are the only ones to get visited from LaPuppetMaster. That means either were wildly popular and linked everywhere on the net, or are just the easiet to find. Either way I'm fucked it seems.
Peter is my pimp. He talks about me. I'd do him. Yes I would.
This AAF CD is really good. And I want to go to the movies today.
Posted by James @ 02:35 PM PST [Link]
Good morning everybody. And how is everyone doing? Omg, Ernie and Bel are out camping for the weekend. Its like when your parents went on vacation! *starts jumping on Ernie’s bed*
Damn it all, I’m still waiting for my prof to return one of my pieces so that I can submit it for this upcoming show. And the drop off date is tomorrow! Lazy bastard…
Eva--you HATE Belle and Sebastian??? Well, I can understand, they really do only have like one sound. But what about Radiohead??? You’ve gots to like radiohead. Anyone else here with me on this? I do like Jets to Brazil tho, even when they were Jawbreaker. If I had saw those strangers in my kitchen half-naked, I would have been like, "WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU AND WHY ARE YOU IN YOUR UNDERWEAR"! followed up by… "YOU BETTER NOT HAVE EATEN MY RAMEN"!!! Anyways, I do hope that you’re real too.
David and Philo–-Yes, Wal-Mart is evil. But another horrible company is the evil kingdom itself… Disney. Did you guys know that when Disney found out that the gay community decided to have a Gay Day at Disney World, Disney actually put up a sign at their front gates that said "There will be Homosexuals at the park today"??? so fucked up….
Rachael–-damn girl, I wouldn’t have just left, I would have waited so that I could kick his gonads in! But I’m glad to hear that you’re ok tho.
I just found out that my friend’s mom decided to kick them out of her house today. So if you’re reading this guys, I hope things go ok with you.
Posted by Ted @ 02:17 PM PST [Link]
Apparently, not going into work on grounds of general apathy doesn't count towards a sick day. Drat. Eight hours with two women, who have no sense of humor. None. I just get blank stares a lot. Then we order lunch...which by the way, I will complain about. Do they have carry out places near us that have things like grilled chicken, or nice looking salads on their menu? No. Just fast food. Fast food like: "Nice tour of the stomach there, and the small intestines are lovely. Really, thanks for the invite, but I'm. Just. Passing. Through."
And that, folks, is potty humor at it's purest.
It's still beautiful out, so I'm going to do the whole depower and walk around outside thing. People are starting to say I'm so white I repel the sun. :/ So, off to be a frickin' ray of sunshine. If I'm lucky I may weasel my way to the movies tonight.
Posted by Shea @ 02:16 PM PST [Link]
MY cousin, who is a PIC at the place I work, called me at 8:30 this moring telling me I was late for work. I told him I didn't have to go in until 3 and he said no. I jumped out of bed got ready in 5mins, and put down my phone because I left it off the hook, and he called back having trouble talking because of laughing so hard. I hung up on him, pulled my comforter over my haed, and went back to bed. I have a terribly boring life. I can't part tonight because I work tomorrow and I don't like driving late at night. Instead I am going to come home, check my eamil and then climb into my bed and sleep until early Sunday morning.
Peter- I go to school in Ohio and I live on the west coast. Also, I post three times a day, they just are i the morning since I work late.
Blah, I lost my train of thought since my cousin came by and was making more fun of me. :)
Posted by Meghan @ 01:51 PM PST [Link]
I've got no strings to hold me down, to make me fret, or make me frown
Well, Ashley, I don't think you're fictional anymore. Which leaves me back at ground zero, although I know a couple of you are real through snoopage. And I'm agreeing with you, Ashley, that I'm getting attached to everyone, and I'm going to hate losing anyone and/or leaving. It's kind of sick that we're going to peel off the real people one by one so we can all get nice and attached to the puppet.
Maybe the real people could be added to the commentary blog or maybe we could have our own post-puppet blog where we could continue to speculate and kvetch.
I agree with David that y'all's musical tastes make me feel like a geezer. The only Belle and Sebastian I know are cartoon characters.
Ooo, Eva. We have a mutual admiration society thing happening here, because you're the only one I'd go for, too. Nice to be the object of a crush, since those Survivor Blog 2 people drooling over the rest of the women here mention me only as "too old."
Maybe I look familiar because you've read my site. Ernie assured me no one reads it. Just kidding. But he did say no one would recognize me. (Meanwhile, I'm getting e-mail that basically says, "A-hahahaha, saw you on Puppetmaster. They think you're fictional!")
Hmm. Was that a pathetic attempt at realism or ... the truth? You decide. Oh, and I love the neighbor complaint letters on the wall. I have gotten some doosies from Richard, although I do admit the parrot death episode was very bad.
Posted by Nancy @ 01:45 PM PST [Link]
Morning kids! Oh, I love sleeping in more than anything. It's around noon, and I DID NOT WAKE UP UNTIL NOW. Of course, I went to bed at five am, but hey, gothy me is like that. I'm actually looking forward to work today. I found out yesterday that the hand scanner is good when used as a gun. When work's slow, I mean.
It's funny. I hate the idea of one of you being fake, because I like reading what all of you have to say. But, in a month, we will have revealed to us...bah. Let's just make July go reeeeeally slowly, okay? And, but damn, it's almost a third over.
My boyfriend and I had a bit of a fight. I hadn't seen him all day, and he pretty much ignored me last night to work on a computer problem... his webcam's drivers weren't working in Linux, or something, so he wrote his own, which didn't really work, and therefore he ignored me to fix it which was a REALLY BAD IDEA... Ahem, yes, I'm attention hungry. But he's been trying to fix this damn thing for weeks, and with his extent of computer knowledge... If it's not fixed by now, he is wasting his time. No tech could do it. But, yeah, stupid thing to get pissed off over, but that's me. We talked this morning for all of five minutes and then he told me that he was going to "go out for the night" and "had to go". I let him. Maybe he'll really miss my scathing temper and biting remarks. Or not.
Okay, it's about that time again... yup, you guessed it. I have to go to work. Yay! The gods love me for scheduling me both Friday AND Saturday afternoons and evenings. At least I have tomorrow off.
Posted by Ashley @ 12:24 PM PST [Link]
Thanks, folks, for hoping I'm real. Makes me feel all fuzzy.
I don't know about sleuthing. I only know for sure who one of you is, and I know I'm not the only one to have figured that out. But who cares - let's get to the more interesting stuff. For my part, I'm only attracted to one of the photos (and the personality to match), and that's Nancy. But like I said before, her photo looks oddly familiar, and I can't help thinking that it was just taken from a magazine or something and I have a crush on a fictional character. Damn.
I must admit, I've never tasted haggis, be it vegetarian or not. I once asked a friend of mine what exactly it was (I could never remember) and he answered, "It's basically a sheep stuffed inside its own stomach." Yum! It is perhaps fitting to note here that my city is famous (um, in an underground sort of way) for its deep-fried Mars bars. No, I never tried those either. "Eva," my friends remind me when they want me to eat something dubious, "you'd eat it if it was four chicken hearts on a skewer." But the chicken heart incident was different. I was conned.
The ErnKitten is already living on our kitchen wall. Flatmate 1 fell in love with it. Ernie, I think that means you can be afraid. If you were ever to come round here he would no doubt jump on you and force you to drink pints of vodka until you passed out on the kitchen floor. If it isn't already wildly apparent, the boy is the Duracell bunny.
Anyway, he thought it would go perfect with the picture of a bald cat that I hadn't noticed before. I love our kitchen decor. It's probably because I only have a handful of things stuck up on my own walls, since this is such a gorgeous flat compared to the student-esque homes I had before, so I was trying to make it look like a proper grown-up person lived in here. (I guess I failed. You can't even find the sofa or the table because they're buried under so much junk.)
So we decorated the kitchen instead. It started when I put up a couple of band posters in an attempt to deflect the hard house that's forever pumping out of that room, and it all spiralled out of control. Now we've got arty black and white photos of Flatmate 2 in a state of undress with boyfriend, Vivienne Westwood's head on top of a t-shirt that reads MY NAME IS DAVID. I AM AN ADDICT, complaint letters from the neighbours, a hideous poster of Ewan MacGregor with a big cheesy grin which I stole off a wall in Japan, a bit of tvgohome.com, that sort of thing. My Jets To Brazil poster had a newspaper picture added to it which is referred to by everyone as "the face of justice": a flight attendant who had to put up with an abusive passenger or something, and successfully sued. This is linked to Jets To Brazil only in Flatmate 1's head because he keeps thinking they're called Cheap Flights To Ibiza.
I want to leave you now with a personal ad which I found in a gay magazine and added to the kitchen collection.
CAN I SEARCH FOR YOU?
I want I shall find the person to which one it is pleasant. I the post-graduate student. I attend by a light in chips. I can work in Europe. The parents live in Petersburg and I in Odessa. Write.
It finishes up with an e-mail address in the Ukraine. I've always wanted to e-mail this person in their own unique style of writing. Anyone interested in helping me compose it?
Posted by Eva @ 12:23 PM PST [Link]
It's a beautiful day. Why am I not outside getting a sunburn?
DAMN but there's a lot of wordage to catch up on. 'S a good thing we're limited to three posts a day--this is a freakin' novel we've got going here. Alright, where to start: Serious props to Philo for exposing Wal-Mart for the eeeeevil that it is, and saving me the effort. With due respect to Shea, please please for the love of Mike PLEASE don't give these people any of your money.
Ashley--Most customers who cop an attitude are actually trying to get you to cop one back at them; this makes them feel self-important and justified in complaining about the surly clerks. If you kill them with kindness right off, most "scenes" never gain enough momentum to get off the ground. Just make sure that you coordinate your breaks with Bill (or whoever else is flirt-worthy on your shift) so you can laugh about the worst of them in the break room.
Rachael--He stood you up? Loser. (Yes, this is from the guy who brought pals along on his date, but I was on time dammit!) I've got nothing against your working for Starbucks, though I don't much care for the company itself. I notice that the coffe houses you cite as thriving Seattle competition are all chain franchises though. What happened to Mom & Pop's Cuppa Joe?
Eva--Next time random Swedes in your flat need help getting their luggage downstairs, volunteer to help. (Your windows do open wide enough, don't they?) Not that it matters, as I've decided you must be the puppet simply because you mention vegetarian haggis. Who ever heard of such a ridiculous thing?
Everybody--your tastes in music are making me feel like an old coot. Y'know what I've had running through my head for the past week? "Hey Jude." And I'm gonna miss John Lee Hooker....
Aw geeze. I just got an e-mail from a good friend of mine who was in a car accident a couple days ago. He's fine (though he had to go to the hospital) but his car was completely ruined. He says he feels incredibly stupid--he just looked to the left and then plowed into a telephone pole at full speed. I hope he'll be okay emotionally, financially etc. as well as physically.
Posted by David @ 09:47 AM PST [Link]
Yesterday was a weird day. They're getting rid of 10% of our staff at work, although we are, excuse me, understaffed already. Because we need even more profit. The intranet message board reads like a yard sale with everyone trying to unload furniture and cars. Everyone got a cushy buyout, but damn. This weekend there are maybe 6 going-away parties.
Yeah, I'm just grumpy because I wasn't offered the buyout.
Anyway, some other thoughts and replies:
Pete - Extremely cute ErnKitten!
Rachael - Yeah, hon, 30 minutes is 10 minutes longer than I would have waited for that guy. Where does he get off being mad at you? Oh well. And I agree: I hope Eva is real so I can keep reading her.
James - LaPuppetMaster visited me, too. Honestly, I don't think it's anyone from this game. I think it's some queen who recognized both of us. He is all about the drama. Unless he's you, in which case, um, sorry about the queen thing.
Ted - Oh, man? A Clockwork Orange. Well, I saw most of that movie from between my fingers in about 1983, so I guess I can forgive myself for not remembering the Beethoven reference.
Philo - Yeah, Target and Kmart also sell unmarked, edited CDs. It just ain' right. ... Saw this guy in my office yesterday who looked enough like your sculpted Greek self that I just about went over and asked him if his name was Philo. Was that you having going-away cake with the big boss?
I probably won't be around much this weekend but I'll try to stop in here and there. Cheers!
Posted by Nancy @ 07:11 AM PST [Link]
So. Early this morning, Flatmate 2's boyfriend tells him, "There are three strangers sitting in the kitchen, and they're in their pants." (I don't need to spell it out that that means underwear, do I?) Apparently, this is a good thing, although you could have fooled me. Gradually my flatmates emerge to have a look. They then, gleefully and barefoot, help the Random Scandinavian Backpackers carry their luggage downstairs. As an encore, Flatmate 2's boyfriend carries Flatmate 1 (waving his toes at pensioners) to the shop. Next, Flatmate 2's boyfriend, who is assistant manager in a hotel, decides he is not going to work today, he is not calling in sick, he is just never going back. Flatmate 2 tries to point out the massive stupidity in this, they have a fight, and the boyfriend stomps off home.
Meanwhile, shopaholic Flatmate 1 has remembered that the debt collectors are due because of course he never made any phone calls to talk his way out of the mess he got himself into, so now we're under strict instructions to not answer the door to anyone in a suit.
And why am I just telling you about the flatmates? Because I've got my own crisis unfolding and I don't wanna talk about it just yet.
Pete, that picture is truly scary.
I like Jesus Jones, though admittedly I haven't listened to them for ages. I hate Belle and Sebastian.
Posted by Eva @ 06:14 AM PST [Link]
I woke to Fatboy Slim's Weapon of Choice running through my head. However, I managed to resist dancing through the apartment to the kitchen. While drinking orange juice right out of the carton in the kitchen, I glanced out the window and noticed my neighbor sitting in his car and staring up at me. It took another full minute for me to realize that if I could see him, then he could see me. So, I took my naked self back to the bedroom and waited for my brain to wake the hell up. Nothing like being the morning's entertainment to make you feel >this< big.
Posted by Shea @ 03:10 AM PST [Link]
What a wierd night. When I was getting ready for my sort of a date I was surprised just how much effort I wanted to put into looking great. I mean here I am meeting a guy for a beer I don't know at all and I'm making sure I have just the right look. I ended up wearing a dress I found thrifting that I never wear just because I thought it made me look a little retro yet extra girly. Anyways. I went over to Linda's and ended up getting there early. I was so nervous I actually bummed a smoke off this girl who goes to my gym. Five minutes after, still no sign. At twenty minutes neither he or Nicole has shown up. At half an hour I grab my things and leave. Walking home, a few blocks from Linda's at this point, I hear "Rachael!" I turn around and there he is running after me looking annoyed. As soon as I saw him I remembered everything clearly too. I didn't remember him that much because he wasn't my type. He looked very different dressed down though. I wanted to go back to Linda's and talk to him, but the jerk had left me sitting there and he didn't even apologize. He was upset with me for not waiting for him, can you believe that? I just left him standing there and walked home. Get this, I keep finding myself wanting to turn around and go talk to him. As if I even knew where he was at this point. Is that stupid?
I called Nicole on her cell and she was waiting for me at Bauhaus. How that got mixed up I have no idea but I told her to wait and I'd be right there. Did I mention I quit smoking six months ago? I stopped at the corner store and bought a pack on the way and made Nicole move upstairs to the smoking section while I told her everything. I mean there wasn't even that much to tell other than the fact that I feel like I'm freaking out right now. Why did I even agree to meet him? And why am I even concerned about how he feels about me leaving him like that? I don't even know this guy.
I have to say Nicole is really a good friend. For the record she didn't lecture me at all, not even about the cigarettes. We ended up going over to her place and watching tv and eating popcorn. At her place I was fine, but now that I'm home I've been sitting here smoking and trying to figure out what I'm going to do. As if I even need to do anything. God I'm neurotic. I'll be glad when Tony's back. I have to pick him up at the airport on Sunday and I think I'm going to do something special for him. I don't know what yet, but something. And now it's late and I have to work soon and I promised myself I'd be in bed early tonight. I can't until I read what everybody had to say today though. At least Saturdays are my Friday.
Posted by Rachael @ 01:35 AM PST [Link]
What a wierd night. When I was getting ready for my sort of a date I was surprised just how much effort I wanted to put into looking great. I mean here I am meeting a guy for a beer I don't know at all and I'm making sure I have just the right look. I ended up wearing a dress I found thrifting that I never wear just because I thought it made me look a little retro yet extra girly. Anyways. I went over to Linda's and ended up getting there early. I was so nervous I actually bummed a smoke off this girl who goes to my gym. Five minutes after, still no sign. At twenty minutes neither he or Nicole has shown up. At half an hour I grab my things and leave. Walking home, a few blocks from Linda's at this point, I hear "Rachael!" I turn around and there he is running after me looking annoyed. As soon as I saw him I remembered everything clearly too. I didn't remember him that much because he wasn't my type. He looked very different dressed down though. I wanted to go back to Linda's and talk to him, but the jerk had left me sitting there and he didn't even apologize. He was upset with me for not waiting for him, can you believe that? I just left him standing there and walked home. What is wierdest is I kept finding myself wanting to turn around and go talk to him. As if I even knew where he was at that point. Does that sound stupid?
I called Nicole on her cell from my place and she was waiting for me over at Bauhaus. How that got mixed up I have no idea but I told her to wait and I'd be right there. Did I mention I quit smoking six months ago? I stopped at the corner store and bought a pack on the way and made Nicole move upstairs to the smoking section while I told her everything. I mean there wasn't even that much to tell other than the fact that I felt like I was freaking out. Why did I even agree to meet him? Jerk. And why am I even concerned about how he feels about me leaving like that? I don't even know the guy.
I have to say Nicole is a good friend. For the record she didn't lecture me at all, not even about the smoking. We ended up going over to her place for tv and popcorn. It was just what I needed. At her place I was fine, but now that I'm home I've been sitting here smoking and trying to figure out what I'm going to do. As if I even need to do anything. God I'm neurotic. I'll be glad when Tony's back. I have to pick him up at the airport on Sunday and I think I'm going to do something special for him. I don't know what yet, but something. And now it's late and I have to work soon and I promised myself I'd be in bed early tonight. I can't until I read what everybody had to say today though. At least Saturday is my Friday.
Posted by Rachael @ 01:14 AM PST [Link]
Friday, July 6, 2001
For those not in the United States you aren't missing a thing if you never set foot in a Wal-Mart. They're way up at the top of the list of evil. I haven't even mentioned the censorship yet either. Maybe Starbuckeroo Rachael found your Wal-Mart luvfest comforting, but I have to admit it's damn hard for me to get upset with that girls poor career planning. Add me to the Rachael crush list. I hope she's ok after meeting that guy. Not that concerned, though I was hoping she would have given us a heads up by now.
Thanks a lot Ernie. Sorry, no tranny hooker found here boys and girls. Ernie, that's how horrible vicious rumors get started. I did live in a neighborhood where tranny hookers were on my corner every night of the week for a year though. I miss that. In a related note I do occasionally put on women's clothing, heels and a wig and lipsynch songs for supplemental money. That's not prostitution though, that's entertainment. Furthermore I wouldn't call having grown men throw money and illicit drugs at me while go-go dancing in a jockstrap prostitution either. That was, well, that was art. It was so long ago. You think I had sex for money? Seriously? Uhm, no comment.
Nothing exciting to report today. I have too much on my plate at the office and ended up staying late in an effort to try to get a step ahead of the game. I don't think I succeeded, but when you're the boss there isn't anybody else to blame it on. I'm turning in. I have class early tomorrow. G'nite.
Posted by Philo @ 11:59 PM PST [Link]
Posted by Pete @ 11:29 PM PST [Link]
So where am I?
Physically:
I’m sitting in my room, bathed in light coming only from my computer screen. I’m sitting in a leather chair in front of my PC with my iMac on a separate smaller desk to my left. Yes, I am a computer person...a closeted one. If you saw me out in the bar with my leather pants and a drink in hand, I don’t think you’d know I just recently gave my Mac an 80gig external drive. I’ve got those two sides. There are days that I’m adventurous and take on the world, and other days, I’m up at 3am, Coke in hand and writin’ furiously on my weblog. My desk I’m sitting at is cluttered with the todays debris. A coke bottle and a coke can sit side by side keeping each other company. I’m a caffeine addict at heart and Coke is a passion of mine. An open bag of Gardetto’s mustard pretzels sit at the edge next to a couple of bills. Above that is a coffee mug that reads “tired but wired.” Inside that is a cluster of pens. Also, there sits a bottle of Tabasco. Not a thing on this planet too hot for my tastebuds. Instead of CD’s scattered everywhere , there are mini-discs strewn throughout. I’m listening to a mix disc of Björk, Sarah McLaughlin, Indigo Girls, and Fiona Apple. Ah, my ladies. What beautiful, beautiful women. Directly in front of me is a large desk calendar that I chose to nail to my wall. There’s nothing on it seeing as I keep ideas in my palm pilot or scrawled on napkins. I’ve nailed everything to my wall. Why tape up posters when you can just nail them to the wall right? Above that is a table add that I stole from my favorite deli. “Crazy about Turkey…Join the Club!” Across from this, on the far wall you can see two Clockwork Orange posters…one the original British release (when Kubrick died) and an original Japanese poster. So to answer your question, yes I get the reference. Under these posters you’ll find my bed covered in leopard skin sheets. I like loud things. I also have to say that I’m lucky to have gotten this apartment. I mean, what the hell do I need with a queen size bed and a walk in closet? Next to my bed is my dresser / mirror / area for potential mess. There you’ll find pictures of friends, mardi-gra beads, and my favorite cucumber-melon candle. I fucking love candles. Otherwise the walls are plastered with pictures of people, plaques, and trinkets I’ve “borrowed” through out the years (ie. A drinking fountain sign from our student center). If you’re thinking I’m wealthy because I’ve mentioned a bunch of toys here…think again. I got nothin’. I can explain this in a couple of points:
1) Money is not an object…I mean, you could die tomorrow right? Why not just live life? It’s only money. There’s always ways to get it back.
2) I happen to be an only child and very spoiled. I’ll be the first to admit this. Now, I’ll let you in on this……I’ve decided where I’m going in life. This place will help me repay my parents for being so generous through out my life. I’m not worried about that. You happen to be reading a post from one of the most ambitious people you will ever have known.
3) Luck.
Mentally:
I’m in a great place. I’m enjoying my life for what it’s worth and I’ve been blessed to have some of the most wonderful friends. Also, I’ve been very lucky at the school I’m at. The only problem I’ve had at my school thus far is being used too often. Which leads me to believe I need to shut the fuck up and enjoy my time here. I’m glad to be a part of this game…you guys are great.
You too Nancy, even if you’re a robot. : )
Well, that’s where I’m at. …..ah…….now I need to think of something for my last post of tonight (alright…it’s technically tomorrow, but I didn’t post at all tonight)….well then, in any case…..
Good morning all!
Posted by Pete @ 11:25 PM PST [Link]
Who's takin' his sweet ass time?
Evenin’ all. I decided not to post until later today just watch things pan out.
Today was a normal day for me. In a nutshell, my ninja cohort called up and I took him to the doctor. Ends up they think he has mono. Hope he’s doin’ alright. So much for ancient Chinese ninja tricks. I hate fucking doctors. You go there and they make you wait half an hour…then you get into the examining room to wait for another half an hour. What the hell are they doing? *sigh* What else, what else…….ah…..I also noticed today that someone likes to snoop around the internet for me. Philo, is that you, ya bastard? = ) Anyway, it’s hard not to find “Pete” on the web. Though I’m happy to mention I’ve found a couple of your sites.
David – “the follow through.” Touché my dear friend. Although the ninja had a great game plan, he blew it in the end. I saw my downstairs neighbor peeking through the blinds watching me go to my car today. Couldn’t help but laugh at her.
Shae – I dig your style. Who wouldn’t want $50 furniture from Wal-Mart? I just got back from there actually. Ain’t nothin’ better than the folks who make it out to Wal-Mart around midnight. UK people…..you’re missin’ out on that.
Ashley – congrats on your first day on the job. See, the way to take care of customers like that is to carry a cattle prod. They give some lip, ya zap the bastards til they can’t remember how to talk. I mean, that’s legal, right?
Rachael – Too puppet-ish for you? That’s kind of disappointing. Cute eh?...Hoping you were talking about me and not our other sexy commentator Peter. If so , I can continue to have my puppy dog crush on you. Otherwise, I’ll just continue to have my puppy dog crush on you. Even my picture on the top of this page is checkin’ you out.
*Note to self: stop typing internal monologue.*
Ah shit.
Posted by Pete @ 10:39 PM PST [Link]
Oh, and that is not a dog collar. Its a necklace that cost me $14 bucks at Pacific Sunwear. I used to wear tons of necklaces, but I out grew that stage and now only wear one like a mature adult. But this one is getting blah, so I need a new one.
Posted by James @ 10:01 PM PST [Link]
Ok, I’m an idiot. So the 80’s party/rave is tomorrow night instead of tonight. Damn it all. So I’m headed off to my friend’s house warming party thingie instead.
James – omg, if I saw that goth guy with the hand drawn eyebrows, I would have been like, "BUWAHAHAHAHA…" while pointing at his ugly mug. What would he had done to me? Cry and whine me to death??? I don’t think so…
Ashley – hey now, who’s this Bill guy??? Hmmm… I think we need to do something about him so that he’s not so hot anymore *gets nun-chucks*. Peter, you want in on this? AJ?
Ok guys, good night and be safe!
Posted by Ted @ 09:39 PM PST [Link]
Yeah I had some possibly interesting shit to say but alas, I am dumb. I just got in from work not too long ago. It went by horribly slow *sighs* Oh well. I'm so out of it.
Work today was blah. The costumers were really blah. But this cute goth guy walked in and Iwas across the store and noticed him. I shrugged it off and went back to talking to Scott, my coworker. Goth guy walks over and taps me on the shoulder, I turn around to find out that this goth guy has shaved off is eyebrows and redrawn them AS IF HE WERE FROWNING. I couldn't even help him I was so dissapointed. Everything he asked my answer was "Its out of stock" or "Its out of print". Then the ladies in the shoe store across the mall were hitting on us and waving and shit so that entertained us and passed the time.
I like Philo's stories, they're entertaining. Eva, kick those freeloaders out honey chile! *snap snap* and Ashley kill those bastard consumers with kindness. In the end when you smile and take their shit they end up looking like idiots. Just the other day this woman came in ranting and raving about some DragonBall Z video tapes she reserved 6 months ago. We told her that she had to pic them up within 30 days, but she didn't so we sold them and gave her money back. She raised hell, but we smiled and all the other customers in the store were like "wow what a bitch" and one guy actually said "Ma'am, kindness gets you far in life". You should have seen the ugly face she made. Wooo it was priceless.
Posted by James @ 09:20 PM PST [Link]
My feet are so sore. After a four hour shift, I thought they were going to fall off. I don't mind my job, I get to handle a lot of money and play with little scanny thingies at the register. I suppose this appeals to my base "ooh, look, shiny objects!" and "whoa...it...beeps!" human nature. In other words, I have an extremely hot coworker who was with me all of today. I'll call him "Bill". He was my "buddy", but after about the first hour I didn't need him. He stuck around anyway, teasing me and "accidentaly" turning off my scanner during my break, etc... Bill also took pleasure in ribbing me whenever I screwed something up.
I had an irate customer. He decided he wanted this cigar, so I added it to his total, he paid...and then changed his mind. Three voided purchases later, he says "Gosh, you're awfully slow at doing that." NO SHIT. It's my first day, and you keep making me redo this. I wanted to smack him. Make up your mind, god... and then there was the couple that was fighting, and in the middle of paying for the purchase, he hollers, "I DON'T CARE IF YOU WANT TO BUY THE FUCKING MARTHA STEWART BEDSHEETS, JUST CHOOSE THE COLOUR!". Um, yes. Spaz much?
Anyway, enough about my job. This is my last post of the evening so I'm going to make it excessively long. Peter - the "new Silicon Valley" is near Virginia, or maybe I've been lied to. It's just what I've been told. I didn't take geography, damnit. As for me being a puppet... we shall see. Nancy is still my prime suspect.
Ted - Belle and Sebastian rule. I think I have about 50 mp3s of theirs... I've been too lazy to buy a CD - one that would add to my collection of about 200 CD's - I'm a music freak. I'll listen to anything that's not extremely hardcore metal/rap, muzak, or country. Even then, if you get me in a good mood...
Okay. I figure I've rambled enough. I suppose I'll take a nap and rest my aching feet. Damn the stupid alarm clock that woke me. I have to work tomorrow too. Joy to the world! More beeping and scanning!
Posted by Ashley @ 09:02 PM PST [Link]
I'M SERIOUS.
There are four random Swedes staying in our spare room.
OK, this is the story. It started out like a normal Friday night. A normal Friday night goes like this: a bunch of gay boys get pissed, stoned and possibly e'd up in our kitchen. Normally myself and any other people I live with complain about the noise at the time, or sometimes I go out and get hammered elsewhere and hope that I'll just pass out when I get home. What happens in the kitchen is known as The Friday Night Ritual, or The Procedure.
Tonight, there I was with flatmates 1 and 2, and then 2's boyfriend's ex comes round, and then 2's boyfriend.
Fine. Then 2's boyfriend decides he wants to send some vegetarian haggis to the Caledonian hotel in a taxi. Also fine. Flamate 1 goes downstairs to shoehorn the haggis into the cab ... and comes back with four random Swedes.
Not the vegetables, the people.
Seriously now. Put yourself in the most stereotypical mindset you can think of. Now say out loud, "Hello, my name is Andreas, and I am from Sweden." YES, talk as stereotypically Swedish as you can! And make sure you're blond! And all be electricians or bricklayers! OK, are they just going to be comedy hallucinations, or are they going to murder us in our beds?!
Posted by Eva @ 06:36 PM PST [Link]
Alright, I got some boba today! (drink of the Gods, well… at least the Asian Gods). With boba in hand, I can do anything! *turns on tv* Actually, I might be going to this 80’s/rave party tonight. The promoters are great! At their last party, which had a Metal theme, they had a remote control giant robot with a HUGE claw that had a Flame Thrower attached to it. They also had a marching band walking around and banging on trashcans, car parts, and pipes. And their parties are super underground. At the last one, their map point was this hole in the wall door that was in the middle of an alley in the warehouse district. And the map point only showed you to the parking lot, where they personally shuttled you to the venue. So tonight’s theme is the 80’s. I think I’ll bust out my Z Cavariccis and Hyper color shirts. 5 bucks off if you come in costume!
In other news:
Peter – Do you play the bass? My new band (hopefully) needs a bass player, so if you’re interested, just contact me at… oh wait, heh. BTW, I love how you’re hitting on everyone, regardless of gender or sexual preference. Here, I’ll sing a song for you "I’m dumb, she’s a lesbian, I thought I had found the One. We were good as married in my mind, but married in my mind is no good. Pink Triangle on her sleeve, let me know the truth, Let me know the truth" Brownie points to anyone who knows the song and band. Whew, its tough typing, singing, and drinking boba all at the same time.
Nancy – It was a Clockwork Orange reference. The guy couldn’t listen to Beethoven.
Ashley – hey, I live somewhere in that part of the world too, you can come live with me. Let me just move all those Belle and Sebastian cds from my floor….my room is sooo messy
Bob – I totally agree with you about Ernie’s pix. I think it’s his best one yet. It looks like he’s taking a shit or giving birth. Either one…
Posted by Ted @ 06:10 PM PST [Link]
I'm so sleepy right now.
I might as well just tell you all now that I work for Starbucks. Those of you with an opinion can start hating me if you need to. I know people have problems with corporate, but in Seattle it's really not that big of a deal. Independent coffee houses do just fine. There are other competitors here too -Tully's, Torrefazione, Seattle's Best... My point is that Starbucks isn't doing to Seattle what people claim we are doing other places. I don't get what we are supposedly doing anyways that is so bad to be honest. It's not that I'm that loyal either. My favorite coffee in the world is at Vivace around the corner from my place. Starbucks has been nothing but good to me though. I started working for them when I was in college and even though I graduated over a year ago I haven't felt that motivated to leave. They pay well, I have some flexibility these days, benefits, Rick even let me go home a little early today.
Maybe I am at a place right now where I'm floudering a bit. I mean I got my degree, but if anything I would rather go back to school and study something that interests me now, rather than what my parents were willing to pay for. Everyone is on my case about doing "something", but things right now are still working for me, y'know? Uh oh. I'm realizing something. A theme. I feel a little bit that way about my apartment, my friends from high school I still hang out with. Even Tony a little. Maybe my life around me isn't reflecting who I am inside anymore. That worries me. Truth is I don't like change very much though eiter. It sort of scares me sometimes. If everything could just go on being the same, even I know how ridiculous that sounds. That is where I'm at though.
Bob - you are not the only Jesus Jones fan left in the world
Posted by Rachael @ 03:10 PM PST [Link]
Peter - maybe if you let me move in with you. If you live near Silicon Valley, that is.
I'm about to go to work. I'm exceedingly nervous because this is my first 'real' day on the job. I can just see myself spazzing at customers... I had to deal with and redirect some of them during training, and I already know that I'll have the urge to kill a few of them by the end of my shift tonight. Woe is me, the redhead with a temper.
I was supposed to go out tonight. But, as usual, I neglected to make plans early enough and wound up having to work until 8PM tonight.. yay! I am a veritable bundle of joy. I still haven't found anyone's webpages yet, and I've been being a major snoop. I wouldn't be surprised if you guys found mine...it's not exactly disguised like some peoples'. But so far, I've recognized three of you. Ha. Which leaves me eight to choose from. I'm so screwed.
Posted by Ashley @ 02:56 PM PST [Link]
Nancy, Jersey was a damn good guess. So, in honor of a good guess and the half hour of shore traffic I had to sit through to get home, I give you a link to the outdoor web cams nearby. I'm not on the beach, but I wish I were. Anyway, geographically these cams are about a 15-minute drive from my house. "Hey, youze, can't ya sees I'm swimmin' 'ere?" There was a shark sighting off Ship Bottom last weekend. Sadly, no one was eaten. But there's always the butt load of tourists this week to hope with.
I am sitting in the dining room, which is really part of the living room. It's a small apartment. My desk is wedged flush against the big picture window, so I'm always hot in the summer and freezing in the winter. The dining table is jammed up against the office chair that doesn't match the rest of the décor. It's hideously fugly, but I like it. My desk is one of those $50.00 jobbers you get at Wal-mart. I love Wal-mart. You gotta love a store that you can buy everything required to live in one spot. The desk contact paper [in a handsome wood grain ;)] is peeling from where I carved with my pens while waiting for downloads; and, there's warped, raised circles where I didn't use a coaster for my cups. Notebooks, CD cases, and disks litter the surface; and the draw is jammed with the comic books I obsessively collect, and the pictures I've scanned and forgot to put back. The brown gooseneck lamp left over from college radiates with the heat of a small sun. One day it will explode into flames and take me with it, but for now it lights up my keyboard nicely. I'm thinking of renting it out to frustrated game boy advance players. A Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey circus cup in the shape of a lion holds all my pens and colored pencils in its mouth. A headless stuffed Kermit the Frog stands guard over the other toys I have surrounding the monitor. I cut off his head because I was angry, and I left him because it's become a sort of stand-in voodoo doll for the collective 'them' that annoy me. Some boardwalk trinkets, beads, beanie bears, and lip-gloss round out the random clutter on my desk. But as I sit here, the mess is comforting and reflective of whom I am.
In life I'm somewhere just as cluttered. I'm the once oldest, now middlest child of a couple just about divorced when I was born. I'm the bisexual alpha female, raised by my once car racing mother to take on life as if I was the most important person on the Earth to know. I went to school to study what I loved; and when I realized I couldn't marry books, I married the first person that seemed interesting at the time. I live online because there's less of a chance to lean forward and *thwok* people with a whiffle bat than in real life. I garden on my balcony, encourage mourning doves to nest in my begonias, carry comic books with me everywhere, try to teach my mini-macaw to say, "Cats suck," keep a dried seahorse skeleton in my jewelry box, will probably be divorced by the end of the year, and in the apartment complex peg small toddlers on tricycles with Munchkins just to see them smile and eat the donut off the ground.
That's where I am in life, and I'm sorta comfortable with that too. Oh, and coffee-coffee-coffee. *snickers* Had to annoy Eva.
Posted by Shea @ 02:39 PM PST [Link]
Thanks to Ernie for making the pre-midnight postings available! Now I finally get to "meet" Ted (I like a man who's centered enough to hug another straight guy) and get some background on the bubbly Rachael and all our budding pornstars. (No pun intended. Well, maybe a little.) Ted, your windshield-wiper story reminds me of old Laurel and Hardy movies. You're obviously the artistic one of the group, so I nominate you to design the official tee shirts for the Very Special PuppetMaster Reunion next Christmas.
Ashley, I take back everything I said about your being a goth. That kitten of yours has seared all the neurons in my brain that entertained any such thoughts. Here's another kitten for you. And yes, I'm proud of you for keeping your bedtime. Me, I had killer insomnia last night as well--lay in bed awake for about 3 hours. No fun.
Pete, your ninja friend forgot the most important element of any good attack--the follow-through. Under NO circumstances should the bare-chested co-ed-startler allow himself to feel ANY shame or self-consciousness for his state. Check with Philo for pointers.
James, I categorically forbid you to talk about being e-mail stalked by some LOL'ing potentially hot-ass weirdoid and then say the next day that your life is rather bland. If that's the case I may as well go home and hang myself because that's more excitement than I've had in weeks.
I think I had a point when I started writing this post, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was. Ah well. Anybody got fun plans for the weekend?
Posted by David @ 02:33 PM PST [Link]
That precious last post. ... I'll try to keep it short.
David, I'm feeling you re: the temperature in your office. I'm at work right now wearing silk longjohns under my jeans and two sweatshirts over my long-sleeved tee. The money it costs them to keep it 50-below in here ... I don't know much about the history of my house, but it does have a ghost so there's that. I think he's from down the street, though, not my house. Long story.
Ted, I think I get the Beethoven reference. Hannibal?
And it's so weird to read about whoever is writing me. Brrrrrr.
I do know the sad state of the law, Peter, but I don't let it dictate whether I marry or have sex or a lot of other things "the law" doesn't allow for. :)
Anyway, hi to all. I'm having a great time with this. Hope you are, too.
Posted by Nancy @ 02:26 PM PST [Link]
Finally someone isn't just saying I am cute, but a geek. Thanks Peter for making my day. My brother is excited becuase it is double discount day for me so my mom is probably goign to get him a scooter, though he really wants a Gameboy Advanced. I remember Sega Gamegears. I begged for three Christmases to get that from Santa, but my pleads went unheard and I got Barbies instead. I hated Barbies. I'm getting ready for work. Everyday seems to be taken up with something work related. Getting ready for work, goign to work, working, coming home and sleeping so I can get a full 8hrs before I have to go back to work. I don't have a day off until Wednesday, but I on;y work 25hours next week so I can't complain too much. Though I do have jury duty. I had this weird dream the night before I came back home from school. I dreamt I would be called for jury duty, and when I got home I got the letter. When I tell people that I am going, they are puzzled as to why I would do such a thing. In 10th grade, which seems like an eternity ago, my American studies prof teacher (I still have to get used to switching the titles) told us that jury duty was the foundation of freedom in America, I didn't understand then, I still don't quite understand, but I don't want to let him down since he was one of the few teachers that had an impact on my life.
Posted by Meghan @ 02:08 PM PST [Link]
Morning all! I have a really fucked up sleeping schedule cuz I’m an insomniac, so I’ll be posting during weird times. I spelt at 5 this morning David and Ashley, does that constitute me as goth?
Ok, where am I right now. I’m sitting in my medium sized blue room right now in my house, in a city full of Asians with 24-hour food places (which combining with the insomnia, might be the reason why I’m a food freak). My walls are blue, and you would see them if they weren’t covered with posters and pictures. I have an eclectic collection of pictures plastered up including movies like Chungking Express, God of Gamblers, Reservoir Dogs, Mallrats (the blueprints and signed yo!), and Breakfast at Tiffany. I have my acoustic guitar next to me seat so that I can reach over and play anytime. My electric guitar is stashed away because its too much trouble to bust it out and hook it up with my amp. And I’m too lazy, remember? I have random pictures up from different people including some from my punk rock friend Jessica who is an awesome photographer, as well as Jeannine who is one of the nicest and sweetest girls I know. I also have tons of cds lying around cuz I’m also a music freak, as well as food obsessed. And I have lots of books spread out everywhere cuz I read when I can’t sleep.
Where I am in life. Well, I graduated from undergrad two years ago, and I’m currently in my second year of grad school with two more years to go. And even tho it has its moments, Grad school is HELL ON EARTH, filled with lifeless and stressed out people devoid of anything meaningful and whoring themselves out to the highest bidder. But I’m completely in love with art tho, and am in the horrible situation of deciding whether I want to do my art as my work or keep it pure without the taint of money (my grad school is non-art related). The lab (damn, a mutation lab would have been cool) was for my art, cuz I’m submitting some of my work (nine pieces yo!) this weekend for a show. I used to be in a couple of bands in college (thus the guitars), and I terribly miss playing with people and at gigs. I use to be in an emo (heh) band as well as a Beatles cover band (I got to be John!). So basically, I feel that grad school and the thought of my professional career is suffocating any notions of playing again as well as dreams of being a full time artist.
I’m generally dissatisfied with life, but I always remember that things could be worst. I basically party like every freaking weekend, dancing and meeting new people are one of my favorite things to do. I’m still under the philosophy of enjoying life to the fullest and having as little regrets as possible (carpe diem and all that shit), and with me being 25, I sometimes feel that the clock is ticking with all of this. Ok, hope that’s enough.
Posted by Ted @ 02:07 PM PST [Link]
Where am I? The question reminds me of an old story about a tranny hooker from the city. She'd gotten very drunk one night and ended up blacking out. The next morning she came to in bed at a strange man's house, naked and horrified. Running to the telephone she called the police. Her first words to the officer were: "Where am I?" It inevitably became one of those lines that everyone in the city would say and start laughing. How did we all find out about it? When she threatened the cops with a lawsuit for not helping her they handed a transcript of the call to tv and press. Others even stepped forward from a local bar down the street to chime in that she agreed to give the guy a blowjob for $20 and they walked around the corner to his place. Where am I? Glad I'm still not in her shoes.
I live in California and I love it. Even with our rolling blackouts, earthquakes and catastrophic brush fires there is nowhere else I'd rather be. Someone once said that if you took America and shook it all the fruits and nuts and anything that wasn't nailed down would end up in California. That's why I live here. The house itself is in an area though I have little to no affinity for. The rent is cheap, it's a cute place, but all I do is sleep and hang out online. I'm never home. I like my room. It is painted various deep shades of brown and mocha thanks to the previous tenant who was a professional house painter. It's a little dark, but I've brightened the place up with light wood furniture such as the IKEA desk my IMac sits on. In the corner is a large 70's metal fake fireplace my mother and I found at a Salvation Army. It doesn't give off any heat, but the motorized orangish-yellow celephane lamp behind the plastic logs can give the impression of a homey blaze on a rainy day. On my desk is a stack of bills I will get to one of these days, an array of post its to remind me of things I will inevitably forget, a small cactus garden (requires zero attention) and whatever compact discs I'm listening to most at the moment: Dimitri from Paris at the Playboy Mansion, PJ Harvey's Stories..., and the latest Low. Where am I? I'm right where I'm supposed to be. If I wasn't I wouldn't be here. I really do believe that.
Posted by Philo @ 01:43 PM PST [Link]
Okay, remind me to never sleep late and do chores before getting online. These time zones seriously fuck a brotha up. ;) And did anybody else get a visit from "LePuppetMaster" last night. *scared* Dude (or Dudette?) reminds me of Dr. Claw for real.
Where am I at physically? I'm in the dinning room area of my house. Where my computer is. I'm sitting in a hard ass chair with the bottom practically falling out of it. From time to time the back pops out and you hit your neck on the wodden head rest. I've got several bitch welps on my neck because of me slouching and thus wacking my neck. There is never any good lighting in this area of the house, maybe because we're ghetto and only have one working light bulb in the chandelier, but the bay windows provide a lot of natural light, which I love. My computer table is fairly junky, mostly magazines around that I read from time to time while downloading from aimster, or instruction manuals to games, and maybe a scractched, and often warped, LAUNCH CD. But now that I look at it I notice that I have a lot of CD cases stacked in the back. My guess is that the right CD's aren't even in those cases.
My life right now is rather bland, allowing for a tremendous amount of time for me to think. Which I hate, to put it simply. I hate thinking about things because I have the awesome ability to think myself into a bad mood. In all honesty I'm unhappy in my life. I hate living in the south, as does every teen I'm sure. I know where I'm going, which is to college, I know what I'm majoring in- Graphic Design, and I know that once I'm done with it I'll be out of this godforesaken state. I'm a southern guy by birth, but not in my heart. This area is too closed, people are expected to be one way and they act accordingly. While I never claim to be the most original looking person around, I know that inside of me- this isn't the place to be. So I guess right now I'm in between. In between graduation and future graduations.
*shakes fist at the sky* WHY? DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU!
Posted by James @ 11:18 AM PST [Link]
Right here, right now (call me the last of the Jesus Jones fans) I sit in my little den looking at my little laptop with several cdrom jewel cases on the keyboard (I use a separate keyboard to type) while I listen to Fatboy Slim's first album, Better Living Through Chemistry. My den is one of the entirely too many rooms that make up this so-called "luxury apartment" overlooking the Mediterranean (I suppose I get the Farthest From The States Award). I'm a single guy and don't need nearly all of this room. I have an entire room where I store my work clothes and the ironing board. Outside, it's humid and hot and dark (I'm about 10 hours ahead of PST). Right now, I'm slightly inebriated after pints of Guinness, Kilkenny (by ancestry I suppose I'm Irish too) and Tuborg that I had at the local Irish bar tonight. My back is being scratched in one of the best ways possible (by hand I suppose, but she keeps saying that I should say "by a circus midget", and I suppose that'll work too) and I'm relaxing after that proverbial hard week at work. More generally, I've never been at a more comfortable spot in my life. I like my job and my life in general. I could use a more active social life but I suppose you can't have everything. Beer will have to do for now.
On a side note, I have to say that the picture of Ernie is quite possibly the Greatest Thing Ever. But why is it that Ernie has to focus on my stuff? I'm no more interesting than anyone. I'm no more real (and maybe quite a bit less) either. Leave me alone Ernie!!!! Unless you want to send me more fun pictures...
Posted by Bob @ 10:41 AM PST [Link]
Oh great. Not only am I the token straight, I'm the token non-Irish person. I'm screeewwwwed.
Yeah, I suppose I have a lot of monitor pets--though Dizzy and the Lizard are the only ones I really consider pets; the others are "thingies I haven't seen fit to throw out yet". (Note to self: form band named Dizzy and the Lizard.)
Nancy, your house sounds cool. Do you know its history at all? I hope you're real 'cos I want to visit you.
Rachael, I enjoed your sort-of-date story. Something vaguely similar happened to me once; I dragged a couple of my more in-your-face friends to the "let's meet" rendezvous and pretty much scared the poor girl off. (Maybe I shouldn't have done that... No, wait a minute, I remember now that she sounded not at all interesting, and I wanted to scare her off.) I have to share with you the very best personals ad I ever saw, quoted below in full:
Daring? Box [something]
Posted by David @ 09:47 AM PST [Link]
David, I only stayed up until 3:30 last night. Tell me you're proud? So It's 9:00AM and I was woken by my alarm clock this morning at 6:30, and have been unable to get back to bed since. Damn me for leaving it on when I don't have to work in the morning... I had some really screwed up dream that I was reliving my high school graduation (which is all of two weeks old) that for some reason was taking place on a sinking ship. Also, it had a lot of web personalities on it, which was extremely odd, as well as two of my best friends. Suddenly, the ship turned into an airplane and they told us we wouldn't be going to France (?) because of a storm warning. Yeah, don't ask.
Where am I... I'm in the basement of my dad's house. My parents split when I was fourteen, and I chose to live with my dad, because my mom, well, left. I'm sitting at a huge desk in front of a computer in my bedroom, staring at a mess around me. I'm a teenager, I'm supposed to be messy. This is not limited to, a dictionary, nail polish remover, a fork and spoon and plate, my mouse, three rules, some lip gloss, a CD, two letters, my wallet, a brush, two empty Coke cans, a book, a comb, a university acceptance letter, a picture of my mother and I in Europe taken in March, some index cards I never used for exams, and a large empty bottle of Diet Pepsi.
As for life... I just graduated from high school about two weeks ago, and got a summer job, as I mentioned in my last post. I'm trying to decide (and will have to pretty quick here) if I want to go to university next year or take a year off and work in the real world. Either way, I'm going to go to University and get my Bachelor of Technology. Yes, I'm a computer geek. Bow. When I finish college, I want to move to the East Coast of the USA near the new Silicon Valley, get married, and have kids. Beyond that, well... come on. I'm seventeen.
Posted by Ashley @ 09:34 AM PST [Link]
I'm Irish as well. I know that makes my previous statement rather paradoxical, but I will explain. My dad and mom got divorced. He got remarried, tried to get more visitation, lost and like a whiny little kid ran away. He ran away to Ireland, his "homeland" whith his whore of a cow, uhm I mean wife. Anyway, I don't like any country that would have him asa citizen.
The topic, hrm. Well, I am in my grandmother's room. This room will always be hers, even if she will never inhabit it again. It's difficult going from seeing her every moment your in your home, to hardly at all. I hate goign to the Convelescent Home. IT's miserable for me. I see all these elderly people who can't take care of hemselves, people who's families have abandoned them, and I wonder if people think we have abandoned my grandma. She goes through the das thinking she's 76, she's 80, believing she's been in homes for 5years, actually a year, and seeing my grandfather's ghost. I remember the times, only a year ago, where she was this incredibly sharp person, who was always on time, and most importantly all together.
In life, I am trying to live the summer life of a college student. I sleep in, work and party (heh not that much though). I am trying to stay in this place as long as possible. I don't like the idea of mortgages, spouse(s) and a real job. I am looking for a cheap plane ticket to go back to school in late August. School is 2000 miles away from home for me. It is in the middle of Ohio, a small town where the bank IS called The Bank and there are 10 bars just on the main street. I don't know what I like better, the small town life or suburbia. I still have time to decide.
Posted by Meghan @ 09:16 AM PST [Link]
It's going to be a busy day, so I'll go ahead and post some thoughts now about the actual game.
Hmm. I read the color commentary after I wrote my "Where am I?" bit, so … I did mention one ex-. Oops. Am I out?
I'm nearly convinced that I am the puppet, so I'm trying to figure out who my puppetmaster might be. Here are the leading candidates:
1. Eva. We're both Irish and we both date women, but Eva'd have to be up half the night to post credibly as me, given her location. On the other hand, she does seem to keep late hours.
2. Shea. Shea and I seem to be in the same time zone (Jersey, Shea?), and we both love coffee with a passion bordering on homicidal mania.
3. Philo. We're about the same age. Those web personality tests always think I'm male, so a man could definitely write me. Philo's the kind of guy who'd love the challenge.
4. Bob. Bob is my polar opposite, so wouldn't I be an interesting alter ego?
5. Ashley. Ashley feels the least real so far (sorry ... ). In a fascinating twist, Ernie has a puppet as puppetmaster. I'd rent it on video.
Anyway, for now, I remain undecided.
Posted by Nancy @ 08:15 AM PST [Link]
"Be here now." -- Fritz Perls
For this assignment, I thought about talking about where I am figuratively. You know, transitions, the past, the future. But maybe being very literal will be an interesting exercise.
I'm sitting in a hand-me-down pink chair from my ex-wife's EMS company on what used to be the patio in my back yard. Sometime in the early '70s, this became a room rather than a patio -- the only salvageable part of a hideous, Partridge Family-era remodel that I have managed to nearly eradicate from what is otherwise an adorable '30s cottage. You should have seen the chandelier.
The only weird part is that the floor slopes so that the patio wouldn't have standing water. So I'm tilting ever so slightly to the left.
I'm facing two of the room's eight large jalousie windows, covered with curtains I made by painting dragonflies and ferns on $5 sheets from Kmart rather than paying $60 a panel to Pottery Barn for the same thing.
I'm also facing my neighbor Richard's house. Actually the very large fence he built after my dog scared the parrot in his back yard to death. It wasn't her fault. The meter man was swinging at her with his big metal clipboard. The bird died and the meter man got reassigned. … I bought Richard a big bouquet of flowers and offered to pay for a new bird. He declined.
Also in front of me is my desk, a perfect amalgam of the compulsive order and careless disorder of my life. Everything backed up on disks in duplicate with numbered labels, notes to self on Wendy's napkins and used envelopes. A web cam I've never hooked up. Some glittery gel pens I'm really too old for.
Anyway, that's what's in front of me. Behind me? The first challenge topic. Hurray!
Posted by Nancy @ 07:43 AM PST [Link]
Did anyone else miss anything last night? Yeah, me too. I wonder what happened after I went to bed. Perhaps Shea made a post that didn't mention caffeine? ... No, I think not.
God but David has a lot of monitor pets. I don’t. I just have piles of junk on my computer desk that I can’t be bothered sorting through. All of it was probably important at one time or other. I have a few pictures stuck to my monitor: mushroom clouds, exploding buildings, volcanoes, a Bluetip sticker and a Steven Appleby cartoon headed “One of those typical awkward questions about food which children ask” and a drawing of a boy asking “Which chip is the leader?”
Where I’m at in life doesn’t feel too interesting right now. Since I graduated a year ago I’ve had various jobs and, like I said, I’m unemployed right now (well, working on and off part time, but not much). So I feel kind of like I’m in limbo and I don’t know what happens next. Gone is that certainty of “Oh, I’ll get a job within the next couple of weeks.” I’ve had bursts of furious jobhunting followed by depression and frustration, and right now I’m just in the can’t-be-bothered-trying-too-hard stage. I do need to keep myself occupied though, with writing and web projects and whatnot, but I’m the devil for starting things and never finishing them. In my head I’m pretty sorted, though.
Good for Meghan for hating Ireland. It makes a refreshing change. Being Irish myself (that’s properly Irish, you know), I’m somewhat sick of foreigners (usually Irish-Americans) telling me all about how they feel an affinity for the misty green Celtic homeland. Jason Byrne, who’s one of my favourite comedians, did a sketch about how pubs in Ireland are full of people sitting around talking about the stock market, and then someone goes “Quick! The American tourists are coming!” and they all don flat caps, and someone gets out a fiddle, and they perhaps wheel a donkey into the middle of the room. OK, maybe you had to be there. Anyway, well done Meghan.
You don't want me to mention exes? Um, OK, but you have to appreciate that pretty much everyone in my world has been "involved" with me at some point. Well, I'll see what I can do. And Ernie, for the record I'm bi.
I thought I wouldn't remember last night's dream, being alcohol-fuelled and all, but I've managed to remember two snippets. The first involved being sexually harassed by a couple of security guards, who shrugged it off with the old "sure it's only a bit of fun" routine, and trying to decide whether to make a formal complaint. Hmmm. In the second part I was looking at a piece of toast covered in icing, which looked disgusting, when a hysterical transatlantic friend phoned up gibbering, "Don't give that to anyone! It's poisoned! I meant it for my mother!" Right, I'm going out.
Posted by Eva @ 06:58 AM PST [Link]
Where I am (physically): I'm in my office, which is about 8' x 12' and is ventilated by a ceiling HVAC outlet designed for a much larger space--so I catch colds in summer and sweat to death in winter. The only window I have looks out into the hall so I can see people walking by occasionally. I'm sitting in the crux of my V-shaped desk with the peeling formica top, typing away at my workstation. Surrounding my monitor are, clockwise starting from the top: my Monitor Lizard (a little plastic bendy), a Post-It reading "BUTTONS bold 22-pt Garamond", a paper crane, a Post-It reading "Check GAL links starting w/H's", a plastic Chinese dragon, a Post-It reading "Blue Flame Cafe w.blueflamecafe.com/ Blues rsrc for music weblinks", a stuffed worm named Dizzy, a clock, and one of those brushes that's supposed to clean all the dust off your monitor screen but never works. The rest of my desk is covered in piles of paper up to six inches deep in places, in desparate need of organizing or at least purging. The walls of my office are eggshell gray, their starkness broken by the occasional poster I've tacked up.
Where I am (emotionally): I'm waiting. For the past couple years, I feel as if my life has been on hiatus. In the interests of getting out of a bad situation, I took an acceptable job (instead of one I loved), in an acceptable part of the world (instead of one I loved). I had planned from the start to leave here after a couple years, and that affected the kind of life I built for myself here--socially, at work, where and how I'm living, the whole schmear. While I've been surprisingly happy with the group of people I'm working with, nothing has really happened to mitigate that original decision. So now it's been a couple years, and I'm ready to move on. I've been looking for other work, and beginning to feel as though I really need to make a change in order to get my whole life started again. I recently underwent a sort of paradigm shift that I think was healthy for my future relationship prospects, causing me to look forward instead of back (you may hear more about that later on).
There. Let the drama begin.
Posted by David @ 05:38 AM PST [Link]
*yawn* Ugh. I hate being up this friggin' early. Rawr. Work sucks rocks. Where am I? In font of my keyboard wrapped in a towel, being grumpy. I'll try to write something up during my lunch break. Don't expect brilliance at this hour in the morning. Hell, you really shouldn't expect a pulse. Anyway, too much blood to the caffeine system. Must go remedy that.
Posted by Shea @ 02:58 AM PST [Link]
A hot bath is a lovely idea. I had one when I got home from work. I like reading in the bath. Tonights choice was A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man. I like Joyce, he is probably the only thing from Ireland I can stand, besides U2, but my friend and I made U2 honrary un-Irishman last year. I'm tired, but I dont have to be at work until 3pm so there really is little point for me to go to bed this early. Maybe I will get to work on that hiatus page I have been plannig to do, but just haven't had the time. I wish more of my friends, or even random people, would be on right now, so I could have someone to talk to. Sorry about the mistakes, I tend to type in the dark because I am way too lazy to turn on the lights, and why waste electricity?
Posted by Meghan @ 01:45 AM PST [Link]
I took a nap after my run along the water today and now I'm wide awake when I should be sleeping. I have to be to work in six hours. At least I'm not opening tomorrow. All of this "Is it her, is it him" is starting to make me a little crazy. I've been thinking, which in my case can be a dangerous thing. Is poor spelling or typing some sort of tactic? Maybe Shea was right about Meghan after all.
Details about my sort of date were promised and I keep to my word. Where I live there's a little alternative weekly newspaper that I love. In the back there are personal ads for just about anything anybody might be looking for. Some of them are usually a little scary. I always read them and they are always good for a laugh or two. My favorites are in the "I Saw U" section. People send in these little missed chances and thwarted opportunities: "You: red car, Me: blue miata. You smiled at stoplight. Can I buy you dinner?" Hilarious yes, but I think they are also kind of romantic too. The thought that paths may have crossed for a reason somehow. Anyways. The other day on the bus I was browsing along and one of them was about me! I can't even explain how it felt when I read it. I was like "Rach, oh my god! that's you!"
My friend Nicole had taken me to see Bjorn Again at the Showbox for a belated birthday present. It was fun and I admit it, I like ABBA, or in this case the top ABBA knockoff. Afterwards we ended up chatting with this guy for maybe 30 seconds about chance. I don't even remember if I thought he was cute or annoying or anything. Isn't that wierd? For a day or two I ignored it but after reading these ads for so long I figured I have to at least meet the guy. He did go to all the trouble of trying to track me down so I'm seeing him tomorrow night. Am I crazy? There you have it. That's my I sort of have a date story. Nicole said she'd drop by fifteen minutes into it in case I need an escape route. She's the best.
I have to admit though that between the time I first read it and now I have grown increasingly curious. That little ad has almost turned into a little mountain in my brain and I can't believe I'm even going to set foot on it. I do miss Tony. I wish he wasn't out of town right now. I don't know. Between this and Puppetmaster its no wonder I can't sleep. But I must. I simply must. Maybe I should run myself a hot bath.
Posted by Rachael @ 01:13 AM PST [Link]
Thursday, July 5, 2001
So I'm back from work, and my day was uhm interesting. I have been working there for two weeks, I have ar have a routine down. Ya know, clean the displays, TV's and stereo's 6times a day, and put film into the computer. Well, we have a new PIC today, and he doesn't think I can do a damn thing. He wouldn't let me close my till and make a money drop because "that's no the way they did it at his store." Well, I'm sorry, I have been doing this all freaking week and the managers let ME close my till and drop the money. I'm closing with him tomorrow again, I hope it goes better. Also, I went to Taco Bell for dinner and some 50yo guy who was definatly not all there hit on me. He asked me to go bowling with him. I was stupid and didn't take of my name tag so he knows where I work, so I am just waiting for him to ome in and watch the security escort him right out. Am I paranoid, probably, but when that is the ONLY guy that has hit on you irl you begin to wonder. Well, I am going to watch Frequency with my sis.Night all...
Posted by Meghan @ 11:03 PM PST [Link]
Ah ashley, that’s a fucking cute cat!!!
Yes bertie, I am a serial killer, how the hell did you find out? I just got out of prison so I can be in PM. And the wild look in my eyes, it’s from all the drugs that they pumped me up with. The worst part is that I can’t seem to listen to Beethoven anymore (oh please let someone get that reference). In fact, I’m coming to your house right now. ummm…shit, where do you live again? Can you e-mail me your addy? Thanks =)
My guess is as good as anybody’s right now on who the puppet and his master are. Philo is a pretty unique name, so I’m assuming that he’s real. But dude, will you quit trying to stare me down? There’s just not anyone that really stands out right now as THE puppetmaster or puppet for me.
Some other observations:
Eva: yeah, I dig your photo too. Nothing wrong with it at all girl...
David: Hey, I’m a straight guy too! *gives you the straight-guy hug*. And thanks for thinking I’m the sweet innocent angel that I am *halo appears above head buwahahaha….
James: nice dog collar you got there. I have a…"friend" who has one just like that *looks away*
Nancy: yeah sorry, but I agree with everyone else that your pix looks fake. I thought that Ernie just scanned your pix from a newspaper ad or something.
Ok, off to eat again (I’m obsessed with food) *munch munch*
Posted by Ted @ 10:53 PM PST [Link]
Home from work. Made myself a salad and devoured the Puppetmaster events of the day over leafy greens with a zesty dressing. Time to clear some things up. Dearest peanut gallery: Peter, if you keep tossing out the Greek God flattery I'm liable to start stalking your sexy, manly AniToriness - even if I am twice your age. As for other random commentary I haven't eaten beef in 15 years, normally skip the beans (no tooty fruity here) and I'd like a side order of extra hot sauce Mam. Lick it up Bertie! Lick it up!
I have to agree with Rachael that a few of you aren't giving up any dirt at all. Allow me to reveal more of myself, literally. Once I went streaking following a very lengthy truth or dare game. Three of us were on one long ass road trip and it helped pass the time while rolling through the desert. We started taking dares out of sheer boredom. When we returned home each of us had numerous tasks to complete with witnesses required. One of mine was to race through the heaviest foot traffic part of town at 9pm in nothing more than boots, a leather cap and a pair of dark sunglasses. I felt like a perp making my way to the top of the hood in a long tan trench coat. Then off it went and I hit the ground running. A group of ladies on one corner applauded. Some old man hit his head on a glass window trying to get a better look. A taxi cab started following me to see if I needed a ride. Probably a moustache ride by the looks of the guy.
When I got in tonight there was a voice mail waiting from Mr. 4th of July - and if I'm not mistaken I swear I heard a baby crying in the background. What's that about? Requires investigation. Speaking of investigations I've been doing a few of my own. I've already tracked down two of you. That leaves 8 not counting myself or the puppet and I'll know who the puppet is. Like that naked gay guy who won TV's Survivor I'm playing to win too and I'm not wearing any clothes. Here's to America being just a mass of people aimlessly humping each other with a general disregard for sex, race, or face. The honest truth? I'd hit on (almost) all of yuz, though in certain (ahem) situations I wouldn't go anywhere without a little assistance.
Posted by Philo @ 10:16 PM PST [Link]
So wait, nobody likes me yet? what a fucking rip off. I tell you. *Sighs* well let me know if I get a fan base.
Well as you can see I just wanted to use my third post for the day... kinda of a closure thing. Now I'm back to whoring about for amazon wish list items.
Posted by James @ 09:51 PM PST [Link]
Secret Service nothin'. Bastards won't let me touch a gun. Trust me, I've asked.
A buddy of mine (who I've confided in about my puppeteering) just offered to erase my presence from the web if I thought it would help. The crazy thing is, it just might. I've probably got the smallest webpresence of any of the 'contestants', though at the same time probably going back the farthest. Ahhh, I will never forget those days, sitting in my dorm room and having my (aforementioned) buddy come in and say, "Bob, the new Mosiac beta is out. You should download it. By the way, did you see Junod's new picture?" Unfortunately, he wouuld do this just about every other day until I threatened to make him eat my old 5 1/4 drive. (By the way, special prize to anyone who can tell everyone where you used to be able to find Junod's pic and why it's evolution was interesting.)
Another by the way: I'm a straight dork. As in, a dork with powerful hetero tendencies. Yes, I said POWERFUL.
Posted by Bob @ 09:44 PM PST [Link]
I just realized... this blog has no pictures! There, ladies and gentlemen, is a cute kitten bounding through the grass. I'm sure you can do better. Anyway, I've had a rather uneventful day. I have been lazy the whole day, sitting around fanatically checking Puppetmaster. I am now back to square one but still have suspicions about Nancy because of her doctor picture. Bob sounds mysterious, as does Ted. He works in a lab, huh? Like... a genetics mutation lab? This is my last post for the evening, and I do believe I'll go through severe withdrawl when I realize I cannot post anymore for another two and a half hours. I will survive, I will survive...
I work tomorrow. I don't want to, especially since I have a shitty shift - 4-8PM. Joy. There goes my Friday night.
Posted by Ashley @ 09:39 PM PST [Link]
Ah...last post of the night....feels good.
So I get the call around 8 or so that mexican food and a couple of gin n' tonics are the way to go. We head out and make it so. After a couple of drinks it's back to the apartment for a tipsy brainstorming session and he gets the idea. While i'm on my cell trying to work a deal with an old friend of mine, he takes his faithful Blogger t-shirt and puts the collar around his eyes. He then pulls back the sleeves and ties them around his head over his naked chest.
Instant ninja.
I'm watching him while I'm still talking on the phone. He takes up a piece of nearby equiptment which becomes his samuri sword. And in a flash...
he's gone.
Out the door and somewhere into the night. After a couple of minutes I hear my roommate laughing at him and he rears his crazy ninja head. He streaks quickly through the living room while my roommate throws a deadly combination of breakfast cereal and black markers at him. You ever gotten up from Capn' Crunch and a fat black Sharpie marker?
I thought not.
Anyway, he's running around like a madman, the ninja spirit flooding through his veins. For a couple of minutes I lose sight of him. Then silence. I pause in my conversation, seeing as i've been on the phone this entire time, attempting to stay as deadpan as I possibly can. And then it happens.
::insert blood curdling scream here::
The once quiet night was shattered by the shriek of a college co-ed. Then silence. Then the thumping of someone running up the stairs and then furious knocking. My roommate swings open the door and in he comes.
Beet red. More red than a sunset. Once a deadly ninja disapearing in the shadows of the night...now an embarassed, half naked college student wearing a Blogger t-shirt on his head. Apparently, he ran into my downstairs neighbors at full speed and scared the holy piss (not that regular piss mind you) out of them.
Truly one of the best fifteen minutes of my life and all it took was one easy equation.
Bombay Saphire gin+ancient chinese ninja transformation trick= a damn good time.
Posted by Pete @ 09:28 PM PST [Link]
I have nothing to say as exciting as Eva's post but here goes. For the past few days I'm been playing email tag. Number one, I fucking hate that. Email is so... last year. Its all about instant messages, but yeah. This guy/girl claims to have gotten my email from a Chad. I know only two Chads. A Chad I used to date and a Chad I used to go to school with. I hated School Chad because he was very annoying so I doubt its school Chad. Me thinks its Ex Chad. So I reason that this mystery person is a guy. Here is the last email I got from him:
U already know my name I'm 5.9 light brown hair grey eyes tan 130lbs ghetto
butt ... lol =) ... I like to swim ride hang out never fight unless I am
really pissed sweet inocent as always love to do just about anything always
up for new things my thing is u can take it or leave it the way u see me is
the way u get me lol anyway u can tell i'm retarted too k well I gtg luv ya
bye boo
So there are a few things that annoy me about that email. First he didn't tell me his name. Second, who said I like ghetto butts. Is that supposed to make me rip off my clothes and sprawl out waiting to be mounted? Third, he fucking replaced "You" with "U". I don't think so, and fourthly he says "u can tell i'm retarted too". Umm... hello, I never claimed to be retarted. He assumes... never good, and he is lazy, also not good. *ponders* So yeah, I replied stating that I did not know his name and I asked. I put some more bullshit in there because who knows, he might be hot as fuck. Can't pass up good ass right?
Oh and about gay porn on the net from Evas post: I'd so do it. Rawr. I don't know about actual sex on cam, but for a few green backs I'll get naked. Any takers?
"Hello, I'm James, the cornball slut. Nice to meet you."
Posted by James @ 08:15 PM PST [Link]
this is my last permitted entry of the day, in my time zone, right? whatever.
yes, eva gives up on caps when she’s been drinking a bit.
she would like to say that she likes nancy’s photo too, but that sounds a bit cheesy now, and also nancy looks a bit like her old boss. thank you david for the met link; i’d almost ask what sport they play, but i admit i don’t care that much.
so, i thought i would stay in tonight, but in keeping with recent tradition i wound up at a metal club with my ex (to cut a long story short). now, let it be known that i am not a metal kid. i am more into punk, if you want to classify, which I wouldn’t advise; however, i consider metal kids sort of like second cousins once removed, and they tend to be lovely people, so i just kind of put up with their music seeing as i have a nice time whenever i show up. there weren’t too many people about tonight, but we got in on the guest list, and got straight to the drink. i was buying, because ex-girlfriend just discovered that her bank doesn’t want to give her any more money this month (please note here that it’s only just hit july), and i am dolie scum but i seem to be coping ok right now.
this guy was there who i met a month or so ago when his friend alex came over and chatted me up in a pub. it went something like this:
alex: hello.
eva: um, hello.
alex: my friend dared me to come and talk to you. he’s over there. he does gay porn.
eva: oh, really? i do porn too! send him over!
alex’s friend ian: hello.
eva: you do porn?
ian: yeah. on the internet. someone recognised me at a tattoo convention last weekend. it was a bit embarrassing.
alex: hey, did he just tell you i would suck his dick?
eva: um … yeah!
alex: i don’t think he’ll let me.
eva: why don’t you ask him?
alex: what if i don’t want to suck his dick?
eva: … then don’t ask him.
alex: ok. the question and answer session is over.
after this, alex threw a glass on the floor on his way out, and about twenty minutes later i watched the bouncers push him about outside as he tried to drunkenly talk his way in again in search of his glasses, which were in his pocket the whole time. so i saw ian tonight, who is this queer punk guy who was dancing around somewhat crazily in an effort to take the piss out of this whole nu-metal phenomenon. my ex promptly decided she loved him, and i sent her off to dance with him, while i sat and watched, because i’m weird about dancing. i think it was a fun night.
Posted by Eva @ 08:01 PM PST [Link]
Hello everyone, nice to meet you all. Sorry it took me so long to post, its been a super busy day at the lab today. I’ve been preparing my work for an exhibition that’s coming up, so I was scrambling everywhere. Ok, so keeping in the July 4th theme, I went to a friend’s bbq to watch fireworks and such. It was alright, but I’m not really into fireworks. The smell of the smoke and the busy sidewalks always brings back nostalgic memories tho. But more importantly, a life-changing event happened to me today. This will be a day that I will remember for years and years to come. It will go up there with graduations and the day that I heard my mom on the radio embarrassing me (awww...). It is such a momentous occasion that I must share it with you all, for today... I used my new windshield wipers for the first time… *silence* Hey, stop looking at me like that, let me explain. I have been called the "laziest man alive" by many people who know me. This is the guy who has a pen in his car so that he doesn't have to reach over to change the radio stations. I've had my car for almost nine years now and I have never replaced my windshield wipers before until about three weeks ago. I can't drive properly in the rain because my windshield wipers would actually make the visibility worst. In the past, I've had my friend eddie in the passenger seat crawl out his window so that he could wipe away the rain with a towel while I was speeding down the freeway. Everyone has given me shit in the past for not replacing them. "oh Ted, when are you going to finally replace your wipers"?... "Ted, how long have you had those wipers for"?..."Oh my god Ted, we're going to die"! Some have even offered to secretly replace them for me. Well, today I finally used my new wipers. And if you’re wondering what finally prompted me to do something I've been putting off for nine years, well… my mechanic replaced them for me... heh
Ok, off to eat or else I will die. I will post my impressions about everyone in a little bit.
Posted by Ted @ 05:48 PM PST [Link]
Oh my god, I had to open the store this morning and I just got in and theres already a lot to catch up on. I have to say that this is going to be so much fun. Let's see. I did want to publicly thank Ernie for letting me in the game. Let's face it - my sites only been online a few months and even I don't like the looks of it (my brother set it up, he's the techie, we had different ideas, okay?). Maybe when time here is over someone will actually read