An Interview with Melissa Morgan
4 years ago
Went into the Dentist's today. Follow-up appointment from my checkup last month.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have officially survived (I think) my first local anesthetic. That's right. I rule. We'll see how things go when the freezing wears off, but for now, I'm ok, albeit a little drooly.
They've frozen the right side of my face - I apparently have enough room for my wisdom teeth so they got rid of a little gum flap that was over my tooth.
If you have a weak stomach, stop reading now.
So what they do is they actually take a little laser and cut it off. Lasers are supereffective, because they cauterize (ie: burn shut) the wound as they go. So in essence, my wound has already scabbed over. Minimum blood, minimum pain. The thing about cauterization, though, is that you're burning flesh. I now know what the smell of burning human flesh is. And, disturbingly enough, I've smelt worse.
Now, though, when I read about people being burnt at the stake and such, I'll know what the smell was. Not sure how that'll affect me, but we'll see.
Ok, you can start reading again.
On another note, I finally got my tax receipt for my Jan/Feb RSP contributions, so I can finally file my income taxes! Yay! I have a pretty sweet return coming my way.
And that is all.
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
For Fun: The Success Principles (Jack Canfield)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
Ladies and gentlemen, I have officially survived (I think) my first local anesthetic. That's right. I rule. We'll see how things go when the freezing wears off, but for now, I'm ok, albeit a little drooly.
They've frozen the right side of my face - I apparently have enough room for my wisdom teeth so they got rid of a little gum flap that was over my tooth.
If you have a weak stomach, stop reading now.
So what they do is they actually take a little laser and cut it off. Lasers are supereffective, because they cauterize (ie: burn shut) the wound as they go. So in essence, my wound has already scabbed over. Minimum blood, minimum pain. The thing about cauterization, though, is that you're burning flesh. I now know what the smell of burning human flesh is. And, disturbingly enough, I've smelt worse.
Now, though, when I read about people being burnt at the stake and such, I'll know what the smell was. Not sure how that'll affect me, but we'll see.
Ok, you can start reading again.
On another note, I finally got my tax receipt for my Jan/Feb RSP contributions, so I can finally file my income taxes! Yay! I have a pretty sweet return coming my way.
And that is all.
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
For Fun: The Success Principles (Jack Canfield)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
Magnolia pointed out that a bunch of us in the same blogging circle had completed this meme a little over a year ago... and that since her playlists had changed quite a bit, she was going to redo it.
Well, ditto. :-)
Last time I did this I used my "general listenage" playlist for selection B, and my entire library (including Christmas music et al) for selection A. This time will just be reversed. :)
Life Soundtrack
IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
So, here's how it works:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie
Opening Credits:
a) Martika - "Toy Soldiers" (Hm. Setting the scene for a cheesy 80s angst-ridden movie...)
b) Radiohead - "(Nice Dream)" (I can handle this - makes for a good opening).
Waking Up:
a) Robbie Williams - "Random Acts of Kindness" (ok, good start to the morning)
b) Weezer - "Dope Nose" (in which the Tudor Rose becomes a crack addict)
First day at High School:
a) The Tragically Hip - "Scared" (ha! this scene is perhaps filmed from the bully's POV?)
b) Evanescence - "Haunted" (appropriate for the scariness that was the first day of school!)
Falling in Love:
a) James Blunt - "Out Of My Mind" (well, I don't know about the rest of the lyrics, but the chorus definitely fits)
b) Glenn Miller and his Orchestra - "Adios" (perhaps the object of my affection will also share an affection for Glenn Miller?)
Fight Song:
a) Trespassers William - "I know" (In terms of tempo and composition, not really what you'd expect, but you could almost see an Ang Lee-eque slow-mo martial arts scene for it...)
b) The Beatles - "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)" (some humorous circumstance led to a mixup that involves people now running after each other through an amusement park with guns...)
Breaking Up:
a) Billie Holiday - "My Man" (ok, apparently I'm being broke up with, or iTunes screwed this up royally...)
b) J. S. Bach - "Wo Ist Der Neugeborne König Der Juden" - (from Bach's Christmas oratorio... very snotty breakup, apparently)
Prom:
a) Evanescence - "Taking Over Me" (This is going to be like a prom straight out of Carrie, apparently. Or Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Or some weird mixture of both).
b) Great Big Sea - "Seagulls" (prom is destined to end in disappointment... Don't really want to be there...)
Life:
a) Wolfmother - "Love Train" (ummmm....)
b) The Choir of King's College, Cambridge - "While Shepherds Watched" (apparently thinking back on my life at Christmas?)
Mental Breakdown:
a) Skye - "Say Amen" (A bit peppy for amental breakdown, but apt lyrics describing the confusion... apparently I'm breaking down after my breakup, though)
b) Glenn Miller - "That Old Black Magic" (very apt - sweet, cheerful, loving music to provide a foil to the mental anguish that would be obvious on screen...)
Driving:
a) Radiohead - "Let Down" (Perfect. I love driving to this song. Esp on highway stretches. It's just got a tempo and tonality that's perfect for letting the scenery fly by).
b) JS Bach - "Nun komm' der Heiden Heiland" (organ piece that conveys a bit of a sense of urgency... I'm apparently driving somewhere in a hurry).
Flashback:
a) Stealers Wheel - "Stuck In The Middle With You" (Flashback to dancing at the bar in my university days, apparently).
b) Great Big Sea - "The Chemical Workers' Song" (flashback on all the crap that's happened in life)
Getting Back Together:
a) Neko Case - "At Last" (choosing love over circumstances? Pretty apt...)
b) Glenn Miller - "Moonlight Cocktail" (very apt.)
Wedding:
a) Nine Inch Nails - "Closer". (um, yes, well...)
b) Coldplay - "God Put A Smile On Your Face" (Arranged marriage?)
Birth of Child:
a) Bright Eyes - "Lover I Don't Have To Love" (this movie is turning into a tragedy, a story of an abusive relationship or something...)
b) Seal - "Kiss From A Rose" (Hm... sort of apt in a "light of my life", "advice to a child" kind of way).
Final Battle:
a) Peerless Quartet - "That Aeroplane Glide" (old time-y black and white battle complete with static-y bits on the film strip...)
b) Tadpole - "Backdoor" (that's better. Agressive guitar riffs, aggressive lyrics, definitely fight music...)
Death Scene:
a) Sigur Ros - "Með Blóðnasir" (nice, peaceful death...)
b) Bing Crosby - "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (I don't want to die at Christmas! That's so depressing!)
Funeral Song:
a) Aslan - "Fall On Me" (I have no idea what to make of this. It doesn't fit at all.)
b) Billie Holiday - "Me, Myself and I" (Well, at least I know someone loved me...?)
End Credits:
a) Feist - "I Feel It All" (Nice way to sum up a life, really...)
b) Anon - "Sequence - Missus Gabriel De Celis" (as performed by Anonymous 4... everyone is going to walk out on the credits, this is so inapt. I'm firing my director now...)
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: The Life of Saint Philip Neri (Antonio Gallonio)
For Fun: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
Well, ditto. :-)
Last time I did this I used my "general listenage" playlist for selection B, and my entire library (including Christmas music et al) for selection A. This time will just be reversed. :)
Life Soundtrack
IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
So, here's how it works:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie
Opening Credits:
a) Martika - "Toy Soldiers" (Hm. Setting the scene for a cheesy 80s angst-ridden movie...)
b) Radiohead - "(Nice Dream)" (I can handle this - makes for a good opening).
Waking Up:
a) Robbie Williams - "Random Acts of Kindness" (ok, good start to the morning)
b) Weezer - "Dope Nose" (in which the Tudor Rose becomes a crack addict)
First day at High School:
a) The Tragically Hip - "Scared" (ha! this scene is perhaps filmed from the bully's POV?)
b) Evanescence - "Haunted" (appropriate for the scariness that was the first day of school!)
Falling in Love:
a) James Blunt - "Out Of My Mind" (well, I don't know about the rest of the lyrics, but the chorus definitely fits)
b) Glenn Miller and his Orchestra - "Adios" (perhaps the object of my affection will also share an affection for Glenn Miller?)
Fight Song:
a) Trespassers William - "I know" (In terms of tempo and composition, not really what you'd expect, but you could almost see an Ang Lee-eque slow-mo martial arts scene for it...)
b) The Beatles - "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)" (some humorous circumstance led to a mixup that involves people now running after each other through an amusement park with guns...)
Breaking Up:
a) Billie Holiday - "My Man" (ok, apparently I'm being broke up with, or iTunes screwed this up royally...)
b) J. S. Bach - "Wo Ist Der Neugeborne König Der Juden" - (from Bach's Christmas oratorio... very snotty breakup, apparently)
Prom:
a) Evanescence - "Taking Over Me" (This is going to be like a prom straight out of Carrie, apparently. Or Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Or some weird mixture of both).
b) Great Big Sea - "Seagulls" (prom is destined to end in disappointment... Don't really want to be there...)
Life:
a) Wolfmother - "Love Train" (ummmm....)
b) The Choir of King's College, Cambridge - "While Shepherds Watched" (apparently thinking back on my life at Christmas?)
Mental Breakdown:
a) Skye - "Say Amen" (A bit peppy for amental breakdown, but apt lyrics describing the confusion... apparently I'm breaking down after my breakup, though)
b) Glenn Miller - "That Old Black Magic" (very apt - sweet, cheerful, loving music to provide a foil to the mental anguish that would be obvious on screen...)
Driving:
a) Radiohead - "Let Down" (Perfect. I love driving to this song. Esp on highway stretches. It's just got a tempo and tonality that's perfect for letting the scenery fly by).
b) JS Bach - "Nun komm' der Heiden Heiland" (organ piece that conveys a bit of a sense of urgency... I'm apparently driving somewhere in a hurry).
Flashback:
a) Stealers Wheel - "Stuck In The Middle With You" (Flashback to dancing at the bar in my university days, apparently).
b) Great Big Sea - "The Chemical Workers' Song" (flashback on all the crap that's happened in life)
Getting Back Together:
a) Neko Case - "At Last" (choosing love over circumstances? Pretty apt...)
b) Glenn Miller - "Moonlight Cocktail" (very apt.)
Wedding:
a) Nine Inch Nails - "Closer". (um, yes, well...)
b) Coldplay - "God Put A Smile On Your Face" (Arranged marriage?)
Birth of Child:
a) Bright Eyes - "Lover I Don't Have To Love" (this movie is turning into a tragedy, a story of an abusive relationship or something...)
b) Seal - "Kiss From A Rose" (Hm... sort of apt in a "light of my life", "advice to a child" kind of way).
Final Battle:
a) Peerless Quartet - "That Aeroplane Glide" (old time-y black and white battle complete with static-y bits on the film strip...)
b) Tadpole - "Backdoor" (that's better. Agressive guitar riffs, aggressive lyrics, definitely fight music...)
Death Scene:
a) Sigur Ros - "Með Blóðnasir" (nice, peaceful death...)
b) Bing Crosby - "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (I don't want to die at Christmas! That's so depressing!)
Funeral Song:
a) Aslan - "Fall On Me" (I have no idea what to make of this. It doesn't fit at all.)
b) Billie Holiday - "Me, Myself and I" (Well, at least I know someone loved me...?)
End Credits:
a) Feist - "I Feel It All" (Nice way to sum up a life, really...)
b) Anon - "Sequence - Missus Gabriel De Celis" (as performed by Anonymous 4... everyone is going to walk out on the credits, this is so inapt. I'm firing my director now...)
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: The Life of Saint Philip Neri (Antonio Gallonio)
For Fun: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
I did something today that I'm really ont sure what the hell I was thinking.
I asked my boss at The Body Shop to see if there would be a possibility that I could transfer to the other company location in the city, at a rather large mall on the west end of the city.
I was there, thinking about the money I was earning. The discounts I get on the products that I use on a daily basis. What the hell would I really do with myself on an extra day on the weekend (ok, besides clean my place, and my place really does need it, I'll admit it)? And so I wrote her a note asking if she could see about the possibility.
I'm justifying it because I'd like to buy a car in the next couple of years. And the more money I have saved up for a deposit, the better. Hell, I could even buy a used car outright. And the commute to WEM is much less nasty than the commute to where I'm located right now (bus service runs AT LEAST every 30 mins, so I wouldn't have to leave my place 1.5 hours before I need to be there - I could get it down to 1 hour, max - most trips are only 35-45 mins).
And the ultimate irony? One of my friends just got a job at a third TBS location - the difference being that this third location (at a shopping mall on the east-ish end of town) is one of the franchises in town and the owner doesn't have to worry about the company's bottom line, so long as they're making a profit. Thank god. I asked my friend to ask if they needed someone on weekends (since really, that's all I can work).
I guess, really, I'm just afraid of change. And the extra money is nice. I've been whinging incessantly about the Body Shop and really was considering changing, but now that it's hit me that in a month and a half, I'll not have it any more... I'm ridiculously emotional and sad about it.
I'll give a real weekend a go this weekend (I have Friday, Sunday, Monday, and TUESDAY off from both places of work!) and see if I go nuts. If not, I might be prepping my resume to hand into the Franchise owner (she runs all the stores that are not my store and WEM in town... either way, it's about the same distance to get to any of those from my place... much more convenient than where I am now...)...
Maybe if I take the summer off and then go back?
Dammit, I'm so confused. I'm so used to being busy I don't know what to do with myself when I'm not! I wish that these options hadn't opened up for me to just slide into the same job in another location - no learning a new system, no learning new product, just changing location... I mean... I thought I WANTED this out of my life and now that it's potentially going to be gone, it's like I'm pulling out all the stops to keep what I can of it...
Someone just smack me upside the head.
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: The Life of Saint Philip Neri (Antonio Gallonio)
For Fun: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
I asked my boss at The Body Shop to see if there would be a possibility that I could transfer to the other company location in the city, at a rather large mall on the west end of the city.
I was there, thinking about the money I was earning. The discounts I get on the products that I use on a daily basis. What the hell would I really do with myself on an extra day on the weekend (ok, besides clean my place, and my place really does need it, I'll admit it)? And so I wrote her a note asking if she could see about the possibility.
I'm justifying it because I'd like to buy a car in the next couple of years. And the more money I have saved up for a deposit, the better. Hell, I could even buy a used car outright. And the commute to WEM is much less nasty than the commute to where I'm located right now (bus service runs AT LEAST every 30 mins, so I wouldn't have to leave my place 1.5 hours before I need to be there - I could get it down to 1 hour, max - most trips are only 35-45 mins).
And the ultimate irony? One of my friends just got a job at a third TBS location - the difference being that this third location (at a shopping mall on the east-ish end of town) is one of the franchises in town and the owner doesn't have to worry about the company's bottom line, so long as they're making a profit. Thank god. I asked my friend to ask if they needed someone on weekends (since really, that's all I can work).
I guess, really, I'm just afraid of change. And the extra money is nice. I've been whinging incessantly about the Body Shop and really was considering changing, but now that it's hit me that in a month and a half, I'll not have it any more... I'm ridiculously emotional and sad about it.
I'll give a real weekend a go this weekend (I have Friday, Sunday, Monday, and TUESDAY off from both places of work!) and see if I go nuts. If not, I might be prepping my resume to hand into the Franchise owner (she runs all the stores that are not my store and WEM in town... either way, it's about the same distance to get to any of those from my place... much more convenient than where I am now...)...
Maybe if I take the summer off and then go back?
Dammit, I'm so confused. I'm so used to being busy I don't know what to do with myself when I'm not! I wish that these options hadn't opened up for me to just slide into the same job in another location - no learning a new system, no learning new product, just changing location... I mean... I thought I WANTED this out of my life and now that it's potentially going to be gone, it's like I'm pulling out all the stops to keep what I can of it...
Someone just smack me upside the head.
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: The Life of Saint Philip Neri (Antonio Gallonio)
For Fun: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
So.
I got the news on Thursday that The Body Shop is restructing and that as of May 2, my position will no longer exist.
My manager had left me a voice mail message asking to call her back, and when I did she said that "I need to read you this script they've left me." So I listened as she read. She needs to cut hours IMMEDIATELY by about 50 hours per week. I have been laid off, along with one other girl (and another girl is conveniently moving to Ontario, so there's her taken care of!). They will be cutting pretty much everyone else's hours.
I'm not surprised, really. And I'm probably one of the first people who's ever been sort of happy to be laid off. I've not been enjoying The Body Shop lately - the Christmas rush is over, things are ridiculously slow. The company is going in directions I don't entirely agree with (they are REALLY pushing makeup sales these days... I always thought of TBS as a shop with values more like Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty... And they've come out with a line of "body focus" products that are a load of... well, I don't think we've sold a single piece since they came out with it... Cellulite serum? I mean, geesh, for a company that's big on "natural", too, I'm not impressed with all the ingredients in their stuff - it's better than a lot of companies, granted, but still... Ok, rant off... And yes, I will likely write a letter of resignation instead, for the day before my layoff, stating all of these concerns).
But the bottom line is that freedom is in sight. Freedom to have a 'real' weekend like most other people out there. Freedom to say "I sure can hang out tonight, I don't have to work tomorrow." Freedom to do my housework one day and still have a second day to lounge about.
The spending money was nice, but not entirely necessary. I can still get by financially. I think what this will do to my mental health will more than make up for the not-even-$300/month that I was making with TBS.
Thank-you, whatever powers that be are out there, that have saved me the need to upset my boss by my quitting. I was probably going to quit on or near May anyway.
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: The Life of Saint Philip Neri (Antonio Gallonio)
For Fun: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
I got the news on Thursday that The Body Shop is restructing and that as of May 2, my position will no longer exist.
My manager had left me a voice mail message asking to call her back, and when I did she said that "I need to read you this script they've left me." So I listened as she read. She needs to cut hours IMMEDIATELY by about 50 hours per week. I have been laid off, along with one other girl (and another girl is conveniently moving to Ontario, so there's her taken care of!). They will be cutting pretty much everyone else's hours.
I'm not surprised, really. And I'm probably one of the first people who's ever been sort of happy to be laid off. I've not been enjoying The Body Shop lately - the Christmas rush is over, things are ridiculously slow. The company is going in directions I don't entirely agree with (they are REALLY pushing makeup sales these days... I always thought of TBS as a shop with values more like Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty... And they've come out with a line of "body focus" products that are a load of... well, I don't think we've sold a single piece since they came out with it... Cellulite serum? I mean, geesh, for a company that's big on "natural", too, I'm not impressed with all the ingredients in their stuff - it's better than a lot of companies, granted, but still... Ok, rant off... And yes, I will likely write a letter of resignation instead, for the day before my layoff, stating all of these concerns).
But the bottom line is that freedom is in sight. Freedom to have a 'real' weekend like most other people out there. Freedom to say "I sure can hang out tonight, I don't have to work tomorrow." Freedom to do my housework one day and still have a second day to lounge about.
The spending money was nice, but not entirely necessary. I can still get by financially. I think what this will do to my mental health will more than make up for the not-even-$300/month that I was making with TBS.
Thank-you, whatever powers that be are out there, that have saved me the need to upset my boss by my quitting. I was probably going to quit on or near May anyway.
I Am Reading:
Quasi-Academically: The Life of Saint Philip Neri (Antonio Gallonio)
For Fun: Le Morte d'Arthur (Malory)
Pile of unread books on my bookshelf: way too many...
