Why I Consider Hiding under my Desk

Can I just tell you that it makes me strangely uncomfortable when the cleaning people come through my office to empty the trash? I'm not really sure why that is, but I feel like I should be helping or something? I mean, granted, it's usually like an empty ketchup packet in my trash can, so it's no heavy lifting, but I still feel weird about it. Thus, I always try to escape to do something else when I hear them coming.

A New Year, A New...ish Me. Just Kidding, I'm Just the Same.

Sometimes I feel guilty for swearing. This is a good thing. I need to act like a lady more. Also, I need to stop saying that I want to punch people in the throat. However true (and appropriate) it may be, it probably gives the impression that I am a violent person.

I made Smitten Kitchen's chocolate chip sour cream coffee cake on New Year's Eve (which was a quiet evening) and it called for a whole bag of chocolate chips, which was way too much. If I make it again (and I will, when more than three people will be eating it), I will definitely use only half that much. The chocolate chips compete with the other delightful flavors too much.

Last night! I made Smitten Kitchen's (man, I love her) black bean soup in my Crock Pot. I put it on to cook when I went to bed and completed the prep work when I woke up this morning--pureeing half of it in the blender. Then, because it was hot, and contains no perishable ingredients, I left it on the counter to cool while I am at work. I will have my first taste for lunch today! My usual black bean soup recipe is "put beans and whatever else is on hand in pot. Cook." So, I am eager to see if following this recipe (which was pretty easy) will have a profound and favorable effect on the flavor. I am hopeful. It did require two cooking vessels and a small appliance (pan in which to saute veggies pre-soup, Crock Pot, blender), so it had better look like being tasty or I will punch it in the throat.

I am going to dinner tonight in the city with my friend and her boyfriend and brother, and I need to go home between work and dinner to pick up my car, put away the soup, and wash the blender. I could also, oh, I don't know--PUT ON MAKEUP? CLEAN SPOT OF OATMEAL OFF OF DRESS? BRUSH HAIR? Yeah, my personal beauty standards for work are pretty lax.

Oh, I may not have to work this Sunday! This would delight me, even though I could use the money, because I really like just sitting at home sometimes and I have been making some progress with decluttering and would like to do a little more of it this weekend.

One of my projects at work today is to Google this woman we are going to be working with and come up with some cogent thoughts on how we should describe our upcoming project to her in a way that matches her philosophies and work styles. Is it weird that I'm really excited about this? She has written a lot of stuff about management, so I am mostly reading a bunch of articles by her and taking little notes. And, this takes precedence over everything else I am working on and HECK YES. I love putting other work on hold to Google things.

Also, I may have found a new hobby, but I won't tell you about it until I know how it is coming together and that will be in about 2 weeks! So, prepare to be excited!

Hey, It's October!

Man, can you believe it's already October? I guess there are few things less interesting than people talking about how they can't believe how quickly time is passing. So, I'll move on. But, seriously--October!

I love fall! Growing up in Louisiana, I was seriously short-changed when it came to fall. We would have maybe seven days of beautiful, crisp, fall air and then it would be replaced by cold and rainy. This was in contrast to the rest of the year, which can be best characterized as hot and rainy. In leaving my apartment this week I have been particularly delighted by the chill in the air. I also have an adorable new cowl to wear that I got off of Etsy, so I am eagerly awaiting even chillier weather.

Also, something to note: as someone who does a great deal of reading long, tedious, government documents, I would like to say that the single greatest phrase in any of those documents is "This page intentionally left blank." Heck. Yes.

Baked Potato Outrage and the Ethics of Free Condiments

Tragedy to end all tragedies--I went to Fuddrucker's no less than 30 minutes ago to get a baked potato. I was so excited about it. I've been on kind of a baked potato kick lately, mostly satisfying my cravings by going through the Wendy's drive-thru. (They're not great, but they are potato-y, and that's really all I'm after) So, in doing a little research, I discovered that Fuddrucker's sells baked potatoes, with bacon, cheese, etc. Only they don't. Yeah, not really. When I asked about a baked potato, I was met with blank stares. Fine. That's fine.

Anyway, I decided to make the best of it and get a burger and potato wedges. They have this "dress your own" principle in place there, which I rather enjoy. My burger goes like this: mayo, brown mustard, ketchup, lettuce, single slice of tomato, single ring of purple onion, and about five pounds of pickle slices. They even have that ever-so-delicious/revolting liquid cheese dispenser. So, I got one little container of liquid cheese for my fries. Then, as I was debating whether it was enough, it occurred to me to use the pico de gallo on the toppings bar to make a half-assed queso with the liquid cheese. My friends, I stand here today to tell you that I have had better queso, but not made from accoutrements on a toppings bar.

So, it came out quite good. I was pleased, in general. Now, here's the conundrum: I would like to make more toppings-bar queso some day in the future. And I know that it's a big no-no to just go into Fuddrucker's, not purchase anything, and fix myself a little plastic container of queso. What if, the next time I went in to get lunch, I just made an extra container of queso and kept it in my fridge? Does that violate the ethics of condiment offerings?

Here's another--the place near my office that has good fries doesn't have ketchup. I did once (gulp) just walk into McDonald's and grab some ketchup to eat with the fries purchased elsewhere. I still feel guilty about this. But what if I grabbed a handful of packets the next time I got some McDonald's (far too frequent), knowing I wasn't going to use them for that meal? I just don't know. I mean, I wouldn't walk into a regular restaurant, grab a glass of water, drink it, and walk out. Where do I draw the line?

More Music

Recently, I created a new station on Pandora radio (I feel like I talk about this every other post) based on the Pet Shop Boys. I came to like them after I saw them in concert in Detroit in...2006? That seems about right. So I am definitely a fan-come-lately. The concert was outstanding, even for someone like me, who wasn't familiar with any of their music. The big finale, though, was their mix of "Where the Streets Have No Names/Can't Take My Eyes Off of You." Truly fantastic. And I think that cover at left shows how fantastically weird they are otherwise.

Oh, right, the Pandora station. Well, in addition to this, it also plays tons of Depeche Mode and other, weird New Wave. Some pleasant surprises in the category of bleepy, bloopy, dancy music: Basement Jaxx and the Scissor Sisters. I am a fan of the Scissor Sisters in general (although my lack of knowledge as to whether to include the definite article in front of their name probably shows how bad a fan I am), but I become particularly delighted when hearing their songs outside of the context of my iPod. It makes me feel like they are probably not counting on my lukewarm support to make their livings. Thank God. Basement Jaxx are new to me, and I really like them. Perhaps some downloading is on the way.

In other news, I helped my ex-Darlin' move over the weekend and I feel like every muscle in my body is sore. This has renewed my dedication to giving things away to charity every month. I not only helped him move, but I also helped him pack. Those of you who have moved lately probably know that it's the worst thing ever. There's just so much stuff. Every time you think you've reached the end, you realize that you haven't (a) cleaned out the hall closet, (b) cleaned out the refrigerator, (c) taken down the curtains and curtain rods, or (d) all of the above. And he has things that are still in boxes since moving to Virginia from Michigan two years ago, and he probably moved things here from Michigan that he packed up in St. Louis three years before that. It's just all so much.

So, he's moving from a one bedroom into a studio, which means some downsizing. We have already made several runs to Goodwill and will probably make several more. Currently, he's struggling with the dilemma: should I just get rid of everything that doesn't fit into the storage available to me in my new place, or should I construct something to hold all of the stuff that doesn't fit? I think he's leaning toward constructing; I'm leaning toward PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD JUST GET RID OF IT BECAUSE I SWEAR I WILL KILL YOU IF I MOVE THIS STUFF AGAIN IN TWO YEARS. The end.

The World Has Had Enough of Silly Love Songs

Or is the world not enough? No matter.

This, my friend, is a placeholder post. I have a link to my blog here in my favorites and I just skipped over it completely every day for five months. Now I am trying to get in the habit of clicking on the link again. And, after clicking, of posting something, inane though it may be.

I have been all about making lists lately--lists of Christmas presents to buy, chores to do, groceries I need, things I want to do to my apartment, etc. This afternoon will probably see me making a list of things I have to spend a lot of money on in the coming months.

Oh, what the heck. Here it is:

1. wedding gift for friends in October
2. Christmas presents for what seems like everyone I have ever met
3. trip home -- while this doesn't actually cost me that much money (maybe $150 in gas) (OK, that is a lot of money to me), it does mean I won't be working at retail job for two different weekends, which will cut down the size of my paycheck
4. trip to Boston in February

That list seems awfully short. Why am I so stressed about money? Weird. I'm sure there's more stuff that belongs on there. I will revisit it later.

So, yeah, nothing new. Just being stressed out about money and time.

Hey, speaking of nothing related! I went to a meeting yesterday where I got a time-sensitive visitor's pass (like the ones pictured here). I stuck it to my monitor at my desk so I could see if it changed color as obviously as they allege. Verdict--not quite as glaring as I would hope, but I suppose if my job were to check everyone's badge and make sure it wasn't covered in purple lines, it would do the trick.

What's that? This was a boring post. Yes, yes it was. I can't be perfect every time out. I'm not Ozzie Osbourne.

Save the Drama for Your Wife and Kids.

So, apparently some people around me at work are engaged in a pitched battle that is invisible to the naked eye. One of these people, who seems to believe that we are "friends," keeps taking shots at the other in my presence: asking about whether that person is doing their job properly and whether they're up to the task of supervising the people under them. Honestly, I have no idea and being asked makes me uncomfortable. I can't really figure out what the point is, as I have no power here and no one would benefit from my loyalty. I can only assume that some sort of power play is in the works and when it goes down, the asker intends to have me on their side. News flash--I'm here because I like my job and I have bills to pay. I am not interested in power plays and I'm certainly not on the side of someone who goes out of their way to take digs at their co-workers. I am interested in getting my paycheck on time, producing the things expected of me, and being able to go on vacation from time to time. That is all. Generally, I don't care. Do not care. Don't get me caught up in your foolishness.

In more news...recently, one of my friends, who we'll call Abigail, told me that another friend, who we'll call Zoë, reported that a third friend, who we'll call Peter, was talking about Abigail. Hold on, let's review: Zoë told Abigail that Peter was talking about Abigail. Clear? OK. I hope I can keep these names right. Anyway, the three work together and are friendly. I understand, though, that sometimes your co-workers tick you off and you have to vent to someone. So, OK--Peter tells Zoë that Abigail didn't do something right at work? Or that she is driving him crazy? Cool. Why would Zoë ever tell Abigail that? Abigial seems to be of the impression that Zoë likes to create drama in people's lives, which is probably true.

I wonder, though, what good Zoë thought would come from her telling Abigail about it. If it was something personal that Peter said about her, then (were I in that position) I would have spoken up and defended Abigail, because she's my friend. And I probably wouldn't have told her unless it was really serious. Because only hurt feelings can arise from this, and it will only cause tension in Abigail and Peter's relationship. Regardless of what was said, what good could have come from this? They still have to work together. What makes this more suspect is that Zoë won't tell Abigail what Peter said, only that he was talking about her. This whole thing smacks of high school and makes me a little angry at Zoë and a little sad for Abigail. As far as Peter is concerned, he's not the type to say actual negative things about one of his friends or co-workers to another co-worker. Maybe venting, but not a snide personal remark. And, frankly, definitely not to Zoë.

Oh, and why Dwight? Because all of this reminds me of his attempts to be disloyal to Michael. And remember the alliance with Jim? Yeah.