Tag Archives: apartment

Stuff of the Day

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Update of the Day: Maybe just a tiny little trace hint of ketones in my urine this morning.  

So, I finally get semi-industrious last night, and try to go install the water filter I bought like 2-3 weeks ago.  The primary thing for which I borrowed James’ cordless drill/driver.  I clear out all the cleaning supplies, trash bags, etc., out from under the sink, and worm and maneuver myself up under and into there to get at the hoses running from the cold water valve to the faucet.  After all this contorting and work, I discover . . . the hose is larger than the one that came with the filter.  Like, 1.5x the size.  Thus, to my dismay, the filter I bought . . . yeah, totally won’t work with the plumbing for my kitchen sink in my apartment.  

Now, the reason I bought the under-sink in-line filter, was because the sink itself is really shallow, and the faucet head arcs out in a very low arc, giving maybe 7 inches, if that, of clearance between the bottom of the faucet and the sink.  I’d originally planned on just an on-faucet filter, but if I go with one of those, I’ll lose around an inch to an inch and a half of clearance, on something that’s already a small space.  I suppose I could replace the entire faucet assembly, but that’d be a lot more work than I’m comfortable with right now, would run a much higher risk of being noticed by the complex . . . and I think I’d still have to come up with some sort of adapter or something to go from the weird size of tubing from the valves to the faucet.  Oh, and it’d cost a lot more money.

So, I don’t know, maybe I’ll have to go with a filter pitcher or jug or something.  Not really happy either way.  If Midland water wasn’t so terrible, I wouldn’t care so much.

Called Dr. Doctor’s office this morning, to try to get her to pick up the ball she – or someone – dropped and get my damn prescription sorted out with the insurance company and pharmacy so I can start the treatment I apparently need.  Haven’t heard back yet.  I’m going to give them another 10 minutes or so, and call them again if I haven’t heard anything.  And then every 2 hours until 1, at which time I’ll start calling every hour if they haven’t taken care of it.  Ridiculous crap.

So, finally, Dr. Doctor said to come in and see her, briefly, she wouldn’t charge me.  I went in for an 11:10 a.m. visit.  Waited about 5 minutes, then got in to see her, spent slightly more than 5 minutes on the phone (she kept saying if it took more than 5 minutes she was going to charge me for a visit, and said she was watching the clock).  She griped at me for being impatient with her staff, then apologized to me.  Supposedly the pre-approval is taken care of, and I should be able to get the actual script filled now. 

Link of the Day: Geocities to (finally) close. – Amusingly topical, as I decries Myspace as Geocities 2.0 on Twitter today, and apparently that’s the funniest thing since suicidal clowns.

Spam of the Day: “Prepare for every possibility” – Uhm . . . how, precisely?

Funny of the Day: “We’re fucking marketable“

Pic of the Day: I didn’t realize cameras were required for that, Pentax.  I’ve been doing it wrong?

Quote of the Day: “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is a little voice at the end of the day that says… I’ll try again tomorrow.” – Anonymous

Stuff of the Day

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Update of the Day: So, my weekend basically went nothing like planned.  I was going to be productive, use the cordless drill I borrowed from James (and bits borrowed from Corey) and get my water filter and new thermostat installed.  Didn’t happen . . . I really need to get that done tonight and return those to them.  Friday night plans didn’t happen as they were supposed to, I couldn’t get in touch with anyone fun to do something, so I went out and saw Fast and Furious.  While certainly not a cinematic masterpiece, it was a fun, enjoyable film.  I don’t really understand why it’s reviewing so badly with the general public.  Some fun stunts, fun driving . . . not as many awesome cars and car mods, but more eye candy than Tokyo Drift had. Go in to this movie expecting a fun film experience without thinking about it too deeply, and I think you’ll be entertained.

Later that night moving into Saturday morning, I ended up chatting (and then later texting) with a woman in Odessa for hours.  I really want to meet this woman, largely to see if she’s all that she’s represented herself as.  Since I was up so late Saturday morning, I slept quite late, and after I finally got up and moving and showered, shaved, dressed, etc., went out to my Dad’s for a visit, because my Aunt Kathy was in town for the weekend.  I helped my dad try to work on updating her computer (she boxed up and brought the entire thing over), and in the process of trying to install Windows XP SP3, things went FUBAR.  I think Norton Internet Security is to blame.  It ended up in this endless reboot cycle where Windows would do the “oh crap, we didn’t start successfully last time, what do you want to do?” and no matter what option we chose (couldn’t even get into Safe Mode more than once) it would fail and restart again.  Joy.  That ate up hours Saturday night, I left my dad’s after midnight, and it’s still not properly functional.

Sunday . . . after a late start, I went out shopping for a few things.  Hit JC Penneys and capitalized on this awesome sale they had going yesterday, and got my bathroom plans -mostly- taken care of.  Picked up 4 bath towels, 2 hand towels (they were out of wash rags in the same color), and a bath rug for $19.  I think I’m going to go back and pick up another rug as well as try to get the same Royal Red wash rags to match.  I also picked up 2 awesome Sealy pillows on the cheap there.  After that, I went to Academy Sports and committed financially to the whole “ok, let’s add regular exercise” concept.  Too much money spent on some workout clothes.  

I finally hit 78 last night in WoW, 2 more (long) levels to get to 80 (which I should have been at, oh, 3 1/2 weeks ago), then I can try to get gimpily geared up as quick as possible to rejoin Warfare in raiding.  I’m a little mixed on that, I hope getting with the guild in raids will re-inspire my love for the game, because just right now working on grinding my Warlock up to 80 I’m just not feeling it like I used to.  I’m not sure if it’s just not being able to raid with my guildmates, or if other . . . interests and diversions . . . are more appealing now.

Link of the Day: The 411 on Free 411

Spam of the Day: “Women are put off by the sight of a dwarf hook”

Funny of the Day: Works for me

Pic Vid of the Day: John Madden: Dungeon Master – “Think fast!”

Quote of the Day: 
“My best friend gave me the best advice
He said each day’s a gift and not a given right
Leave no stone unturned, leave your fears behind
And try to take the path less traveled by
That first step you take is the longest stride” – If Today was Your Last Day, by Nickelback

Finally Friday

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This has been a frustrating week for me.  Weekend was good overall – at least Friday and Saturday, anyway.  Then I came down with “crap, I’m sick and getting sicker” Monday, rushing out that morning before work to pick up Zicam swabs, Airborne, some multi-symptom cold meds, etc.  Tuesday was bad enough I got sent home early from work.  Wednesday I was late, but then was feeling, so I thought, “better” by late afternoon and stuck it out until the end of the day (though, I have to admit, my productivity level Wednesday was way below usual, my mental focus was about as clear as a bale of unginned cotton after being shat upon by Godzilla).  Yesterday (Thursday) I was feeling so absolutely miserable yesterday morning I called in sick.  

That really stresses me.  I’ve used a sick day, in Mid-March.  Not even halfway through the year, and 1 of my 2 sick days is gone.  Despite (truthfully, probably because of) past issues, I’ve really been working on trying to fix some of my bad habits, and have been doing pretty well.  With 2 sick days, I intended to not use one unless I was flat out, down-right unable to physically get myself moving out the door and make it in, or unless I was informed by a doctor that I was a horrific raging source of contagion or something similar.  I take my multivitamin everyday, I’ve been working on eating healthier and losing weight (and oh, I tell you, the most tempted I’ve been to break down and eat carb-laden comfort has been while I was sick this week), and being sick, especially with this particular timing that’s costing me so much productive time, has been extremely irritating.  What have I gotten done on the apartment this week since I moved in?  I’ve got my two desktop computer systems – more or less (no speakers on either yet) – up and running, and the router running.  I’ve done a little bit of laundry.  I’ve taken one small load of trash out.  

That’s pretty much it.

Lots of boxes and bags with stuff strewn haphazardly over the living room and near my closet?  Yeah, still there.  Practically untouched.  Frustrating.  Depressing.  I should have been spending time this week getting that stuff sorted out.  Instead, I’ve been either sitting in a chair like a zombie, or been zonked out in bed trying to let my system hurry the hell up and get back to a state where I can DO things.  Today, Friday, is finally the first day this week that I feel almost human again. I’m still clearly sick, lots of stuff wanting to come out of my nose or run down my throat, but I sort of actually feel like someone who’s started to rally and is watching their body fight this thing as a winning battle . . . albeit entirely too slowly in the endgame.

I’m going to go buy a microwave tonight, and hopefully a couple of other little things.  I’m going to look at some furniture options again this weekend sometime.  I’ve decided I definitely want a different, better computer desk, because the mess of kitchen table and little Wal-mart desk I’ve been using just doesn’t work well for my setup.  A couch would also be rather convenient.  Oh, and I’ve got a ton of stuff I need to sort out, get put up or away, or get rid of, the sooner the better.  I’m tired of the mess ‘o boxes.

Moving, Aftermath Attack

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Moved this weekend.  Started last night with a little tickle in my throat, which turned into an itch today.  Doing what I can to try to stave off a full-on cold with Zicam, Airborne, eating and drinking plenty.  Has my energy level pretty much zapped.  Lots of stuff I could write about the moving process, but just not feeling up to it.  Apartment is pretty much boxes and chaos, with maybe 20% of stuff unpacked/sorted out.

I need a microwave, and more furniture.  More money would make all that easier, but have to go gradually on it.  It’s just kinda frustrating.

Why, out of everywhere I’ve been and everything I’ve done, does it seem like I’m finally putting things in my life together for once (again) after coming back to Midland?

Eventful, Good Times of Late

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Didn’t make any posts this weekend – not even Daily Stuff.  This has been, overall, a busy, eventful, unexpected, and altogether excellent weekend.

Last week, I pretty much decided that with my upcoming paycheck on the 6th, along with my income tax return, with what I had in checking/savings, it was finally time (Again – the near $1200 of car repairs delayed me by a bit more than a month on my plans) to move on the whole Apartment/Getting-my-own-place-again goal.  Having already done a lot of the initial work of investigating, evaluating, eliminating apartment complexes here in Midland in January, this time it was a briefer process, starting with a short list of candidates.  Four complexes that were any real serious consideration, and another I called just to check on it as an option, and because it’s literally throwing distance from our office.  They were the most expensive, so that was pretty much an easy elimination.  

Of the other 4, I went and looked at all of them – 1 of the 4 I’d seen a 1BR Townhome before, which I liked a lot.  Really liked.  I just know Baby, my cat, would love the stairs there, and I liked the layout, but it was a little bit beyond what I would be comfortable with based on my projective budgeting.  Rent in Midland is stupidly costly right now – prices are still high from rapid rising over a few years of oilfield prosperity.  The oilfield prosperity is starting to show some real, true (worrisome to oilfield/oil company employees) signs of decline, but any drop in the inflated rent prices will take several more months, if not a year, before they start to happen.  In Huntsville, I had a 2BR, 1.5Bath 1100 square foot townhome for less than I’m (going to be) paying for a 710 square foot 1BR/1BA flat here in Midland.

So, anyway, after checking out all of the other 3 options, with some drama and surprises involved there, I decided on going for what’s supposedly the nicest/best rated of the complexes, Windscape.  Current schedule is to move in on the 13th.  Friday the 13th . . . I can’t help but feel that with everything that happened last week and weekend, it’s something that’s meant to be, and any luck I experience on that day will be Good.  It’s just going to be a tight week for me financially until my payday+ this Friday.

Friday night was looking to be pretty uneventful – I tried to get hold of a couple of people to see about doing something interesting:  seeing a movie with a friend, or going out for whatever workable (she’d mentioned wanting to go to a karaoke bar) with another, female, friend – but it seemed that stuff just wasn’t going to be happening that night.  So, without someone to make going out (and thus spending money) a worthwhile excuse, stay home and . . . apparently watch Seabiscuit with my dad.  During which I find out about some bad medical news about a friend of mine.  Not horrible stuff, but still unfortunate and unpleasant, kind of a bummer, which had (and still has) me worried for her.

Then at 10:15 that night, I get a text from Ms. Fire, commanding me to head down to the hotel lounge she’s in and ask her to dance.  I hop up, change shirts, brush my teeth, and head off to the lounge.  She seemed surprised I “actually came.”  To my surprise (though only a little bit) it was Tejano Night at this club.  I haven’t danced in like 9 years, and I haven’t danced to something other than techno/trance in a good dozen.  I wasn’t very good, but it didn’t seem to matter – the intent and effort, and quite possibly the fact she was a bit inebriated, seemed to matter more.

I’ll not go into further details on the rest of that night . . . but it was wonderful, and surprising.  

Saturday, despite lack of sleep, I got out to see that movie (The Street Fighter Chun-Li one) with my friend Ivy.  It wasn’t bad.  It wasn’t great either, but it was entertaining (even though I think Kristen Kreuk is just wrong for the role).  It had some very nice cinematography of Bangkok in it too.  

Sunday, I had a date to try to see Les Miserables at  MCT.  I type “try” because when I attempted to buy tickets Monday of last week, they were nearly entirely sold out – they only had 3 seats left, none of them anywhere near each other.  The nice old lady at the box office suggested I show up an hour before the show to try to get no-show seat tickets.  After discussing this concept with J, my supposed date, she said we should go ahead and try for it, and plans were made for her to meet me at the theater, see Les Mis, and then who knows?

I dress up as I thought reasonably appropriate for going to the Theater (to discover there later that several folks just went in whatever – but I still felt good about my clothing choice, I think dressing decently for the Theater is still respectful), and show up there a couple of minutes before 1:00.  I’m 4th on the list for no-show seats, with the box office manager informing me that she has no doubt I’ll get tickets.  I wait, seeing tons of people stream in, mingling, talking to friends . . . and then run into a good friend of my Mammaw.  People take their normal, had their tickets in advance, seats, being ushered and hurried into the theater by staff, and at 2:00, the box office manager starts calling out names for the no-show seat tickets.  J still hasn’t shown up (I’d been looking for her, for the entire hour).  I let the box office manager know my date didn’t show, someone else should get the other ticket, and she snatches back the pair she handed me, hunts around frantically, and then gives me a single ticket.  It was a decent seat.

Les Mis was excellent.  One of the best Community Theater productions I’ve ever seen (and most of my comparisons are from MCT shows, so that’s good comparisons, as MCT has been one of the best Community Theaters in the nation for a long time).  Not only was David Odom, who was a friend of mine in High School, on the debate team with me, in the play (as I knew beforehand and expected), but Robert Reed, another High School friend was in the cast as well.  I graduated with both of those guys.   There were other people who I knew from when I was involved in the theater back in the 90s.  I’m considering volunteering for a few shows, maybe auditioning for a part or two.  If not, I’ll at least get a membership, and make MCT a regular part of my entertainment options.

I’ve been trying to get in touch with J the last two 2 days, with no luck thus far.  I don’t know what the deal is, what happened – if there’s a good reason she wasn’t there, a bad reason, if I was just stood up, or what.  If I was stood up, oh well, her loss.  My weekend overall was so good, it doesn’t really upset me.

Random and Various Updates: Windy Dusty Edition

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So, yeah, life and stuff.  Things have been going ‘OK’ for me.  Not great.  But, overall, not crappy.  This post may be a little disjointed, I’m pretty much more or less randomly spewing thought onto the keyboard.

Work is going well.  I like this job. It’s kept me really pretty busy the last couple of weeks solid.  I’ve not really had that much time to take for myself (also known as: goofing off), and when I have had some time for that, I’ve mostly spent it trying to amuse, inform, or educate myself online (Reddit is my friend here.  I barely even LOOK at Digg anymore).  Thus, I’ve not dedicated much time lately to trying to sit down and write anything.  Hell, I wanted to just sit down and fire off a quick post this morning to vent and feel better about almost getting killed (as well as having my time wasted) this morning on the way to work.  Then I did something silly and tried to “upgrade” WordPress, and it trashed things, and wasted half an hour of my time, and about 2o minutes of James’ time, fixing it.  Hell, I should really honestly know better, backups before upgrades are, ya know, a good idea for a reason.

I’m making an actual, conscious effort to try to use tags on this post.  That’s probably why there are so many.  I’ve been really bad, sucking, really, about using tags.  It’s a Web 2.0 thing that I’ve just so very rarely found useful; in counterpoint, though, the few places I’ve found them useful they were VERY useful.

I started on a low-carb diet yesterday.  Not quite exactly Atkins, though very heavily influenced by Atkins.  It got hard for a bit last night, but I got past it.  I expect to have a few more days where I’ll have periods of intense carb-craving.  I’m determined to stay strong and will my way through it.  There’s a lot of things I want to do, and pretty much everything in my life I think will be easier if I can get down closer to my ideal weight.  The whole feeling better about my body and self-image thing will certainly be nice (and should give me more confidence, of course), but having less weight on my body to lug around will make things like trying to do pull-ups on the Iron Gym I bought and haven’t gotten anywhere near my $30 worth out of yet.  Less weight to power around trying to walk/run/jog should make it easier for me to do those things too.  I’ve basically just bitten the bullet on the expense thing . . . it’s going to cost more, period, but my health and attitude are worth more to me than maybe another two week delay before I move into my own apartment.

Moving into a place of my own again is certainly something I very much want to do.  Just the feelings of independence, of not having my cat relegated to a small travel trailer, where she only gets attention from me one visit a day, where she can run and play and be happier (of course, needing to pay freaking $450 or so for pet fees/deposit is ludicrous), where I don’t have to drive anywhere near as far everyday, where I could, if I so desired/needed, bring a woman home . . . all good and needed things.  But I’m trying to be smarter about things, listen to my dad, save up extra money, Just In Case, before I jump into a lease and a large chunk of monthly expenses that will leave me with very little discretionary income.  Being able to game again on my own schedule, with regularity, have a constant cable modem connection, etc., all very appealing.  But, my dad and I are getting along ‘OK’ right now, though I still handle a lot of things as if walking on eggshells so as not to piss him off and upset that.  

I’ve really gotten into Twitter lately.  Been trying a couple of different clients for it, TweetDeck and blu, and neither does quite just what I want, but if I they could be combined, with another little feature or two added, they’d rock as the ultimate Windows Twitter client.  Corey suggested I write it myself.  Hah!  That’s not quite what I’m going to tackle as my first project getting back into programming.  I like TweetDeck more, but it crashes all the damn time.  blu is stable, but lacking.  I’ll be adding some kind of WordPress Twitter plugin to the site here when I find one I like well enough.

Well, that’s probably enough time wasted for now.  I need to get back to work, wrestling with Advanced Installer’s inadequate documentation and the limitations of .msi files until I can get them to submit to my will.