Falling off the Blog

2003-11-04T09:24:00.000-05:00

2003-08-31T16:16:00.000-04:00

I mean, normally I use alcohol and a q-tip to clean mice, but we don't have any of those. So I improvised.

2003-08-31T15:31:00.000-04:00

Oh, bloody hell. Ok, I'll be a good girl and put something on this thing, since I'm here and can't do any work. True to form, I lost my keys at the mall somewhere yesterday and can't get at my stuff that I stashed in my mailbox here at the office. The desk guy doesn't have the spares and nobody will be in to work until Tuesday. *sigh* I'm going back to my site this afternoon. Maybe I should care that ALL of my work from the last few months is on those disks and in those folders in that mailbox, but I'm just not really interested today. I guess I'll have to come back to the capital soon though. And I do rather hope Doña Matilde has her spares handy. Eek. 'Cause I locked up the house but good before I left.
So, I got a cell phone yesterday, after spending a month with only spotty email for communication. Very happy that. If you want the number, email me at the address at right. Or just reply to this post. Not that anyone ever comes through here of course. Especially since I haven't posted for five months.
For the record, I'm in a little town called Monte Plata. It's not much to look at, with less to do, but the people are great. I'm really enjoying it. I've got a little bitty yellow house with concrete walls, a zinc roof, and no kitchen.

2003-08-31T15:14:00.000-04:00

well, umm, so blogger last time wouldn't let me post at all. And now it looks insanely different. So let's see what this means.

2003-03-13T18:04:00.000-05:00

Okie-dokie...the severely condensed version of the last four weeks. Santo Domingo is hot, dusty, and NOISY. And incredibly friendly for the most part. My family here rocks. The dona (matriarch/mom) is Buddhist in a Catholic country, and my sisters are 25 and 19. The 25 y.o. has a 3 y.o. boy who is wild but sweet. The 19 y.o. (Ingrid) is who's around the most. She really likes bizarre Dominican game shows, so I seem to be learning some rather odd Spanish at home. Every trip using public transit is an adventure, as everyone has the right of way here except pedestrians and animals. A few highways have lines, but you wouldn't know it from inside a voladora. ("flyer"-a privately-owned bus that stops wherever people want to get on or off. The name comes from the speed at which they drive.) At any given time, a motorcycle may come flying down the road from between two other vehicles, in the wrong direction, or along the sidewalk. I'll never need a rollercoaster again--they're altogether too safe, too tame. This first part of training, in Santo Domingo, is nearly over. Monday, the Special Ed. group leaves for Dajabon, which is near the northern end of the Haitian border. Should be interesting...I hear it's hotter though. And no, I haven't been to a beach yet. I've barely seen the ocean. Kind of odd, on an island, but that's how busy and poor we are. We're making about $2 a day for incidentals, based on the current exchange rate. Not exactly a party budget.
So, that's the summary. More eventually. :)

2003-02-12T10:26:00.000-05:00

Warning to the silence that is this blog's audience: internet access is being disconnected NOW. All further posts will be catch-as-catch-can or facilitated by Mark.

2003-02-08T19:25:00.000-05:00

One week to go and my room doesn't look a bit different. A stranger might assume the chaos is due to moving, but I know better. *sigh* It will be done. Somehow. Had my last Sidhe performance last night. :( I'm going to miss an awful lot of people here. BUT, I'm still excited and things actually are still on track. A friend, Dr. West, has offered to take over here while I'm away, posting my letters and such. I'm sure he can do it far more brilliantly than I can, anyway. So when you all find out just how bad I am at correspondence, try looking here.

2003-01-15T11:25:00.000-05:00

I now have dental clearance. Good. Because it still hurts like hell.

2003-01-13T19:29:00.000-05:00

Ummmm.....ow.

2003-01-05T14:24:00.000-05:00

Got my invitation last Thursday via FedEx. I leave February 16th for staging in Miami, then fly out February 18th for the Dominican Republic. Oh, my. I have gobs of reading in my package, plus plenty of preparations to keep me busy right up to the last minute. I'll be working as long as possible as well. I get my teeth out this Thursday (joy), so that should be out of the way in time. Josh and Cathy agreed to take my books, Julie will probably get my cds and maybe even the stereo system. I think I'll just try to sell as much of the furniture as I can. Julie's girlfriend's roommate may take Ophelia (my pet snake), but I dunno yet. There's SO MUCH to figure out!!! I have to take 6 months' worth of all my meds with me, and one of them is a control. This is going to be both complicated and expensive. If anybody has any brilliant ideas during the coming 6 weeks, let me know.

2002-12-22T14:02:00.000-05:00

Got news of my medical clearance on Friday.

2002-12-18T13:55:00.000-05:00

Got a call from Heather Lee, my Peace Corps recruiter, on Monday. She says my application's been labeled "express," and she expects that I'll have an Invitation by the end of the week. I, of course, have been literally bouncing through the last few days. I'll have to wait for snail mail for the details, but I can keep checking online for any change in my status. Problem 1: my computer is royally f***ed. Dad's working on it, but it doesn't sound too good, so I have to snag internet time from the college and the public library in the meantime. *gag* Problem 2: I'm still running into problems w/ my dental insurance. Supposedly they're working on it, though. Gotta get those teeth out fast. Heather says to plan on leaving the beginning of February. Julie is going bonkers trying to find a friend who might want to take my place in the house. Yee-ha, here we go!!!!!

2002-11-21T11:15:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Ericka for this one.

What Type Of Retro Gal Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

2002-11-20T12:17:00.000-05:00

Yeep. Okay, I have a little bit of Peace Corps news, not bad, but still not terribly pleasing. Apparently I have to have ALL of my wisdom teeth removed. And I don't even have dental insurance yet. And I rather like my teeth just the way they are. *Sigh* I especially do not like the big long novocaine needles coming at my face bit. Urrgh. (Please, gods, let me pass out first!) On another note, though, it seems I now have placement clearance, which I think means they've decided I've got the skills and such necessary, but doesn't yet mean I'm medically cleared. Or something like that. Their explanation on the website implies that medical clearance comes first, but it hasn't, so I have no idea what the status actually is.
Leonard (my current whatever) says if he were 20 years younger he'd get me to stay. Not "try," but succeed. I told him I've been in the application process longer than I've known him, so he might as well get over it. What is it about men that they think they're more important to us than anything else? Grrrr.

2002-11-12T10:12:00.000-05:00

Last Thursday I was finally able to send off all of my medical forms. *whew* Supposedly it'll take 4-6 weeks for them to be processed. We shall see. There are too many big holidays between now and then for me to quite believe it.

2002-10-21T13:23:00.000-04:00

Lately I've been hanging out more at Villa Rasa than anywhere else online...and I just haven't had much to say here. No new PC developments, of course, and not much else going on either. Julie and I both seem to have hooked up with others lately...her new girl came over last night, and I've been seeing a guy from work recently. I did cook for some friends from the choir last night, which was fun. Made a vegetarian pot pie thingy (not really very pie-ish), baked sweet potatoes, and lemon sponge pie. All kitchen crises were minor, so all in all I think it went pretty well. Today's usually my day off, but I agreed to cover for Dena since she's got a funeral or something like that to attend. Hey, another 4 hours at a fairly easy job is okay. Nothing much to do today, anyway.

2002-10-06T14:06:00.000-04:00

Almost everything I need for my Peace Corps medical review is done. All that's left at this point is my regular md visit on Oct. 24th. Hopefully I'll have insurance by then. I still haven't gotten anything from the insurance people yet. Of course, this last visit could very well be the one that makes or breaks it for me. Everything else has turned out quite well. My eyesight has actually improved, the dentist called me a "fluoride baby" and said my wisdom teeth could wait, and my therapist gave me a great recommendation/review. I even finished my own statement that they asked for, and that's writing. But now comes the part about asthma, allergies, and being overweight. I'm healthy, but I won't be surprised if they defer me for awhile anyway. *sigh* Maybe it'll be okay. Maybe they won't be as bitchy as health insurance companies are. At any rate, you'll know when I do.

2002-09-18T21:33:00.000-04:00

Ericka (metagnat) has a new forum-thingy for gaming geeks (and hangers-on like me).
Also: for us ancient folk.

2002-09-18T21:10:00.000-04:00

No one reads this thing, so I won't bother apologizing for ignoring it so long. We're officially Moved, by the way.

2002-09-04T23:01:00.000-04:00

I just came across an organization called the Farm Animal Reform Movement (FARM, of course). Somehow I keep picturing the pigs from Animal Farm getting retrained as "model citizens." Anybody else feeling paranoid these days?

2002-09-02T13:05:00.000-04:00

Yay Neil!

2002-09-01T21:01:00.000-04:00

Julie & I went to see the Indigo Girls at the Biltmore Estate last night. It's the first time I've ever seen the house in real life, but honestly I mostly ignored it. The show was fabulous!! Only the Girls could turn a crowd of mostly middle-aged lesbians and assorted others into a great big open-air singalong. Lol. We had this really sweet gay couple next to us and a bunch of rowdy, drunk rugby dykes behind us. Life is good. Only saw a few people we knew, which is probably a result of the higher ticket prices at that venue.

2002-08-30T21:57:00.000-04:00

Oh, heavens, where to start.....ok. Julie and I are moving. Again. To west Asheville, to a cute little white house with a blue door and two actual bedrooms. *contented sigh* The house was the landlord's mother's, so we actually get to meet her tomorrow morning. It's so cool to be connected that way. We might even have room for Julie's piano!! That's really the biggest news...I actually made 40 hours this week (or will have after tomorrow), which is something I haven't done in quite awhile. Feels good. I feel productive somehow.

2002-08-24T23:26:00.000-04:00

Mmmmmm.....Muppet toys.

2002-08-24T23:18:00.000-04:00

Interesting...according to this, I'm more Unitarian Universalist than Liberal Quaker or Secular Humanist, though in reality I prefer the latter two. Then again, I haven't given the Unitarians an honest try. I'm always afraid the service is going to degenerate into a campfire-singalong cheesefest. (I was a Girl Scout for 10 years. Yes, I actually liked singing by the campfire. I just don't want to get up on Sundays for it.) Any other opinions on this out there? Not that I can go church-hopping any time soon...maybe after the Christmas services and all.

2002-08-24T11:33:00.000-04:00

Got my medical forms and stuff when I got home from work yesterday. There's quite a lot of stuff which has to be sorted out and given to several different people. *sigh* Definitely a regular MD, dentist, opthalmologist, and psychiatrist. Not sure if I have to see my allergist yet or contact my therapist who moved to Michigan a few months ago. Good thing I have her email address still. The Medical Office even sent a FedEx overnight envelope to use when I'm all done. Interesting that the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT uses FedEx rather than the Postal Service when it's important enough.

2002-08-16T22:23:00.000-04:00

I got my Nomination letter today; basically it says that my references, background checks, and such were good enough to send my file over to the placement people and the Office of Medical Services. Now all I have to do is go through at least 5 medical examinations (regular, dental, and eye, plus my allergist and psychiatrist, I'm assuming). Joy. And I don't even have the forms yet. I have no idea how long it will take them just to send the things to me. Heather the Recruiter told me they're WAY behind already. I'm tired, and Josh is supposed to call at 10:30, so I'm not going to write any more now, but I'm sure I'll be back soon. Oh, by the way, Monica got into a writer's colony in Vermont!! Call and congratulate her!!

2002-08-16T11:24:00.000-04:00

Don't ask.

2002-08-16T10:35:00.000-04:00

Google! DayPop! This is my blogchalk: English, United States, Asheville, Kenilworth, Laurian, Female, 21-25!

2002-08-14T14:14:00.000-04:00

Yup.

2002-08-14T14:11:00.000-04:00

Hmmmm...maybe :) What did you get??

I'm Velma, which ambiguous dyke are you? Quiz by Turi.

2002-08-14T14:03:00.000-04:00

Dues for Symphony Chorus are now something like $75, not $25. And we have to move Sidhe practice to Tuesdays 'cause I'm going to be working Thursday nights, anyway. So no, I am definitely NOT singing the Messiah. No big loss, really, but it bugs me to know how exclusive they really are. Must be nice to know you won't be bothered by poor people singing next to you. Grrrrr.

2002-08-14T14:00:00.000-04:00

Ooh! Ooh! I'm a Nominee! More later when I get the actual piece of paper....

2002-08-09T23:08:00.000-04:00

(if you are under 18 or repressed, please ignore the post below. If not, try using the url for this blog....)

2002-08-09T23:07:00.000-04:00

BWAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAA!!!!!!!!

2002-08-09T22:45:00.000-04:00

I wonder if Sarah's back yet. And if so, where is ReP now? Hmmmm.....
So, I need a vote. Should I spend ridiculous amounts of money (like $80-something) on a horrifically fugly dress, plus $25 dues, just so I can sing Messiah this fall??? Yes, this ought to be a no-brainer, but it is rather nice to sing in a proper chorus once a week. *sigh* Anyway, tell me what you think.

2002-08-09T22:37:00.000-04:00

You're not leaving me any little notes. Shame on you.

2002-08-07T17:39:00.000-04:00

So, it may very well be old news to everyone but me, but Ani is putting out another double-Live album (like Living in Clip) Sept. 10, called So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter. I for one am pleased, though I'm sure my September budget will not be. Ani's studio albums are good, yes. But she is by nature a live performer. She's won more of my friends over at shows than she ever will with her studio albums. So, hip-hooray and all that. More live Ani is a fabulous thing. Now, when's she coming back to Asheville.........?

2002-08-06T22:14:00.000-04:00

Oooh...I like this one.

2002-08-06T21:50:00.000-04:00

It looks like I might actually have full-time work soon...by giving up two days at my current job and taking on a 24-hour overnight shift at the same company's group home in Canton. It's not a bad deal, really. I'd only have to drive to Canton once a week, I'd get Saturdays off for the first time in forever, and I get paid a bonus to sleep at the group home. Sweet. Oh, yeah, and medical insurance. A foreign concept for the past few years. In PC news, I finally faxed back the skill addendum for special ed work, so that's done, at any rate. It was kind of a pain, because I was supposed to detail my duties at all of these places, most of which I hadn't worked at in long enough that I wasn't sure what I did where anymore. (Okay, so that was a peculiar sentence.) It was also intended for teachers and teacher aides, not group home and CAP staff like me, so the questions had to be modified to fit the answers a good bit.

2002-08-01T22:58:00.000-04:00

YES!!!!

	You are Kermit! Though you're technically the star, you're pretty mellow and don't mind letting others share the spotlight. You are also something of a dreamer.
*Take the What Muppet Are You?* Quiz!**

2002-08-01T11:37:00.000-04:00

Welcome to August, and happy Lammas! Everyone should eat something locally and organically grown today in honor of this harvest festival.
Now reading: The Toughest Indian in the World, by Sherman Alexie.
An apology to Jason: I told you I'd put up a photo of some hot guy just for the gay boys, but I haven't figured out how to ftp properly, so it'll just have to wait. I'm sure you can find them on the net better than I can, anyway ;) .

2002-07-31T20:35:00.000-04:00

Yay! It's back! And I got little notes from Julie and Janna!!! Whee! Now Julie and I are off to play pool. We know how to keep our priorities in order, you see. 'Nighties all around. ;)

2002-07-31T13:00:00.000-04:00

Yes. Enetation is spoggly. Well, poo. That's rather disappointing. Not a lot new here, by the way. Mom & I are singing the Verdi Requiem again in Brevard on Sunday and they were nice enough to give us one comp ticket each, so I think Julie's going. Tralalala. Matt's job hunting again, like the rest of us...he's good with computers but doesn't have any certifications, and he doesn't want to work with kids or anything like I've been doing. So, if anyone out there notices something brilliant, email me (look up & right) or, if the comments are working, leave a note here. Thanks, y'all.

2002-07-31T12:52:00.000-04:00

Well, apparently the comment system is down. I don't yet know if it's because I have no idea what I'm doing, or because Enetation is all spoggly, but I shall try to find out shortly.

2002-07-24T08:52:00.000-04:00

You know, I oughtta name this thing the Blog of Eternal Stench, but I've kinda gotten used to the title you see above. Oh, well.

2002-07-23T22:53:00.000-04:00

OOOOOOOOOkay....I think I now have a working comment system. If anyone out there actually visits/reads this thing, please try leaving a little note to say hi and help me test the system. Thanks muchly.

2002-07-23T22:01:00.000-04:00

Interesting...I was going to write an entry about how depressed I was today, for no good reason, but apparently Verdi can fix anything. My shrink routinely asserts that too much [insert ADD med of choice here] trips me out because I'm mildly bipolar. Maybe, but doesn't that mean it's still too much meds??? I mean, really. Yes, I get depressive every few months or so. But I am aware of this and usually I can just adjust my interpersonal communication a bit and listen to lots of Rage and Ani and generally take it out on the Man. I can neither afford nor do I particularly want to take antidepressants just so I can take more ADD meds. Huh-uh. No way. I can deal with the occasional pointless blues if I have to. Just the way I can deal with the way people look at me oddly when I'm pointlessly manic. If it gets worse someday, then we'll do something about it.
Anyway, today. Rage therapy was only mildly helpful 'cause I couldn't very well listen to them at work. But I noticed that singing in the car (along with Sarah McLachlan's Solace, in this case) made me feel marginally better anyway. And by chance, the first Symphony Chorus rehearsal for our Verdi Requiem concert next month was tonight. By the end, I was damn near chipper. No wonder I insist on singing in three groups at once most of the time, even when I was working three jobs and volunteering too. Basically, I've decided that I don't really give a damn if anyone else wants me to sing in public or not. Not singing is probably hazardous to my health. So there. If I ever feel the need for a calling, that should be good enough. Sing, or be pissed off at myself and the world around me...at least until I have to start laughing hysterically again. :)

2002-07-23T21:40:00.000-04:00

Wow. Okay, so I seriously dislike eggplant, and I have no idea what gravlax is, but I'm dying to try Trout Newspaper now. By the way, Neil clarified on his site that the oven is set for 350 degrees, in case you're curious.

2002-07-19T13:46:00.000-04:00

I am so proud. We now have a proper website! Nothing fancy, and it's still got some problems, but at least there's contact information, a performance calendar, and a news page. Very happy that, and not too bad for someone who really hasn't a clue, eh? Yay.

2002-07-17T22:57:00.000-04:00

For Mom:

Somewhat of a loner, you prefer to remain hidden

in the background, quietly observing others. Still, this doesn't mean

you aren't a force to be reckoned with - heaven help

anyone who rubs you the wrong way!

2002-07-17T21:34:00.000-04:00

I'm going to keep writing posts in the hopes "that at some point during this show [Blogger] will work." If you get that reference, all hail you. Wanted to tell y'all that we get to play Black Mountain's Sourwood festival next month. 7:30pm on Saturday August 10th. Be there.

2002-07-17T12:11:00.000-04:00

Blogger appears to be having some publishing problems, so I have no idea when this stuff will actually be up...my apologies. Anyway...
PC update: My rogue reference finally turned up...the volunteer who was asked to mail it didn't. Rather inconsiderate, but his/her supervisor was supposed to be handing it to me instead anyway. Kinda screwed up all the way around. But, my recruiter is here in Asheville this week doing some interviews, so I was able at long last to give her all the materials she needs at this point. (For the curious, this includes two sets of fingerprints, an FBI background check form, three references, and my two college transcripts. If only I were actually that interesting.) She was nice and we talked a little more about what program she should nominate me to--Community Development/Caribbean--and she's going to fax me another form to detail my experience with MR/DD/etc. youth early next week when she gets back to DC. So, that's another step done. I'm still technically an Applicant until the nomination goes through. Peace Corps has this series of titles for people from the time they apply to when they return from service. And everything's capitalized, even things like Service and Training and such. Here's the list:
Applicant
Nominee
Invitee
Trainee
Volunteer
RCPV
As you can see, I'm still at the beginning. Hopefully, even though I realize they're not pretty, my transcripts will be good enough, and my references will be good. We shall see.
To anyone bored by the Peace Corps stuff on this site, sorry, but I started it largely because I wanted a start-to-finish record of what joining and working in the Peace Corps is like. There are a number of logs on the net, but none (that I found) are very thorough, and none record these very early stages. I wanted to read about others' experiences, and I think there is some value to potential applicants in a readily accessible online log. So there. :)

2002-07-17T11:31:00.000-04:00

what's your inner flower?

[c] s u g a r d
e w

2002-07-17T11:07:00.000-04:00

I am Rumpelstiltskin!

Find your fairy tale character at kelly.moranweb.com.

2002-07-15T10:53:00.000-04:00

Happy birthday to me...and d....and lots of other people yesterday. :) My friends are so cool...we had a hair-dying party yesterday afternoon and they surprised me with a cake with pretty strawberries on top and then we all went to meet d at the New French Bar and apparently I've given up on breaking things into proper sentences today. Julie gave me Harry Potter legos...the set with Fluffy and a nifty Devil's Snare trap to drop people in. Heeheehee. And Mom and Dad gave me tickets to the Indigo Girls at Biltmore. Very exciting, that. I sure as hell couldn't afford it, and I'm still kind of ticked at them for booking such an expensive show when usually they say they try to keep their ticket prices reasonable. Oh, well. I'm still excited. Hope it doesn't rain.

2002-07-11T14:12:00.000-04:00

excuse me while I hurl....

and for my dad: is Dilbert hiding in your computer??

2002-07-11T13:35:00.000-04:00

Ummm...religious??!!? Sure. Whatever. I do know they need a copy editor.

What Was Your PastLife?

2002-07-11T13:23:00.000-04:00

Monday was Kathe Kollwitz' birthday. And today in 1968, the American Indian Movement was founded in Minneapolis.

2002-07-11T13:07:00.000-04:00

PC update: That third reference was supposedly mailed LAST Tuesday. It is now Thursday of the following week and it's still not here. The recruiter says to give it a few more days, but frankly, it ain't gonna show. Dammit. So now I get to go through it all over again...grrrrrr. It'd be nice to have some good news for a change.

2002-07-11T13:00:00.000-04:00

Ooooh, neato!

2002-07-06T21:56:00.000-04:00

I believe this shall be a musical post today. I went to see Ginny Wilder and bj bowen last night at Hairspray. Faboo, of course. Ginny will be at Bele Chere and she's got a new album release scheduled for August. Tomorrow afternoon at 2, Sidhe will be playing Sweet Heaven for the kiddies and assorted others. Yay! Also in the news, my brother Matt agreed to trade off the family guitar again in May, and I've actually learned a few more chords and can now torture Julie with truly horrifying renditions of "Leaving on a Jet Plane," "Blowing in the Wind," and "Father and Son." Even I refuse to play "Kum Ba Yah," but it was funny to see her expression when I threatened to. My fingers, of course, hurt like hell, and I can't play a bar chord to save my life, but I'm having fun.

2002-07-03T10:51:00.000-04:00

"Oh, there you are. Where on earth were you?"
"I was kidnapped by aliens," said Coraline. "They came down from outer space with ray guns, but I fooled them by wearing a wig and laughing in a foreign accent, and I escaped."
"Yes, dear. Now, I think you could do with some more hair clips, don't you?"

2002-07-03T10:34:00.000-04:00

Sigh. I just spent $67.86 for a mechanic to hook my engine up to a computer, decide that they don't know why the little engine light keeps coming on, and tell me to call them on Monday if it shows up again or if Hazel does anything weird. Great. So much for groceries this month.
My Peace Corps recruiter called Monday...I think we've decided to try for a nomination to a Special Ed program in the Caribbean (probably the Dominican Republic). That particular program leaves February 17, 2003. My next preference would be for a Health Extension project dealing with HIV education, which would more than likely put me somewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa. Wouldn't that be odd. I'm still waiting on that one reference. When I called Monday she said she was "still working on it"...never mind that it should have been done June 24th. Grrrr again. And of course now it's a holiday, which means mail service is goofy this week, even if she does get it done, like, now.
Jeez, I'm cranky today. I think I'd better go out and enjoy the weather, which is indeed lovely.

2002-07-01T10:31:00.000-04:00

Coraline tomorrow! (Testing the new window command Matt suggested. Matt works here.)

2002-07-01T10:20:00.000-04:00

Now I understand why my brother was confused. The link to the article about how a federal circuit judge ruled "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional changed to a link about how the same judge turned around and stayed his own decision. They must have used the same url for both articles. For the record, I agree with his original decision, not the stay. I could edit the post, but it's kind of interesting this way. I didn't expect them to reuse urls. In other news, only one more day of catsitting. They're sweet (mostly), and not too much trouble, but changing an immense litterbox used by five cats is thoroughly disgusting. I do like the access to other peoples' CD and book collections, though.
One of my PC references is now a week late in getting to me...and I did warn her about the deadlines before she agreed to do it because I knew she's probably one of the busiest people on the face of the earth. Grrr. I'll call again today if it doesn't show up at mailtime.

2002-06-26T16:42:00.000-04:00

Wow. A day off. And only because my employers are at the beach...I just love living by other peoples' schedules, really I do. Like when I'm forced to take an unpaid holiday like July 4, and lose hours no matter when I need a vacation. *sigh*. At least it's raining. I'm housesitting and if it rains I don't have to figure out how not to kill the plants. I can pawn all the responsibility off on Nature instead. :P
Poor Julie. She's got one of my PC reference forms, but she keeps consulting with our other friends to make sure she's doing it right. She's probably doing just fine, but it's sweet of her to try so hard. She's still got a day or two; I've only gotten one back so far.
Josh needs to update his blog, even if he is being studious right now. Josh, do well on your academic whatever-it-is, then let us know what's up. :)

2002-06-26T16:03:00.000-04:00

Is it bad that my first reaction to this headline was "YES!!!"?

2002-06-24T23:20:00.000-04:00

Today was Quebec National Day and the "Great Ripening of Berries" full moon according to the calendar. No wonder weird things happened. Not the Quebec part...although.... :) I'd put in a link for Quebec, but I can't read any of them...BAD Peace Corps applicant! Bad!

2002-06-24T23:13:00.000-04:00

So...get this...I drove all the way to Raleigh just to call DC from an empty office. Not that it was anyone's fault...the recruiter guy got a call this morning and had to leave for a family emergency. By that time, I was unreachable since he didn't have my cell # and Julie was at work. So we did a phone interview, which went fine, and if my references check out, Heather in DC will nominate me for a program. It looks like I could leave as early as January 7th, though there are other programs of interest leaving in February and May. After she does the nomination, I have to get medical and dental exams and be cleared medically, which could get tricky, but probably won't be too bad. If all goes well, after that I'll get an invitation to a particular program in a particular country, and I'll know a hell of a lot more about what's going to happen when at that point.
Raleigh wasn't a total waste; I got to see Stacy again--it's been quite awhile. I also ran into someone I'm not entirely sure I should have run into, but we didn't injure each other, so maybe it's okay. It's my own fault, I suppose; I knew he might be there, but curiosity got the better of me. Besides, the store was literally across the hall. God, I am such a weenie.
Oh, and Hazel was fine...she changed her mind, AGAIN, at about Morganton eastbound, and decided she was getting plenty of attention, thank you very much, and what did I mean she was an ingrate?? Couldn't I tell she was nothing of the sort? (Actually, now I just think she's a hypochondriac...sorry Hazel.) So thanks, all, it was a good trip.

2002-06-23T22:11:00.000-04:00

Never discuss personal hygiene with a bridge troll. Never trade casserole recipes with a black forest witch. But above all, when talking to the deputy mayor--NEVER MENTION THE DWARVES!

2002-06-23T22:01:00.000-04:00

Ya-Ya was...cute. Not that I expected anything else. Mom & I had fun though. I barely remember the book anyway, so I can't complain that it was "hollywoodized" or anything of that sort. Well, Raleigh tomorrow, and Hazel (my car) has decided yet again that she's just not getting enough attention, even though I actually CLEANED HER OUT and CHANGED THE OIL a few days ago. These are major events, y'all. Especially the cleaning bit. But, no, that wasn't enough. Now she wants her engine checked out. Ingrate. So everyone be praying/sending happy-car thoughts for me tomorrow so I at least get to the interview without having to call AAA.
Ooh...for my comic-reading friends: my fave local guru pointed out Fables #1 and #2 to me the other day. They're great! It's a new Vertigo title by Bill Willingham. Check it out if you can. I mean, really. Prince Charming is a gigolo and the Wolf is the Fuzz. It's fun.
Guess that's all for today. Goodnight, Gracie.

2002-06-23T13:25:00.000-04:00

Much better...the people who need to, know it's me, and those who don't need to know can't look me up in a phone book without doing at least a little research. Yay.

2002-06-23T13:23:00.000-04:00

test II.

2002-06-23T13:22:00.000-04:00

another test...don't mind me.

2002-06-23T13:13:00.000-04:00

Ok, I think I just figured out how to get my email up there on the right. The address is dragonlight@hotmail.com if it doesn't work.

2002-06-23T09:07:00.000-04:00

Oh...and another thing...Coraline comes out in 9 days! Yay!

2002-06-23T09:04:00.000-04:00

According to the Peace Calendar, nothing happened today. But yesterday was Katherine Dunham's birthday. Nifty. In other news, I'm going to see the Ya-Ya sisterhood movie tonight with my Mom. It'll be fun, even if the film sucks. Also, those of you who know d (and those who don't) should go see her perform tonight at Scandals at midnight. Apparently she's got a whole new show for everyone. I can't make it...I have to leave too early tomorrow morning and actually be awake for my interview. And another public service announcement: DON'T stick your card in Wachovia's downtown Asheville atm this weekend if you want it back before Monday. It ate mine Friday night and now I have to get it back Monday morning before I can leave. Wankers.

2002-06-23T08:49:00.000-04:00

It felt so nice
To sell your soul
Just think of that
I'm halfway there
I want it back

2002-06-22T20:06:00.000-04:00

Ok, guess this works...I dunno...it's newfangled and my brain is currently being gassed by the smells of baking bread in MY oven. Hah! Umm, if you haven't noticed yet, linear thought will NOT happen here very often. Thank you Josh for introducing me to blogspot. I love you dearie. And maybe I'll see you Monday night if you're lucky. SO. For all of the people I'm about to direct here, heeheehee...I love this thing. I don't have to be jealous anymore. Rah, as Ericka might say. NEWS: I have a *Peace Corps* interview this Monday at 2pm in Raleigh!!!! I am SO psyched! And if I add any more exclamation points, I'll be back in 8th grade, so I'd better lay off. Also in the news, I get to quit one of my three jobs in order to go fulltime at one of the others. Anyone who's talked to me in the last, oh, 3 years knows what a big deal that is. Can we say "benefits?" YES! Now we can! Ha! So, more soon if I don't get too distracted :)

2002-06-22T19:59:00.000-04:00

Testing 123