Calming down...

It's looking like things will be slowing down a bit at work. We've had a lot of thug kids lately...intimidators, fighters, future road rage arrestees. One left on Thanksgiving and another today. They're being replaced by non-aggressive kids which is something we haven't had for a long time. We still have a few thugs, but they're isolated right now and another one will be leaving within a couple of weeks. We haven't been able to even try and find jobs for these kids because we've been so bogged down with behavior issues and needing to supervise several locations 24/7 instead of the independence our unit is supposed to give them. It'll be a welcome break from the stress of the last six months or so.

Celebrity sighting...

For some reason, I never seem to notice celebrities out in public.  I mean it's not like I'm around them all the time, but every now and then someone I'm with will point out someone famous that we walked right by.  I guess I'm just not expecting to see anyone famous out and about.  Tonight I actually noticed someone for myself.  I was picking Trisha up from LAX and as we walked into the parking structure, Kerri Kenney-Silver was waiting for the elevator!  I've been watching her ever since she was on The State and still love her on Reno 911!

This is not a good post.

It's just one of those days when I don't know what to post.  

Yeah.

Lots of tobacco issues at work today.  Kids smoking it.  Kids chewing it.  Even one kid who couldn't get any chewing tobacco, but still wanted to be cool so he made his own "chaw" from emptying out cigarette butts he found on the ground.  

They're smart I tell ya.

Not much else going on.  I have Thanksgiving off so only 2 more days left this week and still trying to get Sunday off so I can have a 4 day weekend.

They're coming....

We're still going through all our Alaska/Seattle/Canada pics. We took close to 2000 between us (yea for digital cameras and lots of memory) so it's a process, but we're almost done and will post about the trip then. We are back in our apartment after not being able to live here for 3 days. More on that mess later too (with pics of course).

Welcome!

Our houseguest has arrived! Hopefully he'll enjoy his stay with us.

What a difference a week makes...

A really bad situation for us is looking like it will turn out really good. We'll hopefully find out by the end of the week, so pray for us!

Stuff from this week...

-- Tomorrow (Friday) I'm supposed to have my second wisdom tooth out. It was supposed to be today, but due to my blood thinners, I can't really have last minute surgeries. I've been running around for the past couple of days trying to get everything cleared with the dentist, oral surgeon, coumadin clinic, and my regular doctor. If everything works out perfectly, I'll be knocked out by 11am.

-- Saturday is Cyndi's annual MS Walk down in Sandy Eggo. I couldn't go last year, but depending on how the tooth thing goes, I'm penciled in to walk this year. As of right now, her team is at $955 raised, close to the goal of $1000. Thank you to all who have donated so far.

-- I found out I'm down to my last two projects for my photo class. This next one is working with Photoshop (hence my first attempt to put Torii Hunter on the Dodgers as seen below). The guy in all the intro videos made it look easy, but it's really frustrating for the perfectionist in me. We'll see what I can come up with for my next due date in two weeks.

-- Today was my annual CPR training at work. The video they show is new, but still annoying. By the end of the year, the Red Cross is getting rid of the breathing part of CPR, so it will be even shorter than it was this time around.

-- The NFL draft this weekend should be good. The 49ers made a wise choice and gave their top pick to the Patriots for some magic beans, so I'm sure it will all work out for the best. I'm sure this is our year! ....sigh.

The One Where I Could Have Died....

Last Thursday night (the 27th) I was driving home from my parents house. I was going down the 605 freeway when I heard what sounded like a backfire behind me. It happened a second time, this time a little closer. I looked around expecting to find some old clunker out there, but they were all newer cars that shouldn't be making sounds like that.

That's when a car came speeding past me. As he was passing, I heard the noise again real loud and saw a small flash from the top of the car's mostly rolled up window. a bad sound came from my car as well. I was trying to figure out what happened, when I watched the car pass another car and a truck up ahead. Both times he passed them, there was another flash and loud pop sound.

I got off at the next exit (the one I wanted anyway), and pulled into a gas station. The headlight was all cracked and pushed in on the side. I'm pretty sure I got shot at! I drove home a little shaken. When I went to work the next day, I found out that a certain widespread gang was having their initiation week. There had been shootings on a couple other freeways as well.

Luckily there wasn't much damage. If I ever decide to become a gangsta, I now have a little street cred. My brother asked if I had at least thrown up my sign (whatever it may be) at them before they got away. I guess I'll have to remember that for next time. For now, I'm just glad that they didn't have good aim.

Blame it on the name...

PDT

I love that we get an extra month of daylight saving time. I feel like the day is wasted when it gets dark so early. It feels so relaxing this way. You can eat dinner, then go for a walk or hang out a bit. When it gets dark early, it just makes me want to go inside.

Yeah, so that happened...

I was shocked, SHOCKED when the guy who was so intent on buying our computer that he was considering driving from Long Beach at midnight last night to pick it up all of a sudden didn't call or show up this morning to get it and then didn't answer his phone when I tried getting ahold of him. That's 5 sales on craigslist that have fallen through like this in the last 2 weeks. I guess that's what I get for going to a free ad site. I think enough time has passed that I'm allowed to repost and I'll put a couple of items on Biola's site too.

In other news, I was also delayed again in my attempt to take a photo class. As of this morning they still had spots open in the Wednesday night class, but by the time I got there they had filled up. I thought that was odd considering it's already in the late registration period. The director of recruiting and admissions (who looked lovely in her dog collar and tags with matching nose chain) said I'd have to talk to the professor at the beginning of the class and then go back again on Thursday to turn in my paperwork. It's really sad that it's taking this much effort to get into a "college" where you can specialize in Reading. Not Literature or English, but Reading. Good times.

Change

Today was our benefits fair at work. I will be dropping my medical, dental, and vision coverage as of March 1. Cyndi has a better health plan at her work so if all goes as we've been told, I should be able to be covered through her work and not miss any days of coverage. I'll be able to stay with Kaiser which is what I needed due to my ongoing blood clot treatment. The difference is that Cyndi's plan has a lower co-pay, plus they don't take anything out of her check. If I stayed on at my work it was going to go up to $80 per check. Since Cyndi is still on a year to year contract we made sure that I would still be able to get coverage through my work should she not be offered a contract for the fall. We're praying that the transition goes smoothly, but I'll be stocking up on my pills and getting my blood tested right at the end of the month just in case.

...

His Easter 2001 strip caused a lot of controversy. It seems appropriate to repost since he died today.

B.C. -- Johnny Hart

Is being quiet such a bad thing?

Tonight I was accused of being too anti-social at work. I talk to everyone in my department, but apparently that's not good enough. My co-workers think that it's odd that many people in other departments around the campus have no idea who I am (by name) even though I've been at this location since August.

Does it really matter? Most of these people I only see in passing any way. I am friendly towards everyone...I say hi and bye and ask how they're doing. I don't avoid talking with anyone; I just have no need to force anything more. I don't plan on hanging out with any of them, I am never around any of them for more than a couple of minutes, and any time I do somehow get in the loop and hear what's going on with various people I realize more and more that I have no interest in getting involved with them.

It's hard enough for me to socialize with people I do want to be friends with. It's not in my nature to be real talkative. I've accepted who I am. Social situations are awkward for me, but it's ok. I've learned to deal with it. I'm just not going to invest that much energy with random people at work.

Auto junkyard pics...

You can find a lot of cool stuff at an auto wrecking yard. Among the highlights: Sonic the Hedgehog for Sega Genesis, an AOL 2.0 diskette, and a videotape of the Menendez brothers trial from 1993, several people's bankrupcy notices, and pictures of 40 year old wannabe gangsters trying to throw gang signs.

Updates

I've been slacking on the posting lately. We had a good run there, posting for about 3 months straight, but once we missed a day, we fell into a bad habit of not posting much at all. I took a bunch of my kids to a program that teaches them about resume writing, job searching, etc today so while they're in class I get to sit here, check email, and blog.

Today is my grandparent's (on my mom's side) 60th wedding anniversary. My grandpa was supposed to marry someone else in August of 1946. That didn't happen, so he started seeing my grandma and they were married March 1, 1947. I guess they knew what they were doing since it lasted this long. I'm told my other set of grandparents will also be celebrating their 60th this year too, and my parents hit 35 years in January.

Last week I got to take a few kids to another Kings game. The game wasn't that exciting, but they were giving out mini Wayne Gretzky jerseys so that was cool. It's part of a series they're giving out to honor all the jersey numbers they have retired.

I had another kid come back and find me at work. He was a pain when I worked for him, but he was still a likeable kid because he was goofy. He was missing his two front teeth. We found someone to buy him some new teeth after a while. He liked to play with them though so we'd be sitting in group having a serious discussion and his front teeth would be popping in and out of his mouth. He was one that I wondered what happened to him so I was glad to hear that he had stayed out of trouble the last two years and is actively working to make up all the school he missed.