June 26, 2003
Rude Awakening
The overpowering scent of skunk woke me out of a sound sleep at 3:30 this morning. I jumped out of bed and turned my fan around, hoping it would blow the foul stench back out the window. No such luck. I got no releif from the heat in the stale, still air. It just hung there, dispersing through the apartment, choking us. An effective defense if there ever was one - except I don't know what we ever did to that skunk to deserve such a rude awakening.
Posted by criminal at 07:07 AM | Comments (3)
June 25, 2003
I'm Melting
And Liz broke something. Its 88 degrees outside. Amy just went home because its 80 degrees in the office. Good thing she left before things started to get funky. She said we could all get out of the heat, but where am I going to go? My apartment doesn't have AC, so its probably not much better there. We've figured out that the temperature is going up now. Since I started writing its gone up a degree and a half. They seriously need to figure this place out and get it to a normal temperature.
UPDATE: Liz didn't actually break anything, but she thought she did, which was funny enough.
Posted by criminal at 02:26 PM | Comments (1)
June 24, 2003
Hey Fatso
Ugh. I feel fat today and it sucks. Not only am I a bit bloated but I've somehow managed to gain ten pounds in the last month. After a year of maintaining my weight and even losing very slightly, I'm slipping. This happened when I started working at Compaq too. Its how I got to be 300 pounds in the first place. I don't think going out to lunch every day is as much of a problem as not going to the gym. I'm not exactly inactive, but I'm not proud of my activity level. If I started working out again my energy level might go up as well. It might also make me feel a little less like a walking bowl of Jell-O.
Posted by criminal at 08:49 AM | Comments (0)
June 23, 2003
Keynote
We watched Steve Jobs' keynote address in the office this afternoon. I'm excited to see Panther, the latest version of OS X. It makes a few of the improvements I've been looking for since I crossed over. Not only did they unveil Panther, but they showed off the G5. Since it was leaked to the website last week, they kind of had to uwrap it. Its pretty sweet - blows other personal computers out of the water - but it won't be available until August. So I'll wait patiently, hoping that WPI might find it in their budget to put one on my desk. At the very least, we'll end up with the OS upgrade.
Posted by criminal at 02:14 PM | Comments (0)
June 21, 2003
Scalloped
Martha Stewart went diving for scallops and sea urchins on her FoodTV show today. It really made me miss Maine. It also made me think I should try scallops again (I've never liked their fishy taste). I think I'll pass on the urchins though.
Posted by criminal at 12:05 PM | Comments (0)
June 20, 2003
Friday Five for June 20, 2003
1. Is your hair naturally curly, wavy, or straight? Long or short? Naturally curly but mostly straight. Its hard to explain, but the end result is hair that curls under (or up) without any blowdrying or brushing and a mane or tiny ringlets around my face. Right now it just grazes my shoulders, which is relatively short for me.
2. How has your hair changed over your lifetime? I always had super short hair growing up. Once I turned 10 I got to grow it out and experiment with perms. I did the huge bangs, the pompadour, and the hippie center-part. Since then it has spent most of its time long and in a ponytail or bun. I also dyed it a variety of auburn and dark brown shades until 2 years ago.
3. How do your normally wear your hair? Its usually down and brushed with a tiny flip at the ends if I'm going anywhere. If I'm just hanging out its in a ponytail.
4. If you could change your hair this minute, what would it look like? Thicker. I miss having thick hair. I might also make it a little curlier so that it would actually look wavy instead of messy.
5. Ever had a hair disaster? What happened? I had lice once as a kid. Rather than struggle through the perm that had grown half way out, my mom cut all the curls off, giving me a mangled bob. I was devastated at the time, but in retrospect it was a good call. And at least she didn't shave my head.
Go on, get your own Friday Five.
Posted by criminal at 03:35 PM | Comments (0)
Nothing Much
I haven't got a lot to write about today. I reorganized my kitchen a bit last night, downloaded a few songs to (someday) make a new mix out of, and made some mashed potatoes. The lid to Liz's Calphalon wok fell and cracked when the cookbooks staged their mutiny. If its not covered under a warranty I'll be replacing it. It was an accident, but I feel bad just the same. At work the grad catalog is nearly finished, so I'll be looking for something new to do pretty soon.
Posted by criminal at 03:19 PM | Comments (2)
June 17, 2003
Playing With the Big Boys
Jon is on his way to St. Louis to meet with upper-level management. He'll spend tomorrow morning in meetings, giving the big boys a chance to grill him. Apparently they want to get to know management candidates before positions need to be filled. Its a compliment to even be invited. Jon knows it, and he has been incredibly nervous. He even went and bought a new outfit to wear, hoping to make the right impression. I wish there were more I could do to put him at ease.
Posted by criminal at 09:42 AM | Comments (0)
Office Update
My new chair and chair pad were delivered yesterday. They're pretty darn cool and they've drastically improved my comfort. The chair is a 4700 series Mobius by HON. I think I have the black high-back executive with a charcoal print. Its swell. On an even happier note, we have light now. For at least a month the only working light in the office has been over my desk. Plant Services was in yesterday cleaning them and putting in new bulbs. Now everyone can see.
Posted by criminal at 09:24 AM | Comments (0)
I Forgot
In all my effort to get work done, I forgot to post in my journal yesterday. Oh well. And its not like I was missed all that much. My sister complained that I didn't post over the weekend, making her worry that I might've been dead, so I guess this is for her. I'm alive. And well, barring that bit of nausea I experienced last night. I promise to make more of an effort to post, but there's really not a whole lot to say sometimes.
Posted by criminal at 09:02 AM | Comments (1)
June 13, 2003
MaxiMan
Men need education in feminine hygiene. Take for example Jake, a work study in the Web Office, who does not know how to use a maxi pad. The poor kid had a pilonidal cyst removed from his tailbone last week, so he has an open wound. I know a few people (including several family members) that have been through it, so I can sympathize. The gauze wasn't holding up quite as well as he had hoped, so I suggested that he put a panty liner on the back of his shorts to absorb any extra fluid and protect his pants. He scoffed at the idea, but after a while gave in. But, since he's a man with little to no knowledge of feminine hygiene products, he put the sticky side on his bandages. He was so worried that it would get glue all over his clothes. Now he'll have to deal with pulling it off his skin, all because he wasn't properly educated. These sorts of things should be covered in mandatory life skills classes in junior high school.
Posted by criminal at 02:31 PM | Comments (2)
Hooray for Fridays
Its Friday. I stayed up late watching the Red Sox. I have plenty of things to do at work. I'm not broke. I have the apartment to myself. I'm going out with Jon tonight. And I feel good. Hooray.
Posted by criminal at 09:47 AM | Comments (0)
June 12, 2003
The Full Monty
I really need to make myself a few mix CDs for work. I've had the soundtrack from the Full Monty on for the last couple days and its getting ugly. I keep dancing around the office and bouncing in my chair. Pretty soon I'll end up stripping. I'm pretty sure that would be frowned upon, so I need to find something a little less groovy but just as upbeat. Any suggestions?
Posted by criminal at 03:44 PM | Comments (0)
Good Afternoon
So today we've learned that miserable mornings can turn into good afternoons. I had plenty of things to do at work, which makes me happy. Then we got some good lunch at New England Roast Beef and went to Commonweath Office Furniture to pick out my desk chair. The chair is pretty cool - I picked the only one without a price tag. But oddly enough, it ended up being $225, which was pretty reasonable for the new chairs they had. The neat thing about the store was the amount of used office furniture they sell. The dot com meltdown has left them with a lot of neat stuff at good prices. Anyway, when we got back I made a trip to HR to get a tuition remission form and to inquire about my paycheck. They told me that it would likely get rolled into June, so I wanted to know whether I would have to pick it up or it would be directly deposited. It turns out that I've had a paper check sitting in the office for nearly two weeks. That definately puts me in good spirits. It was even a little more than I expected. Jon called this afternoon too, returning my early morning call. He played well and had a good day, which also makes me happy, considering how down he was about work yesterday. Sometimes its amazing how quickly fortune can change.
Posted by criminal at 03:34 PM | Comments (0)
Long Beautiful Hair
At least I'm having a good hair day. That's probably because I took the time to blow dry it a bit. Its still too early to tell whether or not the humidity will turn it into a curly mess. Since I got it cut last friday the waves have been a little more pronounced, or maybe just more obvious. It just grazes my shoulders now and I really like it.
Posted by criminal at 10:25 AM | Comments (0)
A Morning
You know your morning is on the wrong track when you don't hit the snooze button... So maybe it didn't start bad, but it got progressively worse. Things were actually good until I got out of the shower and decided to iron my wrinkly pants. I don't mind ironing at all (although I'm not that good at it - perhaps with practice my pressing skills will improve) but I've found it can be quite dangerous. This morning the ironing board swung towards me while I was pressing near the edge, burning the top of my thigh. [Mental note: wear full pants while ironing] Ouch. I also tried to call Jon to wish him luck in today's golf tournament, but missed him. Next, I had to deal with apartment security issues. The landlord finally put the new lock in last night, so I had keys made. I told Liz that if she wasn't back at the apartment by 8:45 she would need to stop by the office to get a new key from me. Just before 8:45 she called to ask if I would leave the keys with the door open. She seemed a bit upset when I told her no. I wasn't too happy about either, especially after the landlord lectured me about security because of the open windows in her room. My first apartment was broken into because Lauren forgot to put the little tabs up and I really don't want to go through that again. Remembering this, I went into her room and closed the windows most of the way so that the tabs would work, dropping her window fan on my foot in the process. Then I waited for her and Jeremy because she didn't seem to think she'd be able to make it to the office, 3 blocks from Jeremy's apartment. I'm not mad, just confused. The same girl who always locks the front door when watching TV in the living room leaves her first-floor windows wide open and asks me to leave the front door unlocked. It was just more frustration that I wanted this morning.
Posted by criminal at 10:00 AM | Comments (0)
June 11, 2003
hot chocolate
Only yesterday I was on my own
Just another day later my mind was blown
You sexy thing come into my life
Forever and a day it feels so right
How did ya' know that I'd be the one
Been a long time coming only just begun
Doing all the things that makes my heart sing
Keep doing what you're doing you sexy thing
[Hot Chocolate, You Sexy Thing]
Posted by criminal at 09:44 AM | Comments (0)
Blueberry Summer
When I stopped at Shaw's on my way to work to pick up salad fixings I saw blueberries. Lots of blueberries. Pints were 2/$3, which for me means that it is officially summer. I of course bought a pint to accompany my spinach, but I'm sure they'll be gone long before the spinach is.
Posted by criminal at 08:31 AM | Comments (1)
June 10, 2003
What Was I Thinking?
I must have eaten something funky at lunch - its the only way to explain that last post. It came out way to wistful. Looking at Tom's site just got me thinking about how we met, which led to music and the FYWE. And thinking about the wind ensemble is always a trip. I just felt like I should write some of the memories down. This is probably the first time I've been as happy as I was in those days.
Posted by criminal at 01:57 PM | Comments (1)
Memory Lane
I was reading my old friend Tom Kurtz's web site this afternoon, which got me thinking about the good old days. It sounds cliched, but they really were good. I miss the people that made them so good. I especially miss the Flint Youth Wind Ensemble - nothing in the years since then has been quite as fun or educational. I haven't talked to Tom much - most recently last fall when we were both frustrated and looking for jobs. In the "good old days" I had a bit of a crush on Tom. We flirted a bit, but he was dating my friend Kristy and I had a >boyfriend. It wasn't a serious crush... just a feeling that we would work well together. I remember being jealous when Kristy didn't fully appreciate him. Like most guys, he deserved a bit more. And if he's a smart as I remember, he'll find me as a referrer in his logs and end up reading all of this. Its just a trip down memory lane. Hopefully we'll have a FYWE reunion and I'll get to see Tom, Kristy, and everyone else that I remember so fondly.
Posted by criminal at 01:50 PM | Comments (0)
June 09, 2003
Scape Goat
I ate goat at lunch today. Really. We got the buffet at Chef of India and they had Goat Curry. It wasn't that great, but I felt I should mention it, since it was a bit of an experiment. I would say that eating it has broadened my horizons, but I think all it has done is upset my stomach. And I'd also like to take this opportunity to appologize to Barbie, who will no doubt pity the poor critter who went into my belly. She seems to think they make good pets. For her sake I hope they really are better pets than dinner.
Posted by criminal at 02:22 PM | Comments (2)
Hitched
Leah and Seth are married, and its about time. Their ceremony was beautiful, but short and to the point. And having it at Maxwell Silverman's meant they didn't have anywhere near as much to worry about - the restaurant did the dirty work for them. I knew a good number of people at the reception and had a great time. I even got to see George for the first time in years. Leah and Seth have collected a great group of friends over the years. I'm happy for them, even if it means we're starting to grow up.
Posted by criminal at 10:20 AM | Comments (0)
June 07, 2003
All Worked Up
I miss Jon. Even worse than that, I'm finding myself getting worked up over Red Sox baseball. I sound more than a bit like my father, talking to the television and pouting when my team is losing. And its all Jon's fault. I keep hoping to see him in the stands in Milwaukee, but I don't even know where to look for him - its a big stadium. So I'll wait until tomorrow night.
Posted by criminal at 07:43 PM | Comments (1)
Late Start
I was supposed to go to Amy's painting party this morning, but my landlord started out late and left even later. I don't even know if he really did much of anything while he was here, other than pick up his stuff and talk about all the things he'll do later. We didn't get to do the walk-through either because I didn't remind Liz to get the list we made. It's all stuff we'll have to do later. So by the time he left and I got cleaned up, it was well into the afternoon. I guessed that by the time I got to Amy's, most of the painting would be done. It turns out they would've just started the second coat, so I feel kinda bad I didn't go. But I did at least get a bunch of laundry done, so the afternoon wasn't a total waste.
Posted by criminal at 07:22 PM | Comments (1)
June 06, 2003
Allergies?
I think I'm allergic to something. Last night I had a sneezing fit (which I didn't think anything of at the time due to being sick) and broke out in hives. All I had was Breyer's all natural vanilla ice cream, reduced fat oreos, french onion Sun Chips, and diet Vanilla Coke. All things I've eaten in the past. I just had another sneezing fit shortly after having a couple Sun Chips and Oreos. I haven't broken out in hives yet, but I'm waiting and checking every itch I feel. This will really stink if I end up developing an allergy to some random thing after all these years without any.
Posted by criminal at 09:47 AM | Comments (0)
June 05, 2003
Still Sick
I don't want to be sick anymore. I felt great when I woke up this morning, but by the time I got out of the shower my breath was rattling in my chest and I was coughing up my lungs. Jon was quite concerned - I couldn't even carry on a conversation with him for all the coughing and sneezing. Now I'm back on a regiment of cough drops and water. And I forgot to bring a box of tissues for my desk. I can get through it, but it would be easier if I knew it would end soon.
Posted by criminal at 09:28 AM | Comments (1)
June 04, 2003
cookie
Decadent but homey.... So you're the Martha Stewart of cookies, but not in jail. [Jon, after asking me what kind of cookie I would be. I said oatmeal chocolate chip of course.]
Posted by criminal at 03:01 PM | Comments (0)
Busy Weekend
I'm looking forward to this weekend. Well, except for the bit where Jon flies off to Chicago with his father and brother, but even that's not so bad. Saturday I'm heading over to Amy's for a painting party to add some color to her huge living room. Sunday is Seth and Leah's wedding, where I'll spend time celebrating with friends. And Jon will be back and all baseballed out.
Posted by criminal at 02:28 PM | Comments (0)
Ice Cream & Beer
According to this news story, linked from Chunshek's spiffy new site, some folks are making beer flavored ice cream. Now I've heard of chasing your ice cream with beer, but this is something new. I imagine it would introduce a kind of malty flavor. It would probably be easy to recreate if you had an ice cream maker. Just follow a traditional recipe and add a few dashes of your favorite brew. I wonder what Guinness Ice Cream would taste like. Ooh. You could even make the beer version of neopolitan - a black and tan!
Posted by criminal at 08:35 AM | Comments (2)
June 03, 2003
Eat My Dust
The library is having new moving bookcases installed in the basement, just down the hall from our office. But before they can install them, they need to remove a bunch of cinderblock walls. The demolition has circulated a bunch of dust through the ventilation and cooling system, covering our office in a fine layer of dust. So we had the air conditioning turned off. And now that they're actually hauling the bricks away, there's dust coming in the windows. We just can't get away from it.
Posted by criminal at 10:37 AM | Comments (0)
Sick Puppy
I've been sick for the last 5 days. And its all Liz's fault. She got sick last week and claimed that it was allergies, so we didn't think too much of it. Then I came down with the exact same thing a few days later: sore throat, angry sinuses, stuffy head, fatigue, coughing, sneezing... Luckily I have a wonderful boyfriend to bring me chicken soup, cough drops, and some long stem red roses. He was also brave enough to stay with me Sunday night (and to put up with my sniffing and snoring all night), risking illness. He's such a keeper, even if this cold isn't.
Posted by criminal at 10:30 AM | Comments (2)
Home Improvement Hurts
So I was working on a Trading Spaces type project the other weekend and cut my thumb open with a handsaw. I was being so careful, but the saw jumped out of the cut and onto the top of my thumb. It wasn't pretty. I drove myself to the UMass Memorial and got it taken care of. It was deep but short, so I didn't need stitches - just a Tetanus shot, which ended up hurting a whole hell of a lot more than the thumb.
Posted by criminal at 10:22 AM | Comments (3)
Fixed
My last entry was about breaking my computers, so its only fitting that my first in a while be about them finally getting fixed. Scott came in today and got me on to the Admin domain, so I'm all set now. And I will try to update on a regular basis again. I must admit that it was kind of nice to ignore the website for a while.
Posted by criminal at 10:17 AM | Comments (0)