Rusty Rumblings

Don't crash your car.

I just watched the Lady Gaga Bowie tribute at the Grammy's. I thought it was pretty good. Not sure what all the fuss is about. She's a Bowie fan, she performed a tribute to him, and I think she captured enough of his brilliance for the general viewing audience. Could've snuck in pieces of his many, many completely brilliant songs which most folks know nothing of, but that's a minor quibble. 

Are you allowed to end a sentence like that? With an of? I guess I am. (In full disclosure, after proofing this blog, I decided to extend that last sentence, so this no longer applies, but I still do not know the answer to the question).

As much as folks disdain Facebook, and I am certainly guilty of that myself, the On This Day feature is quite entertaining some days. Take for instance this post from years past...

I've removed the year of the post to protect the anonymity of anyone who may want their anonymity protected. That's just the kind of kind person I am. Anyway, reading this at least one year and perhaps as many as nine years later caused me to chuckle this afternoon. I should probably just print this out and keep it with me at all times as some sort of reminder. The good, the bad, and all of the in-between.

That's all I have to say about this Facebook feature at the present moment.

Dang. It's 10:35 PM and I'm still up and I still have so much more to write. At least I think I have more to write. Sometimes being responsible and getting all your sleep in is kind of crappy pants, but it's so much better than not doing that when I wake up in the morning. Anyway, I can stay up a bit later tonight, as earlier in the evening I made two sandwiches, two rather impressive salads, my breakfast for tomorrow, and prepared the smoothie I'll finish making in the morning. I've made more smoothies this year than any year in my life. I'm so damned healthy!

I've also eaten more Fannie May candy this year than I've ever eaten in any year of my existence. That reminds me, Valentine's Day has come and gone. The Fannie May store on Michigan and Wacker most likely has amazing deals of 50-75% off regular wallet gouging prices.

Leave me alone diabetes! You've no right to keep shoving those CTA ads in my face. I don't want to go in for a study. Study yourself. I did. That's how I graduated high school and college and grade school and the driving exam at the DMV. Take responsibility for your own disease and just leave everyone else alone.

I don't know why that last paragraph happened.

Perhaps I should just let that sale pass without stopping in for a quick perusal.

But man, if you do stop in, the two women folk who work there at night are just simply the nicest, the kindest, and the most pleasant chocolate pushers I've ever known. I'm serious. In the short time I've come to know both of them, it's already to the point where I've asked each of them if they or any of their immediate family are in need of a liver or bone marrow or even a cornea. I care that much about them.



So see...that Valentine's Day message from above was accurate.

:)

To My Special Sweetheart Cutie!

Thanks, Mary Mac! You always were quite prescient with your wisdom, and this case is certainly no exception. I was all of 15 days old when I was given this card, but to be honest, I really don't remember receiving it, which seems like it might be a bit ungrateful, but I'm going to give my 15 day old self a break on this one. Forty-two years later, I probably just don't remember the quick smile and the "we're all cool" fist bump I gave my Aunt as acknowledgement for her kindness.

So to sum up…I'm special, I'm a sweetheart, and I'm cute as can be.

And so are all of you my dear readers!

Happy Valentine's Day.

Try, Try and Try again.

I can't blog.

There, I said it.

I can, I just sort of can't.

Everything I want to write about seems important enough that I actually want to write a good, serious, and still kinda humorous blog about the topic. I think I've started eight different blogs over the past month and I only finished a couple and didn't publish any of them. Okay, well I posted the one, but that was short and really wasn't necessarily worth all the time it may have taken for certain folks internet connections to pull in the small amount of data that was that blog.

You win some, you lose some, and sometimes you just do whatever the hell you need to do to make yourself content. Me writing a silly blog just to have one posted during the month of August was something that needed to be done.

So now I present you with this, hopefully better blog, which promises to break absolutely no new ground here in cyberspace!

I want you to pronounce that cyberspace! just like Stephen Colbert excitedly announced Jeb! Bush last night on the premiere of his new show. Jeb! Jeb! Jeb! I won't comment on his politics, but he comes across as likable enough for the most part. As for the excitement part, definitely, it's there. I'll be shocked if The Pleasure Chest isn't completely sold out of Jeb! Bush erotic Halloween costumes (for men and women) by mid to late October. I tell ya, I'll be hornswaggled by the ass of a mute goat. Needless to say, I'm pretty bullish on the PC's stock right now. Me say invest, and fast! Faster than a four legged roll of toilet paper curled up next to some succotash!

Oh yeah...Buban Bash party is Saturday, October 10th. Just wanted to get that out there before my lazy ass writes up an actual invitation. If you read this, you're invited.

Unless I don't have any idea who you are and your desperate attempts at finding out the location become way too obvious and encroach on our personal space and safety.

Eh, we're in the phone book. If you take the time to locate one of those and you have the wherewithall to actually find our address (hint...the books in alphabetical order) then of course you can come to the party. Welcome.

That was more than I had planned to write about that topic.

I've spent a good amount of time with friends that I love over the past few weeks. This was one blog topic I started and couldn't figure out. Just know that it was great seeing all of you and damnit, now I'm mad I didn't connect with that final friend in the mix. Dang. Anyway, seeing all of you, once again, did wonders for my soul. Thanks.

And to those I didn't see, but communicated with through the wonders of technology, thank you as well!

And to those that I didn't see and didn't communicate with, that's okay. Next time we'll be there for one another.

Oh, and I guess I was a bit disappointed in the Colbert debut. Didn't think it would be so similar to his Comedy Central show, so I was kinda torn due to my immense respect for him, because it was also so nice to see him in that familiar role once again. Opening night jitters probably. It'll smooth out eventually, at least for those of you who have a better internet connection than I do, or who watch on an actual television. Kinda choppy, and the five minutes of stupid commercials at one point didn't help either.

Air conditioning is nice.

My roommate Alex and I played some frisbee tonight. It was also nice. The frisbee has a pepperoni pizza painted on the topside. I don't know that that actually means anything in the long run, but I love frisbee and I love pizza so combining those two things into one activity was quite enjoyable.

I also don't know if using that that in a row in a sentence is poor formatting. Grammar and I never understood each other. We still don't.

Oh what's that I hear? Those stupid neighbors bitching about something once again. Nope. I thought that's what it was, but I guess it's just a couple of drunks arguing out in the alley. They've either passed out or moved on with their late night activities. All the best to both of you in your journeys.

I'll be at Riot Fest Friday night if any of you are going and want to share in the making of some future memory. Looking forward to Faith No More and whoever else might be playing that day. I should look that up sometime in the next two days.

Finally, to break from tradition, I present you this fortune...

Hold on while I open it up and eat it.

Seriously, hold on...give me a fucking minute here.

Okay got it.

Expect much of yourself and little of others.

That's kind of true, but also quite cynical. I liked it at first, then I didn't like it at second. Now I'm stuck at third and I don't know whether I should head for home or stay at third base, as the third base coach is really kind of an idiot and I wouldn't trust his direction more than I'd trust a horny walrus jostling around in a nest full of spider eggs.

Obviously this didn't get posted when I wrote it, as I still couldn't do it. I'll do it now. I'll figure out this bloggers block at some point. I'll figure out this everything sounds stupid when I go back and read it again at some point. That point isn't now, but I'll get there.

Have a good week.

Photo Desperation.

It's desperation because I just wanted to publish one blog before this August bids farewell to all of us. 

I started writing two blogs tonight, neither of which were getting to where I needed them to be. Well, I started one, realized it wouldn't work, started on another and then realized that wouldn't work as well, so I decided to just find a dumb photo and post that. 

It's sort of like cheating, but it really doesn't matter to anyone except myself. 

I'm currently suffering through some sort of writers block. It could be laziness. It could be lack of motivation. It could be depression. It's probably all of the above. I'm forcing myself to write this. I mean, I want to write it, I really do, I just don't have any faith in the words I'm producing. 

I guess that happens every now and again. 

Also, I have no idea what this picture was actually supposed to be. Certainly not a blur. 

Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to cheat. 

Quantity over quality, right? 

Week in Review

Last Monday night, I rode my bike home from work and decided, at the last minute, that it would be a good idea to stop in at McDonald's and buy a chocolate milkshake.

In hindsight, it wasn't such a good idea.

Tuesday night I rode all the way home, but once I arrived, I thought it would be a good idea to go to Freddie's and buy a chocolate milkshake.

Wednesday night I also bought a chocolate milkshake from Freddie's.

Thursday night, I stopped at McDonald's and bought a chocolate milkshake.

Friday night I did not have a milkshake, but I did eat some ice cream.

Saturday night I did not have a milkshake and I did not have any ice cream.

Sunday night I had some fried ice cream.

Tonight I bought another chocolate milkshake at Freddie's.

Apparently, I'm menopausal.

Or maybe it's just warm out and ice cream brings a small sense of relief to these old bones.

I think I'll stop drinking chocolate milkshakes for a while. I've had enough.



My roommates went camping at Starved Rock for a few days, so I have the place all to myself...for the most part. My roommates used to just be Bob and Rhom and Greg and Maxine, but our friend Lauren moved in a couple days ago and will be staying here for a few months, so I'm not really by myself. Maxine is still here as well, as she's a cat and kind of prefers to just hang out in the apartment relaxing and eating and drinking and pooping in the litter box and climbing on things and wandering around and, of course, napping whenever she wants. When she first arrived, I couldn't even pet her for more than about two seconds before she'd bite and claw at my hand. Yesterday when I came home from work, she was on the couch rolled over on her back and she let me pet her belly for a good 20 full pets before she started putting her paws around my hand, which used to mean she was about to attack, but now she just sort of does that and I ease up on the petting and then we sing a happy song about lilacs and tape measures and then we agree to go our separate ways for a while. That was a very long sentence. Point is, I'm pretty good with cats.



I was on Facebook a little while ago, as I wanted to find out what time a yoga class was going to start on Wednesday. As I was looking for that information, I noticed that there was a feature called "Today in the Past", which shows you some of your old status updates from years past on this date. Mine weren't all that interesting (something about indecision and another with Judas Priest lyrics), but I clicked on show more posts like this, and apparently, one year ago today, I was at the Portage Park swimming pool frolicking in the water with my sister and brother and my nieces. Just wrote about that in a blog not too long ago. Those were the days...fun in the sun.

Now the only sun I get is riding my bike to and from work. I put in another seven days of work this past week. 12 hour days on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Tomorrow, I'll ask to see if we'll be working this coming weekend. I have a feeling the answer will be yes, but I'll ask anyway, just in case that's not the answer. I really don't know what I'll do if I don't have to work. Not that there's not plenty to do, I just haven't had to think about what to do on a weekend in so long, that it's a somewhat foreign concept at this point. I mean I did have last weekend off, as I went to Pitchfork, but that was planned many months ago and it consumed all of my weekend. To actually have nothing to do on a weekend seems to be the most glorious thing I can imagine at this point.

I'm not going to get my hopes up.

And that's my week in review. Chocolate milkshakes and work. I live a very simple life these days.

Have yourself a fine week my friends!

Stupid Holiday!

I happened upon a sign on the wall at work about a week ago and immediately thought that I liked the design, but I didn't actually pay much attention to the sign, as it's not unusual for prints to be temporarily put up on walls at work. Sometimes they want to test if they will adhere. Sometimes they just want to get a sense of what it looks like. Sometimes they probably have some other reason that I don't really know about.

However, later on that day, I went to the bathroom and saw the same sign on the door. I realized it was probably something I was supposed to read, so I did. Underneath the Uncle Sam graphic was a lot of text that told me we had this Friday, the 3rd of July, off from work. We were all wished a happy 4th of July.

I was disappointed.

This would be the first time in my life I was disappointed by getting a day off from work.

Hopefully it's not the last time.

As of today, I've worked 24 days in a row. I was kind of hoping to get that up into the 40's, or, at the least, the high 30's. My hopes were completely dashed by what would normally be a welcome sign of happiness.

I don't quite understand my desire to work so much these days. That's not quite right, I understand some of it, but not all of it.

The easy answer is the money. Time and a half is a good thing. Double time on Sundays is even better. Much larger paychecks are a great thing. Quickly vanishing debt is also a great thing. Might as well accept all this overtime while it's available, right?

The other answer is that I enjoy working for this company. I've only worked here for six months and I still feel as if I need to prove myself to them. Actually, I think I've probably already done more than enough to prove myself over these past six months, but busting my ass to help them get this project finished in time certainly can't hurt. As my friend recently told me, establishing credibility is a good thing. I've already done that, but I'm going to make damn sure they get the message.

One of the owners has an office right around the corner from where I normally work when I'm doing what they hired me to do. He called out my name last week and I thought he needed help with something. I was busy so I couldn't walk around the corner to see what he needed right away, but a few moments later he walked over to where I was and told me that he really appreciated all the work I was doing for the company and that he wanted to make sure I knew that it hadn't gone unnoticed. I thanked him and said I was glad to help out. It's nice to be thanked and appreciated. Feels good. Makes you want to help out even more.

Thanking others and letting them know I appreciate them is something I'm working on. Seems like I'm working on just about everything regarding myself these days, but better late than never I guess. Hopefully some of it actually sticks.

Insert smiley face emoticon right here.

Anyway, back on course...1000 points of light....

That same owner also told me a couple of days later after I had asked him if he wanted me to stay late to work on a project, that he was giving me carte blanche to work whatever overtime I thought was necessary to get the work finished on time. He told me that he trusted me and that I had a good head on my shoulders. He's probably right. We have to fill out overtime slips for each day that we work over eight hours and part of that form requires writing down who approved the overtime. Now I can just write down, "I approved this overtime beyotch!"

I probably won't do that. I'll just put down the owners name, drop the form in the slot and head home.

So lots of work. Lots of helping out. Lots of being tired. Lots of not having time for much else. What little bit of social life I had has completely disappeared from my expectations. I'm okay with that. Only one more month to go for this project. So far summer has been rainy and kind of cold, so working this much isn't such a bad thing. I don't feel like I'm missing out on all that much. What does bother me is getting home and being too exhausted to do all the things I was doing for the last few months before June came around. Blogging frequently is one of those things. This makes me sad a bit. Well, not really sad, but kind of annoyed that I don't have as much time to sit down and write out as much nonsense as I had been doing. Guess I just have to do more to find the time.

In the meantime, I'll get to bed so I can get up in the morning and bike to work for day number 25.

It's good to like your job.

Artwork on the Commute.

I used to commute on the Brown Line from Western to the Merchandise Mart a few years back, well...quite a few years back. Passing by this art installation was always one of my favorite parts of the journey. Such a simple work of art, but quite powerful at the same time. Well done to whoever came up with this idea and brought it to fruition. I should Google it and find out everything there is to know about it, but I don't really care about that at this point. Sometimes it's better to just admire something for what it is, rather than finding out everything about it.

I don't take the Brown line all that often anymore, but every now and again, I do, and it's always a nice surprise when the train rumbles on by whatever building it is that this very large piece of printing is installed on. 

As an aside, and I know I should stay out of this sort of thing on this here, fun for you to read blog, but I don't feel like it, so... 

Does anyone else find it interesting that Jack Kevorkian and Ronald Reagan are listed right next to each other? Too bad Jack Kevorkian wasn't by Reagan's bedside back in...oh, say...1979, helping to administer a warm, beautiful, lethal dose of go off to see Jesus now my friend. 

Oh well. Can't have everything.

Regardless, we still have this majestic piece of artwork.

That's not so bad.