My Rantings and Other Non-Sensical Thoughts: 01/01/2003

From Twisted History:

Today is Fun at Work Day, so go have some fun at work... that is, if you still have a job.

No shit.

WOW. I took this personality quiz thing at http://test3.thespark.com/person/ and it is *so* true about me. :) Enjoy.

HEALER
(Submissive Extrovert Concrete Feeler )

Like just 9% of the population you are a HEALER (SECF)-- caring, good with people, and patient. You are completely selfless and full of love. As a concrete feeler, you do well with your emotions, which are very strong. You understand and appreciate *why* you feel the way you do, and for the most part you're at peace with yourself.

Suffering in the world really pisses you off.

In relationships, it's easy for you to get hurt. Avoid all kinds of dominant (D***) people, *especially* in dating or marriage. You are a motherly figure, even if you're a guy. If you're a girl, make sure you're a mom some day. The world's children need people like you. If you're a guy, don't even think about it. Most pedophiles are HEALERS.

On the rare occasions when you try to assert yourself, you're cute and awkward, but highly effective.

Found this in an email from November 2001. May be something to help me think positive later, so I'm posting it :)

Thoughts to Live By

Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.
Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors, and miss.
Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be recalled by their maker.
Eat a live toad in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you for the rest of the day.
If life gives you lemons, squeeze the juice into a water gun and shoot other people in the eyes.
If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
If you can't beat your computer at chess, try kickboxing.
If you lend someone $20, and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
If you try and don't succeed, cheat. Repeat until caught. Then lie.
It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.
Never buy a car you can't push.
Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you don't have a leg to stand on.
Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig.
Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.
The early worm gets eaten by the bird, so sleep late.
When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
You are what you eat. So stay away from the jerk chicken.
Be nice to the nerds and geeks in high school -- you'll be working for them in the future.

As you could all tell, I was very bitter last night. I'm doing much better today. Now I'm just updating my resume and looking for jobs. I know I will get through this, especially with the help of my friends. Tom said I should still go to Alabama and I might - it all depends on if I find a job before then or not. I will get 13 weeks severance and 1 week vacation at the end. Plus I can collect that super-cool unemployment, so I know we will be ok until I find something.

It's come down to this. After five and a half years with EarthLink, they are shutting down our call center. I can't say it's totally unexpected, although I held out hope until the end that we would be spared. I've experienced 100 different emotions today, going from FUCK YOU to I can't believe you're doing this to us and then back to FUCK YOU which is where I am now. I gave my BLOOD to this company and they don't care. I thought this was a company that cared about their employees and when it was MindSpring, it did. When we got sold to the devil, that all changed. Core Values & Beliefs? Ha.

I defended this company until the end. It's funny how quickly and completely I can change my mind. Now I have to sit there until March 14 putting on a business as usual face, knowing that everyone's counting the days.

The thing that makes it worse for Dallas than the other centers closing (Sacramento, Seattle, 1/2 of Pasadena) is that on Saturday, one of our representatives, who'd been with the company for almost 3 years died of a massive heart attack. Allergic reaction to medication. He was 33. We informed the reps on Monday and then today they were told they won't have jobs after March 14.

We are getting severance packages and we can collect unemployment. Ok - gloves off, I have to get this off my chest:

FUCK you, EarthLink. Good luck with outsourcers who don't even know how to read a fucking invoice, with outsourcers who tell customers they can have free 800 service if their POP is down. Good luck with the already 60 minute hold times that can't possibly get lowered after this decision. Good luck transferring web hosting & domain registration to centers that have never had these beasts before and don't know what the shit to do with them. Thank you for "rushing" to make the announcement to us which the board just approved this past Thursday. I'm sure the rushing was to inform us instead of making sure you could do the press release the day before financials are out. FUCK you to the people who made our stock go up 30 cents after the announcement. Before, I would have been like "cool, stock went up", never realizing the human impact. Now I do. 1300 of us are out of work. A good percentage of us gave our *ALL* for this damn company.

Business is business. What a cowardly statement to stand behind. You're going to save 20 million by closing us all, but you'll probably LOSE 20 million when you can't figure out the web hosting and when you lost more customers due to hold times.

I'm sorry - I'm really bitter right now. I hear Patty on the phone with her hubby and I think she's bawling. I wish I could hug her and tell her it's going to be ok like she did to me, but I really don't know if any of us are going to be ok. I know that I will be hard-pressed to invest so much of myself in another company.

Somehow I ended up looking at ADD books on Amazon tonight. I've learned that I have so many signs of ADD (sometimes contradictory) that there is no doubt that the diagnosis I got 11 years ago is true:
I am a blurter - I've gotten in trouble many times by blurting out the wrong thing.
I interrupt others - not because I'm mean but because in my head I'm already on to the next topic.
I react too quickly - again, been in mucho trouble before because of this one.
I get angry at the wrong times (sometimes) - Tom could go on about this one for 4 hours.
I can't direct my energy from an idea to take action.
I need to do ten things at once to stay alert and focused.
I am curious. WOW - I didn't know that was a symptom of ADD. The description says ADDers are rarely able to let anything go by without asking "But, why?". I'm sure Tom could entertain you for days with some of the stupid questions I've asked him. 3 memorable ones: How do they know there are no chickens in the eggs they sell at the grocery store? Why are there time zones? and my favorite....Who told the people in Georgia that it was the same exact time that it is in New York? *sigh* - God bless my husband for putting up with this shit.

Blah. So there it is. I'm not lazy, crazy or stupid. I'm an ADDer. Hm. I could use that excuse for a lot of things. Watch out, Patty! Dave & Patty want to invent a light that attaches to my forehead so that when I'm in ADD mode (really, Dave tells long stories, I can't help it), the light goes off so they know I'm not paying attention anymore. Nice idea, but unless it comes with a *really* cute hat, I'm not wearing it. :)

I was just checking the stats on my website (chrisomalley.net) and I had 2 visitors from Germany this week! Cool.

I found out today how Mexican Jumping Beans work:

The thing that makes these beans jump is a tiny moth larvae that lives inside the bean. The moth lays its eggs in the flower of the plant, and the eggs are incorporated into the seeds. The larvae then eat out the interior of the bean and live there. When the larvae move, so does the bean. Eventually, the larvae turn into moths that emerge from the beans to repeat the cycle.

That's rather disgusting, I'd much rather pretend it's magic that makes these beans move.

Tonight we went to see Mitch Hedberg at the Improv. He is hilarious. If you ever get the chance to see him, cough up the money and go. You won't be sorry. I had a lemondrop to fulfill my promise to Patty. I didn't get falling down drunk, but I was tipsy for about 10 minutes. :) I'm a cheap date. Yee-haw. It is colder than an igloo outside. Ok - that was a dumb analogy, but what do you want from me at Midnight?

I'm going to scan a picture of me drunk later tonight, in case you want to see what a Psycho I can really look like. lol. I've also posted a link to Mitch's website in case you want to hear some of his jokes before you spend your hard-earned cash on him (and in case you don't trust my recommendation - I don't blame you).

I signed up for this new web thing today - Swappingtons. I saw it on Uncle Bob. Basically, you list any DVDs, CDs, Books or Games that you don't want anymore. The site assigns points to them. If you see something that someone else has that you want, you can swap your points for their merchandise. It's like an online flea market. Your account starts with zero points, so I guess you have to wait until a)someone you refer signs up (hint, hint), or b)someone wants something you have. If you decide you want to sign up (it's free), enter me as the referral. I would greatly appreciate it. My username is omalleyc.

Did you know that Your body is creating and killing 15 million red blood cells per second! No wonder I'm so tired all the time!

Live's new CD is supposedly coming out in June. They finish recording this week. Then they're going to play some dates so they can hear how it sounds. Please say a little prayer that they come to Dallas. Most likely it will just be Northeast dates though. I should have thought about that before I moved to Dallas. Say a prayer anyway, just in case.

Evan is starting an online radio station. Listen to it when it's up if you get a chance. He's promised to play some good music. Right now it's named after the Sims Online, but he'll be changing that soon.

Visit Tony's Blog and read all about him. You can see the dumb things I AIM him during the day too :)

Let the games begin! I got comments enabled. Woo-Hoo! Keep in mind, I did *not* choose "shout out" as the specified words - I do not have gold teeth or a weave & I realize I'm white. But, I couldn't find that anywhere in the HTML so I can't change it.

I called Evan tonight. That was the highlight of my day. He's just as great on the phone as he is in chat & email. I can't wait to meet him. I was so nervous before I called him. You would think I was still in 8th grade. But, I got through it and now that ice is broken. It's cold as *shit* here tonight and that reminds me of Pennsylvania which reminds me of my mom and whenever I think about my mom, I think about my dad. I can't believe it's been a year and a half since he died. Sometimes I feel guilty for not thinking of him every day. I know I can't be expected to think of him every day - this is ranting, remember? ;) But still, it hits me like a ton of bricks sometimes that he's gone.

I promised Patty that I would *not* get drunk in Alabama unless she saw me drunk first. I don't drink a lot. It hurts my sinuses. But there was a time, when Tom was in Ireland for 2 weeks, that I think I got drunk every single night. Kevin, a co-worker, made that his life's goal for 2 weeks and he succeeded wonderfully. 2 Goldschlager shots and I'm *gone*. So, I'm either going to have to promise not to drink in Alabama or I'm going to have to make a date with Patty and get totally smashed. I think it's going to be the latter.

So I got to work today & it was like any other normal day, then a sense of complete and utter boredom came over me. I've been bored at work before, but this was different. Almost like I'd thrown in the towel - called it quits. It's not that I don't like my job, I love it actually. I was just done. Thank god I have a great manager - he let me take vacation the rest of the day & Thursday and Friday. I need to recharge my batteries. I only had my trip to see bunny to look forward to and that seems *so* far away. Wonder what I'll do the next 2 days? Knowing me I'll sit around & watch the judge shows. You know - Judge Joe Brown, Judge Mathis, Judge Judy. Lol. Exciting, huh? Vegging is what I need. I'm sure I'll be on the sims for at least 12 hours a day (in between the aforementioned Judge shows). I'll be on AIM. I'm not disconnecting from the world, just Earthlink. 5 years and 4 months would drain anyone. Vacation time is a gift from God himself and I am thankful for it. That and Saltgrass Steakhouses :)

I found this really funny. The EarthLink website translated into Redneck. :) Enjoy.

http://www.rinkworks.com/dialect/dialectp.cgi?dialect=redneck&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.earthlink.net

Drink up! Today is the feast day of St. Vincent, patron of vintners and drunkards.

--Evan, make sure you celebrate :) I know this is a big feast day in Alabama.

A sincere wish from Dave Rafferty:

"I wish the water fountains had Dr. Pepper in them instead of water."

:)

I am so tired that I think I may just keel over at my desk. It doesn't help that it's 70 outside but I'm dressed for a cold winter day. Or that the only thing I have to do today are reports. I hate crunching numbers, especially when I'm tired. I've already run into my cube wall 3 times today - I'm that bleary eyed. Wonder how I'm going to make it through the day. I could take some sick time since I haven't had any since July 2001, but I don't want to break my streak. It sucks being responsible.

I dreamt the other night that Howard Stern gave me backstage passes to see Live for my birthday. Not sure how HS got in there - I don't like him enough to hang out with him, but of course I would accept passes from a bum on the street if they were legit. Stupid obsessions.

How strange to think that when my mom was born in 1950, Alaska & Hawaii were not states. It must have been odd to wake up one day and find out that the US had 2 more states than it did the day before. I wonder how we'd react now if we woke up tomorrow and found out there were now 51 states. Think of all the maps that would have to be changed and all the people who would be angry just because it was something to bitch about.

Pancake syrup is the nectar of the gods.

Clinical.

Well, today I made my first trip to an abortion clinic. Not for me, but as support for a friend. It was a small non-descript building along 75. Contrary to my expectations I didn't see any protesters ranting about God and killing babies. Thank you Jesus for that. I probably would have stayed in the car. It was *crowded* - at least 30 people in the waiting room. When we sat down, Meet the Parents was on the tv. I found out later that it would be all movies, all comedies. Certainly to take people's minds off what was going on in the rest of the building. My friend went back for a sonogram, then came to wait again. After about an hour, she went back again for some counseling (mandatory, I guess). Another half hour or so, she was called back again for lab work. Then we waited for about 2 hours until they took her back for the actual procedure. The procedure itself took 6 minutes. Recovery about 30. We spent 4 1/2 hours total waiting for a 6 minute procedure! That kind of pissed me off, but I think it was so that the person undergoing the procedure had time to think in case they changed their mind. That sounds noble of them, so that's the reason for the waiting that I'll accept. There were all kinds of people there - black, white, Pakistani, rich, not so rich.

One lady who looked like she had spent *WAY* too many late nights at bars smoking cigarettes & boozing it up commented about a girl who had left "she couldn't be more than 20 years old." She said it rather distastefully which got me thinking - it is a shame that someone so 'young' was there, but this woman was 35-40 so it was really more of a shame that *SHE* was there - she should know better. I wasn't going to judge anyone there, but she forced me into it.

Another guy (who was reeking of weed) talked so loud for so long that I wanted to beat him. He talked about the procedure, being hungry, Taco Bell & why the chi-wawa (since I can't spell it, I mangled it on purpose) isn't in the commercials anymore. Then he played gameboy for awhile. His girlfriend told him all the parts of the John Leguizamo movie "The Pest" that she liked (we were forced to watch it for an hour and a half. This is by *far* the worst movie I've ever seen). This other guy was eating candy and smacking his fucking lips FOREVER. His girlfriend told him to stop & he did it louder which irked the hell out of me.

Finally we were done. That's it - game over. It was a sobering experience - one I'm glad I'll never have to go through. There was a doctor there (we're not sure if it was a he or she) who kept looking out the window. We're not sure at what, but I was waiting for busloads of protesters to show up. I'm glad they never did.

Prissy Pants Patty.

My friend Patty is what's nicely referred to as a "girly girl". She can't fathom the thought of leaving the house without her makeup on & her hair done just right. It drives me *INSANE* in the morning because I have never been like that. I don't care what the hell I look like when I'm leaving the house because it's before noon for fuck's sake so leave me alone. Patty could spend 2 hours in the bathroom rearranging hairs on the top of her head. And heaven forbid in that time if she decides she doesn't like her shirt - she will change it 100 times if necessary. Her biggest fear in the morning is that she's going to leave the house without remembering to take her Crest Whitestrips off her teeth. It would be unfortunate, but funny. Almost as funny as when she fell twice in the same day.

Actually, her girly girl stuff fascinates me. My ADD kicks in if I primp for more than 7 minutes. I guess I'm just not a good girl. But Patty is & I love her for it.

If you yell "you big fat cocksucker" in a quiet bar, does anyone hear it? Yes - Everyone did. But I didn't care.
It was better than yelling "Ya big fat chalupa".

My Rantings and Other Non-Sensical Thoughts

Friday, January 31, 2003

Thursday, January 30, 2003

Wednesday, January 29, 2003

Tuesday, January 28, 2003

Sunday, January 26, 2003

Saturday, January 25, 2003

Friday, January 24, 2003

Thursday, January 23, 2003

Wednesday, January 22, 2003

Tuesday, January 21, 2003

Monday, January 20, 2003

Sunday, January 19, 2003

Saturday, January 18, 2003

Friday, January 17, 2003

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