Funny how at this time last year I was totally feeling like my birthday was a bit of a big deal, and this year, it's just kinda... meh, whatever.
I sort of got two... ish...
The job I interviewed for - nope. Fair enough considering I had a whole 5 hours' notice for that interview.
The job with the government - no alternative test dates. Not going to take Friday morning off. So basically I have to withdraw from the competition.
Ah well. If I stick my present job out, I'm pretty much guaranteed a position one level up in the fall (as definitely one if not both will be leaving for other provinces/countries come September/October). So I'm not too disappointed. Honest. I think maybe I might apply to see if I can start a PhD part time in September 2008 if that happens. Maybe. Still up in the air. I do still want to do the book/library material conservation course at some point too, though. Oh, the decisions...! Oh, the agony!
The job I interviewed for - nope. Fair enough considering I had a whole 5 hours' notice for that interview.
The job with the government - no alternative test dates. Not going to take Friday morning off. So basically I have to withdraw from the competition.
Ah well. If I stick my present job out, I'm pretty much guaranteed a position one level up in the fall (as definitely one if not both will be leaving for other provinces/countries come September/October). So I'm not too disappointed. Honest. I think maybe I might apply to see if I can start a PhD part time in September 2008 if that happens. Maybe. Still up in the air. I do still want to do the book/library material conservation course at some point too, though. Oh, the decisions...! Oh, the agony!
So my stuff is mostly all moved into the apartment now (that includes clothes and the like!), and so I'm set to actually begin living here. There are still things that need to get done - I need to find picture hangers for a couple of frames, I need to get some other stuff framed, but it's mostly little things like that - the decorative touches that would really turn the place into home. Having said that, though, it's really coming together, and once I get the cardboard and garbage out of here, it'll be brilliant.
I do still need another bookcase. When we moved my stuff, we moved about 8 boxes of books, and damned if I didn't find another 4 boxes worth lying around the 'rents house between then and today. I've got the 'personal/fluff' books in my bedroom on the book case in there, but the more academic/serious books are still in boxes in my living room. That and maybe a small table to set my stereo on. 'Cuz right now it's living on its cardboard box. Functional, but not elegant. Sort of student-first-apartment-esque. And I'm not a student any more. For now, anyway.
Went to see Antony and Cleopatra on Thursday night. Good fun. I can say I'm all cultured up for the month that way, I guess. I have a hard time suspending disbelief when I see shows that people I know are in, though - you can see exactly what that person is bringing of themselves to the character, and at times it seems more like watching your friend than it does like watching the character, if that makes any sense at all...? Having said that, though, it was a good two hours. Very entertaining. So nice to see Shakespeare acted, rather than just reading it.
Needed to pass up several potential engagements on Friday, and having seen the photos from some of them, I'm sad I had to - Magnolia's Vegas-themed party looks like it was an absolute blast, for example.
Got a letter from the folks at the government job I applied for. It wasn't a PFO letter, which is always nice, but they want me to write a test on Friday morning. Which I could do, but it's the second busiest weekend of the year at work, so it's not really feasible. I'm going to call tomorrow morning to see if I can make alternate arrangements, but if they say it's Friday or nothing, then I might just bow out. The only busier weekend they could have picked would have been Labour Day weekend. *Kate knocks wood that something doesn't come up for that weekend*
Anywho. Time to have a bath and go to bed. Although I don't have to get up at 6 tomorrow morning. Nope. My alarm will go off at 7. I will leave my apartment at 8, and I will still make it to work on time. This instead of leaving the 'rents house at 7 a.m. So very excited. Looking very forward to the sleeping in, such as it is.
I do still need another bookcase. When we moved my stuff, we moved about 8 boxes of books, and damned if I didn't find another 4 boxes worth lying around the 'rents house between then and today. I've got the 'personal/fluff' books in my bedroom on the book case in there, but the more academic/serious books are still in boxes in my living room. That and maybe a small table to set my stereo on. 'Cuz right now it's living on its cardboard box. Functional, but not elegant. Sort of student-first-apartment-esque. And I'm not a student any more. For now, anyway.
Went to see Antony and Cleopatra on Thursday night. Good fun. I can say I'm all cultured up for the month that way, I guess. I have a hard time suspending disbelief when I see shows that people I know are in, though - you can see exactly what that person is bringing of themselves to the character, and at times it seems more like watching your friend than it does like watching the character, if that makes any sense at all...? Having said that, though, it was a good two hours. Very entertaining. So nice to see Shakespeare acted, rather than just reading it.
Needed to pass up several potential engagements on Friday, and having seen the photos from some of them, I'm sad I had to - Magnolia's Vegas-themed party looks like it was an absolute blast, for example.
Got a letter from the folks at the government job I applied for. It wasn't a PFO letter, which is always nice, but they want me to write a test on Friday morning. Which I could do, but it's the second busiest weekend of the year at work, so it's not really feasible. I'm going to call tomorrow morning to see if I can make alternate arrangements, but if they say it's Friday or nothing, then I might just bow out. The only busier weekend they could have picked would have been Labour Day weekend. *Kate knocks wood that something doesn't come up for that weekend*
Anywho. Time to have a bath and go to bed. Although I don't have to get up at 6 tomorrow morning. Nope. My alarm will go off at 7. I will leave my apartment at 8, and I will still make it to work on time. This instead of leaving the 'rents house at 7 a.m. So very excited. Looking very forward to the sleeping in, such as it is.
So I had a student come in yesterday. The conversation went a little something like this:
Him: {unintelligible due to foreign accent} Telus couldn't hook up phone {unintelligible}
Me: I'm sorry, I'm not understanding completely. You're saying Telus couldn't come hook up a phone in your room?
Him: Yes
Me: Ok, which res do you live in?
Him: res X
Me: Ok, that explains it. The phones in that res are run by the University. Did you want to get the phone hooked up?
Him: Yes. And then I'll have internet?
Me: Ok, hang on. You've applied for internet?
Him: Yes
Me: And you paid for internet?
Him: Yes
Me: Ok, then it should be set up, just plug your computer into the socket with the cable. So what you want now is to have a phone?
Him: Yes
Me: So you need to fill out X form and pay Y money.
He does it. Hands in the forms. Life is beautiful. He's going to have a phone for the remaining half month of the semester.
He comes back today. "I came in yesterday for my internet"
Me: Hang on, you said you had internet and you wanted phone
Him: No, I wanted internet
Me: No... you said Telus couldn't hook up your phone.
Him: No, I said internet
Me: I asked you if you had applied for internet. You said yes. I asked you if you had paid for internet. You said yes. You said you wanted a phone.
Him: Don't you dare try to blame this on me. _YOU_ gave me the wrong form and just weren't listening.
At this point I just stared.
Me: I'm not going to argue with you. I'm going to tell you how to fix it. We'll refund the hookup fee at the end of April. Fill in these two forms. This one is to cancel the phone application from yesterday, and this one is to get internet.
The first form he fills out, he cancels his internet instead of phone.
Granted, I know there were some language barriers there. I might not have been understanding him, he might not have been understanding me. But I did my best to find out what exactly he wanted and provide it to him. Especially the first time he came in. I even asked the coworker whose desk backs on to mine if I hadn't been clear the first time around (she had overheard the conversation the first time). She said that if it had gone on any longer she would have come out from behind her desk and confronted him as well - apparently I was as clear as could be, and after all my questions it was also her understanding that he wanted phone service.
So do you want to tell me why I feel this weird combination of pissed off, hurt, and ready to punch a brick wall?
Him: {unintelligible due to foreign accent} Telus couldn't hook up phone {unintelligible}
Me: I'm sorry, I'm not understanding completely. You're saying Telus couldn't come hook up a phone in your room?
Him: Yes
Me: Ok, which res do you live in?
Him: res X
Me: Ok, that explains it. The phones in that res are run by the University. Did you want to get the phone hooked up?
Him: Yes. And then I'll have internet?
Me: Ok, hang on. You've applied for internet?
Him: Yes
Me: And you paid for internet?
Him: Yes
Me: Ok, then it should be set up, just plug your computer into the socket with the cable. So what you want now is to have a phone?
Him: Yes
Me: So you need to fill out X form and pay Y money.
He does it. Hands in the forms. Life is beautiful. He's going to have a phone for the remaining half month of the semester.
He comes back today. "I came in yesterday for my internet"
Me: Hang on, you said you had internet and you wanted phone
Him: No, I wanted internet
Me: No... you said Telus couldn't hook up your phone.
Him: No, I said internet
Me: I asked you if you had applied for internet. You said yes. I asked you if you had paid for internet. You said yes. You said you wanted a phone.
Him: Don't you dare try to blame this on me. _YOU_ gave me the wrong form and just weren't listening.
At this point I just stared.
Me: I'm not going to argue with you. I'm going to tell you how to fix it. We'll refund the hookup fee at the end of April. Fill in these two forms. This one is to cancel the phone application from yesterday, and this one is to get internet.
The first form he fills out, he cancels his internet instead of phone.
Granted, I know there were some language barriers there. I might not have been understanding him, he might not have been understanding me. But I did my best to find out what exactly he wanted and provide it to him. Especially the first time he came in. I even asked the coworker whose desk backs on to mine if I hadn't been clear the first time around (she had overheard the conversation the first time). She said that if it had gone on any longer she would have come out from behind her desk and confronted him as well - apparently I was as clear as could be, and after all my questions it was also her understanding that he wanted phone service.
So do you want to tell me why I feel this weird combination of pissed off, hurt, and ready to punch a brick wall?
So just logged onto the internet and saw the whole Virginia school shootings thing.
C'mon, bad guys... school shootings have been done. It's no longer a nifty and original way to express your angst and psychoses (not that it ever was... chill, ok?). Go do something else. It just ain't cool any more.
Similarly, I have strained a tendon in my shoulder. Doctor's diagnosis. How? Making a grab for either a mentally ill or completely drugged up woman as she lept out the emergency exit of the MOVING bus I was on yesterday. She was fine. I have a shoulder injury that SHOULD go away with ice and advil and the exercises the doctor showed me how to do, and a bit of mental... not scarring, per se... scabbing, maybe? Christ.
And that is all.
C'mon, bad guys... school shootings have been done. It's no longer a nifty and original way to express your angst and psychoses (not that it ever was... chill, ok?). Go do something else. It just ain't cool any more.
Similarly, I have strained a tendon in my shoulder. Doctor's diagnosis. How? Making a grab for either a mentally ill or completely drugged up woman as she lept out the emergency exit of the MOVING bus I was on yesterday. She was fine. I have a shoulder injury that SHOULD go away with ice and advil and the exercises the doctor showed me how to do, and a bit of mental... not scarring, per se... scabbing, maybe? Christ.
And that is all.
My desk is exposed to the public. So I ran away. To another desk that's behind a wall somewhere where students won't interrupt me. So I can actually write a real entry for this thing.
First: Graduation really wasn't as bad as I've been making it out to be. My 'rents and I are just NOT meant to be together for extended periods of time, and so I was getting hugely frustrated. It's amazing how much better we're getting along after we didn't talk to or see each other for a week.
Next: The saga that was my parents' voyage home. They were meant to get back on Tuesday. 6:30 a.m., I'm rolling out of bed, and the phone in their house is ringing. I let the machine pick up, until I heard my mother's voice. At which point I ran over to the other room and picked up the phone. "We were meant to leave 1/2 an hour ago, but we're still sitting in the airport. They say we're going to be about 2 hours late". Fine by me. Means I leave work later, get paid for more hours, and can still make it to the Body Shop, albeit maybe a few minutes late. I've been at work for a couple of hours when I get another phone call. "We're still at the airport. Don't know how late we're going to be." Fine. Another couple of hours and I check the Air Canada website. Their flight has been cancelled. Lovely. So my parents got home about noon yesterday rather than 2 p.m. on Tuesday. They were put up in a hotel overnight and given food vouchers and such, and were fairly tired when they got back, but it worked out in the end.
And again: So my furniture arrives tonight! Yay! I also want to send a shout out to Magnolia, her significant other, Jill and my friend N, who all came out and helped me move what little stuff I had left at my 'rents to my apartment. Y'all rock!
And as mentioned, I'm stupid busy at work these days (it's a deadline looming tomorrow, so I'm sure at 3 p.m. tomorrow I'll be stupid swamped). My apologies if I'm less than communication-worthy at this point. I have no internet at home until Saturday between 12-2 (my Shaw appointment last night was a casualty of Air Canada's screw-up - I wanted to be free to pick up the 'rents if they arrived in the evening). So it's all work breaks and such.
Take care, all
First: Graduation really wasn't as bad as I've been making it out to be. My 'rents and I are just NOT meant to be together for extended periods of time, and so I was getting hugely frustrated. It's amazing how much better we're getting along after we didn't talk to or see each other for a week.
Next: The saga that was my parents' voyage home. They were meant to get back on Tuesday. 6:30 a.m., I'm rolling out of bed, and the phone in their house is ringing. I let the machine pick up, until I heard my mother's voice. At which point I ran over to the other room and picked up the phone. "We were meant to leave 1/2 an hour ago, but we're still sitting in the airport. They say we're going to be about 2 hours late". Fine by me. Means I leave work later, get paid for more hours, and can still make it to the Body Shop, albeit maybe a few minutes late. I've been at work for a couple of hours when I get another phone call. "We're still at the airport. Don't know how late we're going to be." Fine. Another couple of hours and I check the Air Canada website. Their flight has been cancelled. Lovely. So my parents got home about noon yesterday rather than 2 p.m. on Tuesday. They were put up in a hotel overnight and given food vouchers and such, and were fairly tired when they got back, but it worked out in the end.
And again: So my furniture arrives tonight! Yay! I also want to send a shout out to Magnolia, her significant other, Jill and my friend N, who all came out and helped me move what little stuff I had left at my 'rents to my apartment. Y'all rock!
And as mentioned, I'm stupid busy at work these days (it's a deadline looming tomorrow, so I'm sure at 3 p.m. tomorrow I'll be stupid swamped). My apologies if I'm less than communication-worthy at this point. I have no internet at home until Saturday between 12-2 (my Shaw appointment last night was a casualty of Air Canada's screw-up - I wanted to be free to pick up the 'rents if they arrived in the evening). So it's all work breaks and such.
Take care, all
Ok, sorry, I'm slacking, I know. But it's been busy and circumstances are conspiring against me.
I arranged to have Shaw transfer my cable/internet to the apartment as of last week. That hasn't worked out yet, so I have no internet at either my 'rents (without using their superold Windows 98 computer which SUCKS) or my apartment.
Work is busy, finally. Deadlines are looming, so students are finally getting their shit together. I will be opening many many envelopes today.
Talk to y'all soon.
I arranged to have Shaw transfer my cable/internet to the apartment as of last week. That hasn't worked out yet, so I have no internet at either my 'rents (without using their superold Windows 98 computer which SUCKS) or my apartment.
Work is busy, finally. Deadlines are looming, so students are finally getting their shit together. I will be opening many many envelopes today.
Talk to y'all soon.
Ok, so I drove the van around for a bit today, and the thing was being stupid on the way in to pick up my apartment keys (yay!!!), but on the way back out and during my driving in Sherwood Park, it was fine again. I suppose if it starts misbehaving again the next time I drive (which will likely be Thursday or Friday at this rate - no point in driving to work when parking is $10/day and I'm going to need to buy a bus pass anyway), I'll have to take her in. Hopefully I'll last until after my 'rents get back. Which reminds me that I need to buy a bus pass. Shit. Looks like I'll be driving to the transit centre stupid early tomorrow morning to get a (free) parking spot so I can buy a pass. Bugger it all.
So I graduated, eh? Flew to England leaving here Wednesday afternoon and getting in at about 10 a.m. local time on Thursday morning. Meandered up to York where (by this point having been up for about 26 hours) I had a nap at the B&B and then got up again to go to the bar. Had a pint with some of my classmates, went to C and N's new-ish flat, then wandered back to the B&B to sleep again.
Friday morning was the ceremony. I don't do mornings well, usually, but throw in jet lag, the fact that I wasn't all that keen on going to graduation anyway, and that my mother was insisting on treating me like I was in a foreign country and had no idea what I was doing, and I must admit I look fairly pissed off in all the photos. Not to mention tired. Ah well. The ceremony itself was short, sweet, simple. 1.25 hours and we were out of there. Yay! Spent the afternoon and evening with my 'rents walking the city walls and having dinner before retiring back to the hotel room to sleep yet again.
I spent Saturday shopping, then had dinner and drinks with C. Sunday I went down to London where Crispy and I got to meet up for a few hours - took in an exhibit at the British Museum (which was superfun - it was Europe's first look at the new world - paintings done by an artist on journeys to America in the late 1500s) and then went for dinner at a Thai restaurant.
As promised:
The unofficial but much-better-looking-than-the-official graduation portrait.
And the completely unofficial but much better looking informal portrait. The UFO in the background is Central Hall, where the ceremony took place.
So I graduated, eh? Flew to England leaving here Wednesday afternoon and getting in at about 10 a.m. local time on Thursday morning. Meandered up to York where (by this point having been up for about 26 hours) I had a nap at the B&B and then got up again to go to the bar. Had a pint with some of my classmates, went to C and N's new-ish flat, then wandered back to the B&B to sleep again.
Friday morning was the ceremony. I don't do mornings well, usually, but throw in jet lag, the fact that I wasn't all that keen on going to graduation anyway, and that my mother was insisting on treating me like I was in a foreign country and had no idea what I was doing, and I must admit I look fairly pissed off in all the photos. Not to mention tired. Ah well. The ceremony itself was short, sweet, simple. 1.25 hours and we were out of there. Yay! Spent the afternoon and evening with my 'rents walking the city walls and having dinner before retiring back to the hotel room to sleep yet again.
I spent Saturday shopping, then had dinner and drinks with C. Sunday I went down to London where Crispy and I got to meet up for a few hours - took in an exhibit at the British Museum (which was superfun - it was Europe's first look at the new world - paintings done by an artist on journeys to America in the late 1500s) and then went for dinner at a Thai restaurant.
As promised:
The unofficial but much-better-looking-than-the-official graduation portrait.
And the completely unofficial but much better looking informal portrait. The UFO in the background is Central Hall, where the ceremony took place.
Automobiles. Yes, automobiles. I'll describe grad and the trip later, but for now I have a dilemma.
My parents are still in England. I picked up the vehicle from the Park'n'Fly. I drove the vehicle home. I noticed that the fuel indicator kept lighting up, telling me I don't have much gas left... but this would last for about 2 seconds - long enough for the needle to go down about 1/4 of a tank, and then it would go off, the needle would shoot back up to where it was meant to be (just below full - we put a full tank of gas in before we went to the airport). It did this off and on throughout the 1/2 hour drive back to the house.
I'm worried. I don't want to drive the van, but there are things I need to do (like, oh, say, move... go shopping at Ikea... pick up my 'rents from the airport when they arrive next week... just some little things, y'know). I have NO idea where my parents usually get the damn thing serviced, so I can't even pull a "please, pretty please, you know my parents, can you check this out?!". I don't want to go to a random and be charged an arm and a leg. I don't want to pay for repairs (although I know the 'rents would reimburse me)... but the LAST thing I want is to be driving somewhere and have the damn thing die on me.
Input?
My parents are still in England. I picked up the vehicle from the Park'n'Fly. I drove the vehicle home. I noticed that the fuel indicator kept lighting up, telling me I don't have much gas left... but this would last for about 2 seconds - long enough for the needle to go down about 1/4 of a tank, and then it would go off, the needle would shoot back up to where it was meant to be (just below full - we put a full tank of gas in before we went to the airport). It did this off and on throughout the 1/2 hour drive back to the house.
I'm worried. I don't want to drive the van, but there are things I need to do (like, oh, say, move... go shopping at Ikea... pick up my 'rents from the airport when they arrive next week... just some little things, y'know). I have NO idea where my parents usually get the damn thing serviced, so I can't even pull a "please, pretty please, you know my parents, can you check this out?!". I don't want to go to a random and be charged an arm and a leg. I don't want to pay for repairs (although I know the 'rents would reimburse me)... but the LAST thing I want is to be driving somewhere and have the damn thing die on me.
Input?
