Reality TV Addict

If you have read my comments on Jen's blog, then you know that I watch reality TV. My second biggest addiction is Big Brother. (My fave reality show is The Amazing Race.) I was watching the archive tonight of the online talk show. Look for the episode from 7/27. (Last summer when I was unemployed, I watched the show live. Just the talk show. I refused to pay for the live feed. Besides I didn't need to; between the talk show and the chatrooms, I learned all I needed to know about the live feed.) You really should watch this episode. About 3/4 of the way through the show is "the kiss." (Perhaps I will discuss my feelings about one of my other reality faves, Kept, in another post.)

I saw it and said that it is time to say goodbye to Natasha and head on out into the night. Damnit. She used to be fascinated by the screen only but now the mouse and keyboard are just as fascinating.

Bored and procrastinating at work

Yes, that's right. I'm at work. On a Saturday. Actually I work every other Saturday. It's the only part of my job that I really don't like. It is so hard getting here by 9 on a Saturday. I think that that particular hour on a Saturday is the weekend equivalent of crack of dawn.

So I decided to post this one question that has been bothering me for some time. How do you know when blue cheese has gone bad?

I would also like to whine. I got an email from a friend on Thursday. Apparently Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is in the area -- something like a 15 minute drive away from where I work. If I hadn't had to work this weekend, I could be out stalking Ty.

Life is so unfair. Then again I will be getting a nice fat bonus check next month.

As the blog turns

So I have spent the past week debating about whether I should share the stories of Melrose Place, my name for my current building. Normally I would share the stories but then I have become friends with one of my neighbors -- who is the center of the best building story. I have held back on this story because she recently asked for my blog address. (If you haven't figured it out yet, Dagny is an alias. Bonus points, or perhaps baked goods, to the person who can correctly say where I found the name. Sorry Gloria but you are eliminated from the competition.) Needless to say I thought I was totally tapped for post topics but then my mom came through.

Tonight I was on my way home from work when my cell phone rang. Looking at the caller ID I realized it was my mom and quickly hung up on my dad. (Perhaps I'll devote another post to my parents and how truly dysfunctional they are.) So glad I did because mom provided the requisite drama that had been missing from my life -- today.

My mom lives outside of the US most of the year and returns to Cali in the summers. She apparently met this other ex-pat in the last few months in her "real home." (OK. It is her real home because she has been living there for ten years now.) This guy has returned to the States and wanted my mom to meet him in the LA area. My mom called me earlier in the week to say that I would have to take her to the airport. (As she said this, I had flashbacks of the last time I went to visit her. I was looking for something and mistakenly opened a dresser drawer. The drawer contained a jumbo box of condoms. I really should discuss this with a therapist because I know that I have been further scarred.) My mom has had some misgivings about this planned trip as the guy is in SoCal meeting with a religious group. Today she finally got him to give her the name of the organization. If I could remember the exact name of the group, I would provide you with a link. My mother, upon learning the name, did a little research. She confirmed that the group is a cult. She called me because she wanted my advice on how to tell this guy "no." I told her to start the email with, "I regret to inform you that I will have to decline your invitation..."

Being sick and twisted as I am, I immediately thought upon hanging up the phone that I should have told her to go. I mean, can you imagine the quality blog posts I could have gotten out of the whole thing? I think the deprogramming thing could have been worth at least two weeks of posts...

I need a drink

I, like a fool, took a couple of days off from work last week. Why? Because my dad had planned a reunion for his side of the family this past weekend. Unfortunately the reunion was in Sacramento -- boring!

Needless to say that after a few days with family, I think that I might be set for oh about a couple of years or so. I am seriously thinking about not attending the next reunion. Of course I say this every time and then turn around and waste precious vacation time with people who I don't like that much.

First there's my uncle's wife. She's Pentacostal. One of the first things she said to me upon my arrival was, "You're reading Harry Potter? How can you? That stuff is evil." *sigh*


Then there is my cousin who has the three most misbehaved children I have ever met. If only they'd let me discipline the kids...

I would go into more but it's easier to leave it with this final thought. I was never much into soap operas growing up. Why? Because the stuff that happens in my family could rival most soap opera plots.

My name is Dagny and I am a packrat...

There should be a Packrats Anonymous. Instead we are stuck with reality shows like Clean Sweep. I'm sorry but I don't want to admit to the world that I have a lot of stuff and am not willing to part with it. (Actually I am willing to part with some of it. I finally had to admit that I no longer have room for the Nancy Drew books I collected in elementary school and so I am giving them to a family friend who is going into the fourth grade. May she enjoy them as much as I did. I am not giving up my Little House series though.) See it's ok for to admit to all of you what a packrat I am. I mean, did you really think that my name is Dagny? (Kudos to the person who knows from where the name comes.) That is why I am willing to let complete strangers see what a mess I can create when I want to.

So I have gotten down to the last few boxes. It is getting harder to get rid of stuff. The problem is having stuff that is in good shape that I just know that I don't want. I feel horrible throwing it out. I'm going through books to see which I can donate to the public library. Now that I have a bed, I have realized that perhaps I can get away with some underbed storage. This might also be a plus because if there are boxes under the bed, then Natasha cannot hide there waiting to pounce on my feet. (It is time to trim the claws once more. She has gouged me on my collarbone once more. I tell you, there is nothing worse than having a kitten hanging from your collarbone.) Fewer hiding places for her may be a good thing. Also getting her to realize that electrical cords are not chew toys would be even better.

So I went to the Ikea and the Target sites to see what they had available in underbed storage. (I know. I am finally getting to the point.) I was inspired to write this post because of Gloria. When I saw this item on the Target site, I instantly thought of her. It's a shame the product received bad reviews.

On the road

I was at work today thinking to myself that I really need to take some time off. Usually this means taking a road trip. Of course now that we are under new ownership, asking for some time off might be kind of tricky. Besides, I want to save up my vacation time to head to Europe next March. (There's a part of me that says I should go to London once more but another part says that I should finally go to Paris. Then again, maybe I should go to Ireland.) When I need a quick getaway, I hop in my car and head south. I looked at the calendar to see what weekends I have off in September. (I have to work every other weekend.) It seems that I have Labor Day weekend off. Yes, I know the traffic will suck but it should be a four day weekend for me. So I'm thinking road trip...

Hard at work

I finally got a bed. That means that I have been spending today dealing with the mess that was the bedroom. When I looked in the closet, I realized that I only had room for two more boxes. That means a ton of stuff has to go. I have a bag and a half of garbage so far. In the process I am becoming reacquainted with the floor. I am determined to have some semblance of order because the bed is made and I plan to sleep in it. I also need to be able to open the doors so that I can see the TV from bed.

Also the cute Persian boy may want to stop by. (Yes, it's that kind of relationship but when one is nearing that unmentionable age, I think one is entitled to have some fun. I guess this is why I have been such a great fan of Kept.) I am worried about Persian boy though. He seems to have a great interest in Natasha. She seems to have that effect on men. Very strange.

Once I have the mess completely taken care of, I will of course post photos. What good is showing the before shots if I don't show the after?

The best laid plans

So I thought that when I had Natasha's claws trimmed that it would signal the start of my ability to return to the internet. I was a fool. It seems that she is no longer fascinated by my typing; the true fascination lies in watching the screen. (She is currently perched on my desk watching my typed text appear on screen.) Bottom line is that typing can be ok but trying to read someone else's blog while a kitten's body is stretched across the center of the monitor can be rather difficult. If things were not so insane at work, I'd be able to take care of my reading at lunch -- which occured around 3:00 today.

Today my boss asked me once more if I would be interested in doing her job. Since her dad's stroke a couple of weeks back or so, she has decided that I could do her job quite well. My friend, Yvonne, seems to think that I should not think about what I like to do but instead think about the paycheck at the end of the day. My boss was completing her new benefits paperwork today. She showed it to me to see if she had completed it correctly. There was a section marked "Employer Only" that she had completed that showed salary information. I told her that she didn't need to complete that section. What I learned is that her base salary is about the same as mine after bonuses. Makes one ponder...

Lawyers really irritate me

That's right. I said it. My first thought was to say that I hate lawyers but I think that saying that they irritate me is more on point.

What is about lawyers that they must act like condescending assholes to everyone else? (Now before I get a flood of comments, I don't mean all of them. It just seems to be a trait that shows up in lawyers more than other professions.) Basically this all stems from a meeting I had tonight with a parent.

He wanted to know about a possible refund. I explained our policy to him. He said that the former director had told him that she would uphold a refund policy other than our standard policy. When I began looking to see if she had made note of the conversation, he then proceeded to try to explain to me that an oral agreement is perfectly binding and that no writing is necessary. I told him that I was well aware of that and proceeded to pull out the copy of our written policies that he had signed. When I pointed out that everything that I had just said was in the document, he said he knew that. He said they had had the conversation as a result of the clause. My response? "Huh. It would seem like one of you would have made note of the change on this document."

When I called my mom, because it was 8:30 and I was still at work and needed company, she asked, "Did this man know that you once attended law school?" Of course he didn't. Why else would he try to explain basic contract law to me?

They just irritate me. That's all I'm going to say.

Birthday loot

This has been an exceptionally hectic week at work. First of all, there was the change in ownership of where I work. We are now owned by corporate instead of a franchisee. This meant that after working all day yesterday, I had to attend a three-hour meeting with the corporate HR folks.

I realized this morning that I still had not posted photos of the main birthday loot. I tried to take photos this morning in my half awake state but later realized that they look like crap. Then I just decided to look for the items on the web. Here is the gift from my mom. I haven't tried it out yet but I have primed the pump.


Melita Java Pod

The gift I am really excited about is the one from dad.


Kitchenaid Pro Stand Mixer

Now I just have to decide what to make next.

Natasha is pretty mellow today. I took her to the vet today for a booster shot. I also asked them to trim her claws since she won't let me do it. The vet's assistant said that after all these years her cat won't let her trim his claws either. Now I don't feel so bad. This means that I can sit at the computer once more without worrying about having a claw hooked into my collarbone for a bit.

The cat has also possibly messed up my dating action. I just realized as I sat down to type this post that the cute Persian boy left his phone number on a post-it on the computer screen. If sitting at the computer was not a sure-fire way to end up in excruciating pain, I would have noticed this earlier. Perhaps I'll call...