I have been extremely busy at work lately. Seriously, I have been working an average of 12-hour days plus weekends. The frustrating thing is that when you are working on projects, you see the light at the end of the tunnel since there’s usually an end date. But when you’re busy with just day-to-day stuff, there is no light at the end of the tunnel. And to think I used to wonder what managers did all day.

Woo-hoo, the heater repairman is here fixing the heater as I type this. Apparently the computer malfunctioned. Why does a heater need a computer is what I would like to know.

As I was driving home to get ready for my date, I started thinking that even though I wasn’t into him, it would still suck if it turned out that he wasn’t into me either. See, Heidi and I were joking that the worst possible outcome of the date would be that he would reject me too (or first) and then I would be like “Wait, I didn’t even want to go out on this date to begin with!” I think there was even a Seinfeld episode that talked about this. And if there wasn’t, there should have been.

Anyway, nothing drastic like that happened but I think we just didn’t click. When we first met up, he went for my hands for what I thought was a handshake but it turns out he wanted to hold my hands while we walked (which is really odd for a first date, don’t you think?) I managed to pull it away by making it extremely necessary to point to the restaurant. I then stuffed my hands in my pockets so that we wouldn’t have to awkwardly walk while holding hands. Dinner was ok, just usual date conversation. I then found out that he’s seven years younger than me and he’s even younger than my little brother! (Although I have to confess, I have dated younger guys before). Towards the end, he started sneezing and his nose was all stuffy and that was pretty much it. So it could be that my fear became a reality after all.

Tomorrow night I have a date with a guy I’m not really attracted to. I wonder why I said yes. I don’t really like dates. As a matter of fact, after 11 years of living in the US, I still don’t get the whole dating concept. I wonder how it was in Brazil, I really can’t remember it being too different, it just seemed more laid back.

Why did Aries cross the road?
Certainly to argue with someone who was standing across the street.
Why did Taurus cross the road?
Because he/she got it in his head that he had to.
Why did Gemini cross the road?
If he/she doesn’t even know, who does?
Why did Cancer cross the road?
Because he/she was feeling abandoned and lonely being alone on that side of the road.
Why did Leo cross the road?
To get attention, be on the paper, magazines, etc.
Why did Virgo cross the road?
He/she hasn’t crossed yet because he/she is measuring the width of the road, the speed of the cars, whether the experience is worth it, what would be the best time, etc.
Why did Libra cross the road?
He/she didn’t have to. Someone ended up offering him/her a ride.
Why did Scorpio cross the road?
Because it was forbidden.
Why did Sagittarius cross the road?
Because it seemed like a cool idea and he/she felt like it.
Why did Capricorn cross the road?
Actually, he/she was trying to commit suicide.
Why did Aquarius cross the road?
Because it was part of an experiment that will result in a major technological breakthrough in the future.
Why did Pisces cross the road?
What road?

This was copied from one of my all time favorite blogs.

This has not been a good week.
On Monday, I came home to find my DSL down and the image on my TV all messed up.

On Tuesday, I called the DSL company and actually got an appointment for the next day. I also started thinking of how I would be able to get a new TV quickly, who would move it for me, etc. On Tuesday night, I decided to reset my TiVo and that took care of the bad image quality.

On Wednesday, I left work early since the DSL guy was supposed to be here between 4:00 and 8:00 pm. At 8:15, there was no sign of him so I called and was told that he would be here in 20-30 minutes. At 9:15, still no sign, I called them again and was told that the office usually closed at 8:00 and they had no way of contacting the technician now. The chick on the phone told me to call back the next day to reschedule. I told her to get her supervisor on the phone. He was nice. His name was Forest. He rescheduled the appointment for me and cut down the appointment window to 1 hour (from the usual 4).

On Thursday, I woke up and my house was freezing. My heater was broken. I turned the shower on to let the steam heat up the bathroom so I could gather up the courage to take my pajamas off. As soon as I got my hair wet, the water started getting cooler and all of a sudden there was no more hot water.

Thursday night, I come home and there’s a package with my Gap order waiting for me next to my door. It was soaking wet. That’s because the exterior walls of my house had been taken over by boxelder bugs and my landlord came by on Thursday to spray it. He didn’t see my package behind the bushes.

On Friday, I left work early again to make it to my 4-5 pm appointment with the DSL repairman. I get here and as I step out of my car and into the garage, I don’t detect the distinct Pine Sol scent that tells me the cleaning lady was here. That’s because she wasn’t. I tried calling her and there’s no answer. I try again and she tells me she lost the key but since I was home, she could come by in a half hour. She’s now vacuuming the living room as I type this. Now back to the DSL saga. Today’s repairman showed up on time. But he didn’t fix the problem. Now another repairman is coming out tomorrow morning. Between 8:00-12:00. On a Saturday (at least the DSL guy and the heater repairman will be able to keep each other company). And they still don’t know if they will be able to fix the problem because they still don’t know what the problem is.

So, even though I’m usually an optimist, I think I have earned the right to say that this was an extremely shitty week. Anyway, I hope today marks the end of this week. Or maybe I should just use the shitty week as an excuse to spend all of Saint Patrick’s Day weekend in a complete state of drunken stupor. I better get started now…

the week might be over
Right after posting this, Mandy called to see if I wanted to go get something to eat. She came over and we’re getting ready to leave when there’s a knock on the door. It’s the PacBell repairman. He tells me that he decided to pick up the trouble ticket tonight and could he come in and check out my line. We weren’t that hungry so I showed him in.

He then warns me that it will be $45 for the first 15 minutes and $60 for each hour after that or something. I’m appalled but once you’re hooked, you can’t just say no. Anyway, he checks my line and then goes outside for a couple of minutes. He comes back in, does a couple of things to the DSL wall jack and all of a sudden, I have DSL again! And best of all, he walks to the door and says, “You’re all set. Have a good evening”. Yes! That means that the charges will show up directly on the bill. And I have never even seen a bill since my company pays for it. This is much better than having to write him a check and then having to fill out an expense report.

Anyway, Mandy and I also had an awesome dinner, we got a table right away, the food came out quickly and it was delicious and we had a great time. There, if I just keep impersonating Pollyanna maybe everything else will improve too.

I have no DSL. I haven’t had DSL in the past two days. I’m sitting at home waiting for the technician to come fix it so I have DSL again. I hate dial-up connections.

The Vagina Monologues

Hbo Home Video 2002, DVD, $24.98

I wish I could see it live. I just saw it on HBO and it was great.

I got a postcard from Jamba Juice yesterday. I’ll bet Tina will be jealous and maybe she will even plan a trip out here so she can see it.
This is what it said on the front:
Greetings from Jamba. Wish you were here!

Then on the back, this is what Jamba had to say:
Hey Sunshine! (yes, that’s what Jamba likes to call me)
You gotta experience life here. Fresh fruit in abundance. Amazingly delicious smoothies I get to enjoy EVERYDAY!! Here’s a coupon so you can try one for free! (yes, I did get a coupon for a free smoothie. Tuna, it expires on 3/31 so book your ticket already!)
Jamba Juice
XOXOXO (I know, I know. What can I say? Jamba REALLY likes me).