These Last Two Years, Part 2

[For part one, click here.]

In the last part, I discussed what went on with my life in 2009. Now, I'm going to discuss 2010.

For one thing, this was the first year that I started blogging. In January, I started my very first blog RAB-PIA (Read a Book, Pass It Along). It would not be until Feburary when I would begin the blog that you are reading right now. (So far, this is my most frequently updated one.) I would start three more throughout the year.

Another thing I started doing was the "Read the Bible throughout the year" program that the Baptist church I had been attending since my return to Kansas had going. Basically, it's where there are bookmarks each month which list the date and suggested Bible chapters to be on in order to be on the right track to have it read in a year. There were days when I got behind, but I'd make up for it.

I had initially planned to resume my job search the week after New Year's. However, the weather was such at the time that I was told in no uncertain terms not to go anywhere unless I had to. The next week or so after putting in job applications, I still had no luck finding a job.

I don't recall how many days of the week I generally spent on the job search. However, there was one day that I had to take off in February to attend the funeral of my step-great-grandmother on my mom's side of the family. (One of the things that deaths on my mom's side of the family have in common is that they tend to occur in the winter. Not only was it cold on the day of the funeral, but there was snow on the ground.) I think it was that month that I also started attending a Job Seekers seminar. (This lasted until August or September as attendance had gotten low.)

Despite my best efforts, there was only so much I could do towards my job search at one time. Even when I did follow-ups to whatever applications I had out, I was only able to do those so frequently, and there was still some waiting involved. And was it giving me anything to work with to help build my resume? Of course not. So, I applied as a volunteer for Doggie Bag.  This would help fill up some of my time and not to mention build upon some retail experience that I had. I have been working there since. Depending on what needed done that day and whether or not there was someone else to run the register, I would either be on register or in and out of the back room.

During the month of February, my dad finally finished his recovery. Originally, he had thought that after his recovery, he would need me to return from him, and I would not have been surprised if I would have needed to remain with him for as long as he and I were both still alive whether I wanted to or not. Around Christmas time of last year, I got an email from him saying that it was questionable as to whether or not it would be feasible for me to live with him again. Ultimately, he moved into a one-bedroom apartment. He said that the way it appeared then, he would be there for a year before he would be able to move into something big enough to accommodate both of us. However, it would be up to me as to whether or not I moved in with him when that time came.

In March, I started cutting back on my shoe-wearing at home. Up until then, I was the kind of person who'd dress all the way to shoes every day with or without any intention of going anywhere. Shortly before I have moved to St. Louis, my mom had talked about the possibility of having a shoes-off rule. I was not keen on that idea at first, but after a combination of soul searching and visits to a blog advocating the exclusion of shoes from the private home, I decided to take a shot at not always being in shoes at home. Besides, when/if my mom did decide to have that rule, the less I wore shoes around the house, the less of a shock it would be for me to have to not wear my shoes around the house anymore. However, as I wasn't really into be barefooted or sock-footed when up and about, especially in connection to household chores, I bought some ballet flat slippers and started wearing those around the house whenever I was in regular clothes but had not intention of going anywhere for a while. The no shoes rule still has yet to happen, but depending on weather and/or whatever else I'm wearing, I'll usually wear either one of my pairs of ballet flat slippers or my blue "at home" flip-flops which have a fuzzy detail at the V-strap.

It was either March or April when I jumped on the Facebook bandwagon. However, it was in April that I turned 25. During the day on my birthday, I had my shift at the Doggie Bag. That night, though, I had dinner with my mom, stepdad, and sister and went out for drinks with my sister. I had some rounds of Bourbon in Dr. Pepper, which I got drunk on.

The next day, I had gotten an email from my dad reprimanding me for not having my voicemail set up yet. He had noticed this when he had tried to call me the previous night. (I've had the number that I do since October of last year, and my mom had reminded me a couple of times to set up my voicemail.) He stressed  the importance of doing that and said that I could've missed a job opportunity or two as a result of a prospective employer not being able to reach me. Even after I had set my voicemail up, I was VERY remorseful about having put it off in the first place. I expressed said remorse in a forum for a club I was involved in, calling myself a "bad grownup" and expressing my fears of red flags I'd be raising in the eyes of a prospective employer and/or prosprective husband, not to mention how horrible it must look to God/Jesus. I think I also expressed my remorse when I responded to my dad and said how grossly immature it was for me to do that.  (One of the standards he holds me to is that I "act my age" which apparently means that I had better not make mistakes that I could have VERY easily prevented at the time. To this day, I can't make such a mistake and not practically hate myself for it.)

During the summer, I took a break from my job search and the Doggie Bag in order to go babysit my nephew. When I returned to the Doggie Bag in August, it turned out there were changes to the store, such as the break room being turned into a room devoted to children's clothing and toys. It also turned out that someone else took over as manager and most of the people that had seniority over me when I had started were gone. (As it turned out, a lot of people, including the manager that we had since I had started my work at the Doggie Bag, quit during the summer for some reason. There were new staff members after that.) My responsibilities were mostly to inspect, tag, hang up, and price clothing. (Later, that particular manager decided she wanted to take over pricing.) I was put on a co-existing schedule with that manager, and the only time I was on register was when she needed to step out for a bit or run an errand.

In September, the manager we had since this summer got sick one day, so I ended up running the register for the full day.  Some of the people that (so I had heard) walked out during the summer came back to reclaim some stuff that had allegedly been left behind. I found out later from the person who normally did the window display that those people had no right to take that stuff, that surely if they had left it behind, they wouldn't have waited so long to reclaim it.  A few days later, the manager we had since this summer resigned for personal reasons, and our window display specialist took her place. (Supposedly, the latter had worked with the Doggie Bag off and on in the last eight years and even managed the place before.)  The manager that left us this summer now runs a thrift store in which the proceeds (so I had been told) go to private animal rescue shelters or something like that.

As it is at this point, I STILL have no paid job despite all of the applications I've sent out at various times. I'm still with the Doggie Bag though.I'm generally in and out of the back room depending on what needs done on any given day. It's gotten to the point where between that and my sister's house, I'm not sure which I most consider to be my second home. Let's just say I've gotten to a point where I expect more out of myself at that place.

As for my dad, the last time I had seen him was when I moved to Kansas last year (though we have kept in touch since then). There was talk about me possibly going to St. Louis for Christmas this year, but that ended up not happening. I don't know when it is I will see him again, as out the luxury of out of town trips aren't as feasible for me as they used to be. I still haven't heard back about when he will be able to move to a bigger apartment, but I probably won't move in with him unless there's a pressing reason for me to do so.

I don't know exactly what 2011 will bring for me. Maybe I'll get a job. Maybe I'll have a boyfriend. Maybe something else will occur for me altogether. We'll just have to wait and see.

There you have it, my memoirs of the last two years. For my last night of 2010, when my mom and stepdad get home, we will have lobster for dinner. After dinner, I will update my manicure and pedicure (the latter consisting of a pattern of polishes that I got for Christmas this year) and drink the three shots of alcohol that were in my stocking this year.  I hope you all have a Happy New Year, and I will be back in tomorrow, God willing.

These Last Two Years, Part 1

As 2010 comes to a close, I'd like to take time to reflect on how far I've come on life's journey, starting with the end of the last two years.

Two years ago today, I was visiting my aunt in Arkansas shortly after having moved in with my dad in St. Louis. (The next time would be sometime around Valentine's Day.) After I had returned to my dad, I began my one month grace period before I would need to starting taking steps towards looking for a job. Besides settling in to mine and my dad's apartment, I assisted in some building projects, such as a couple of desks and a desk chair. Later on in 2009, I'd help with putting together a kitchen isle and a microwave stand.

I hadn't been to church for a long time. However, as it was something that he and I had both missed doing, we discussed checking out various churches and eventually establishing one as our church home. We started off attending a Disciples of Christ church. The original plan was that we would attend that one for a couple of weeks and then find another church to check out. However, said church had practically grown on us, so we eventually joined it.

In February, per my dad's idea, I started checking out books pertaining to job hunting, resume writing, etc. In late February/early March, he came up with the idea of us having schedules consisting of busywork Monday through Friday. Among this included but was not always limited to, learning programs like Microsoft Word and Excel, anything pertaining to writing, and in my case, looking for a job. However, the way I'd be going about the job search involved assessments of my skills, researching different types of jobs, and writing resumes.

In April, we both did a "practice run" of the writing challenge known as National Novel Writing Month, or Nano Wrimo (which officially takes place in November). I don't know about my dad, but I wasn't able to finish my novel until July. There was a part starting in June when the novel was the only thing I'd devote my day to. However, after that, my job search was to resume.

I think it was in August when my dad had come up with the idea of managing the church library as there was nobody to do so. It was up to me as to whether or not I wanted to do that with him. I agreed to do so. I think there were only one or two days we were able to do so, partly because of my dad's health and partly because of things he and I had to do at home.

Then came late September/early October. I was maybe in the resume phase of my job search. (My dad insisted that I do resumes for every single company I was going to apply for whether or not they necessarily required one.) Another thing I was looking into at the time was writing greeting cards, but that was coming along slowly as well. Around that time, money was getting tight on us, so we would've needed to pay extra attention to getting some income going.

My dad's health wasn't doing much better either. He had the flu around late September, which turned out to be the prelude to some diabetes related infections in at least one leg and foot. He ended up having to go see a doctor. However, since neither he nor I drive and my grandma was out of town at the time, he called Grandpa to come take him. On the day that my dad had to go to the doctor, I had to shut down both of my bank accounts, something I took care of prior to time to go.

When my grandpa came and took Dad to the doctor, I came along. It turned out that the infections my dad had were bad enough that he would have to go to the emergency room that night. It was up to me as to whether I would stay at our then apartment and let it go at that or stay at my grandparents. I opted for the former. My decision went against my grandpa's better wishes, but the way I saw it at the time, I didn't have time to be hanging out at a relative's house. I needed to take care of life within my regular surroundings. The next day though, when it turned out that my dad would be going into surgery, my grandpa overruled my decision to try to fend for myself in the big city apartment, and he came and got me. (At least I got enough of a heads up that I was able to pack a bag.)

My dad ended up have part of his left leg removed (almost to the knee) that night, followed a week later my the big toe on his right foot. (And would you believe that his birthday was during that time frame?) As it turned out, he would have to go somewhere else to recover, and I would have to return to Kansas. I found out about that last part from my sister who had come to visit the weekend after my dad's operation. She told me that my choices were to either move in with her or return to our mom. I opted to return to our Mom. After all, I knew more people in my mom's hometown. I also had a lot furniture to my name. Where was I going to put it if I had moved in with my sister?

I, along with various relatives, got the apartment cleared out and shut down. As it would not have been in the best interest of Dad's cat Gabby take her with me when I moved (at least not in my opinion anyway), my grandma was able to arrange it so that someone my dad and I knew from church could take care of her until my dad was out of recovery.

The day I moved, my grandma, both of my aunts (one of which married into the family), and one of my uncles on my dad's side of the family helped me move. My sister and her boyfriend were at my mom and stepdad's house to help get my stuff in as well. I think after we did that, we all had lunch together there, and then the relatives left sometime after that.

During the first week after I had moved in, I began going out requesting/submitting/checking on job applications. Unfortunately, the places I put in for either were not hiring or they never got back to me.  I took a break from the job search during the window between Christmas and New Year's. (And I think part of it was because of the weather at the time.)

In November, I took part in Nano Wrimo for the first time and met the 50k word requirement to "win" the challenge.. There was a chat room that corresponded to the forums for my home region, where I met a guy who would eventually be one of my Facebook friends. He and I would chat almost every night. (He and I have both admitted to having feelings for one another, but what happens with the two of us in the long run remains to be seen.)

Closer to the end of the year, my mom and stepdad and I went to Wichita to visit my grandparents on that side of the family for a belated Christmas celebration. We stopped by a flea market on the way there, and I was the only one out of us that bought anything. (I bought some books.) We went there the day before New Year's Eve and came back the next day. Needless to say, we didn't go out for New Year's Eve that year.

That was 2009. In the next post, I'll be discussing this year.

Change Of Plans

Normally, I'd be over at the Doggie Bag by now. However, earlier this week, the manager had mentioned something to me about the possibility of me working the Doggie Bag 12-4 tomorrow in lieu of my normal hours today. However, she had to check the HSP on whether or not the store was supposed to open on New Year's.

Last night, I got a message from the manager that the store would be open on New Year's after all and if I could go in 12-4 tomorrow instead of going in today that'd be great. I was away from my phone when she had called, and it was a bit late for me to call her back. So, I called her this morning and let her know that going in tomorrow instead of today would be fine. So, that's what I'm going to do.

This morning, I had some bacon, eggs, and bisquits. After breakfast, I took care of the dishes. I think after I'm done, I'm going to catch up on my Bible reading. (I'm a few days behind on that, and today is the day when I should be done with the book of Revelation.) What I'll do from there remains to be seen.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 63

As usual much of the time was spent tagging and hanging up clothes. There were a couple of shirts that I had to put in recycling as they had pictures on them that didn't seem appropriate to the store's image. There was one part of the back room that the manager wanted cleared, so one of my colleagues and I moved non-clothing stuff closer to the door, possibly to be taken to the front at some point. Off and on that day I had the song to the JG Wentworth commercials in my head. It more or less drove the colleague that was in the back room with me crazy.  We still have quite a ways to go, but we managed to make a dent in the donations.

Towards the end of my shift, I took down the Christmas tree in the window per the manager's request. We've got a black-and-purple theme in the window now.

Tomorrow is my last day at the Doggie Bag before the New Year. I doubt we'll get caught up in the back room at that time, but hopefully, we'll get more of the donations accounted for.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 62

I wasn't able to get this post done last night, so I'm doing it tonight.

It was pretty much the same routine consisting mostly of clothes that needed to be hung up and tagged. (The manager wasn't able to stay for very long yesterday for some reason. She was able to price a few clothes before she left. I was able to put said clothes out.) There were two other people in the back room with me that day (one of whom was only able to appear for 2-3 hours at best).  We had managed to make somewhat of a dent in the clothes that had been waiting to be handled, but then we had some donations come in.

Tomorrow's another day. I wonder what all will happen then?

The Day After Christmas

Today was Sunday, which meant church as usual. This afternoon, lunch consisted of tomato soup, sandwhiches (involving rolls leftover from yesterday) and leftover sides from yesterday (mainly veggies and Texas caviar). I've mostly spent my time on the computer.

I had talked with my dad last night, but the call was cut short due to bad reception on his end. He had mentioned possibly rounding up the relatives to call me today, but that has yet to happen. Maybe it'll happen later. If it ends up not happening, so be it.

I'll probably spend the evening watching TV and/or on the computer. This last week of the year will be business as usual (with Doggie Bag AND the job search) in the day. I doubt that I will get invited to any parties on New Year's Eve, and I doubt that I could get away with taking a solo trip to a local bar at night. But that's okay. Part of what I got in my stocking this year WAS three shots of alcohol. I'll just mix those in with my root beer after I update my pedicure with the three small bottles of nail polish that I got this year as well.

My Christmas Today

This morning, when I wasn't asleep per se but not quite ready to get out of bed, my sister's corgi Cosmo was waiting for me outside my room. My stepdad told him that I was sleeping. (I forget if my stepdad's lab mix Layla was waiting for me too.) It was fairly early in the morning when this happened, so apparently Cosmo has not heard of this thing called "sleeping in".

I was up shortly before eight. I got dressed and had some breakfast casserole and coffee. I played with Cosmo at least once and watched some TV.  While we were waiting for my sister and her household, I also had some apple cider with a slice of orange (something my mom had brewed).

When my sister and her household showed up, they had some stuff to put in peoples' stockings, so I stepped into the dining room, continued drinking my cider, and had a chat with my nephew. Shortly after that, we opened presents, starting with the stockings. Mine this year contained chocolate, an orange, three small bottles of nail polish, some gloves, a bag of root beer candies, and for th first time ever, three small bottles of something alcoholic. (I plan on using at least one of them on New Year's Eve.) I think the bra clips I had gotten this year were also included in the stocking, but I don't remember for sure. My other presents included a twin sheet set, a scarf, two necklaces, a throw, a pink shirt, a jewelry box, a purse and some buttons.

After presents was the big lunch, done buffet style. We had ham, cheese, rolls, barbequed meatballs, veggies, chips, and a type of "caviar" with black-eyed peas. My sister and her household had another commitment so they left after lunch.

The rest of the day looks like it'll be a quiet one at home. I'll probably catch up on my Bible reading and then watch TV or do something else until my dad calls.  Happy Holidays to all!

My Christmas Eve After My Shift At The Doggie Bag

The weather today had been predicted to be such that not only did my mom offer me a ride to the Doggie Bag today (which I accepted), but she had also asked me to call her when I was done so that she could come get me. I called her when I was done, but it was my stepdad that came and got me. (He got off work earlier than he originally thought he did.)

I got home, and it turned out that, for the third year in a row, my sister's corgi Cosmo was spending Christmas Eve at our house. (I had wondered if he would.) My mom had been in the process of mopping the kitchen and dining room floors so the dogs were in the laundry room until it dried as a convenience measure.  On the way to my room, I put some of the toys that were on the living room floor into the toy box as they weren't being played with at the moment. (By "toy box", I mean a small basket near my stepdad's dog Layla's bed in the living room. And by bed, I mean an oversized pillow marketed as a dog bed.) Either my mom or my stepdad said that they hoped I wasn't expecting said toys to stay put.

When I got to my room and put my purse down, it turned out that I had two books come in the mail for me. It wasn't too long before Cosmo and Layla came in to my room to see me. Off and on, Cosmo has either been wrestling with Layla, playing with something squeaky, or having me play fetch with him.

For dinner, we had soup. (I don't know if it was chicken corn chowder per se, but it had chicken and various vegetables in it.) Cosmo sat under the table while we were eating. (I guess he does that at home.) Layla knew the drill: when the humans were eating she was to lay down somewhere away from the table until they were done. I think it confused her to see Cosmo under the table, so she was up at a time she wasn't supposed to be. My stepdad told her to lie down and that Cosmo didn't know any better because he was a bonehead.

Sometime after dinner, I guess the dogs were outside using the yard because I didn't see them around sometime after they had left my room and left behind a squeaky bone. I put it in the toy box, and my mom said, "Good luck with that."

Right now, Cosmo is laying near me, and Layla is probably in the living room. I've got A Christmas Story running on TV in the background. (Technically it's on a commercial break, but TBS has nonetheless started on the back-to-back showings on that movie which they do every year. I'm not going to watch all of the showings, though.) I'm going to be playing Facebook's Petville for a little bit. I don't know exactly what all else I will be doing tonight.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 61

This morning as I was hanging up my coat, the manager said that she wasn't sure if I would be there or not. She said that I didn't really have to be since it was Christmas Eve. (There are some people that work there that are involved in a "training" program for senior citizens who have been out of work for a while, and they are sent to work at one non-profit organization for a while before they are transferred to another, and they get paid for this. There are also people working there that have to do x number of hours of community service per week or altogether for some reason. I am one of maybe two people simply donating their time.) I told her that the last time I checked, the back room was "full of crap." (We have a lot donations in the back waiting to have something "done" with them. If we were caught up or at least near caught up, I probably would've taken the day off.) She was surprised (but not offended) that I of all people used the word "crap", but she thought it was kind of funny. Someone else that was on duty (and apparently put in charge of something in the bathroom) said that they would've used the other word.

As usual much of my day was spent tagging and hanging up clothes.We still have a lot to go through. Whatever pants have yet to be put up for sale are basically taking a back seat to everything else as pants are supposedly not selling all that quickly. (Someone moved whatever pants were hanging up in order to make room for shirts, dresses, and other clothing items.)

Thus has been my last day at the 'Bag before Christmas. As I write this, my sister's dog Cosmo (who is spending the night at our house) is laying on my floor. He might keep me busy tonight.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 60

There was stuff to be brought out to the front and bags of clothes to go through. At some point, someone had come in to install and extra rack in the back room to allow for more clothes to be hung up. That was done, but according to the guy that installed it, there was no support system from behind the wall. (I'm assuming he will explain the situation to the manager.)

A lot of the day was spent tagging and hanging up clothes. One of the people I was working with went through a bag that turned out to have a lot of outdated stuff which had to be put in the recycle pile. The one cashier who has become recently authorized to price clothing wasn't able to until late in the afternoon as there was to much to price up front. I stayed an hour later than I normally do in order to get the priced clothing put out and put some of the tagged but not yet priced clothing  in the middle room so that it would be ready to be priced whenever it became feasible.

I don't know if I'll be going in tomorrow. I've got laundry to do, but I'll have to make sure there won't be any conflicts with that as my mom will be home. Friday will be my last working day before Christmas unless it turns out otherwise.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 59

The day started out with a few clothes to be put out. There was Christmas-related stuff to be put out as well. Sometime in the morning, someone came in with quite a bit to donate. One of the items they brought was a pet water bowl (similar to the one that the dogs that my sister and her boyfriend have share), which has been set aside for when/if the HSP comes in and is able to take it to the Humane Society. Later, the table from the bargain room was cleared and moved to the front. After the manager left, I moved some chairs from the bargain room to the bathroom and swept the bargain room floor per her request.

Much of the afternoon was spent tagging and hanging up clothes as usual. At one point, someone came in with bags of clothes, a bag of purses, and some baby-related items. They had offered to take the stuff somewhere else, but I told them that we were willing to take it. (It's against the rules to turn donations away.  Besides, according to Murphy's Law, if we turned away donations, we'd run out of stuff to sell.)

That's been my day. Who knows what Wednesday will bring? 

Wrapping Up The Food End Of A Cafe World Order Today

Today, I'll be serving what is left of the caviar for an order in Cafe World. (I only have to serve it 99 more times.) After that, I will just need to collect a certain number of steam trays and serving plates. But after I'm done serving all of the food that I need to, I think I'm going to stop playing the game for the day.

Been Playing Cafe World Almost All Day

Today, I've been working on a Cafe World catering order. I've finished up serving the "Jammin' Jelly Donuts." I have three rounds of stuff mushrooms still cooking, and the rest of the stoves are devoted to caviar. (I have to serve the caviar 300 times. So far, I have served it 90 times.)

I may be spendin more time on the game tonight. Maybe I'll get it done tonight.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 58

The day started with getting some empty hangers from the front to the back.

The way that it currently stands, we have purses for sale for a dollar. However, the amount of purses we had  out was not doing the display justice. So, per the manager's request, I grabbed a basket from the back room to put some of them in. Also, a lot of bags ended up getting eliminated. Up until now, they were on some shelves, but this ended up not working out. The bags that stayed were hung on nails on the walls.

Up until now, the manager has been the only one authorized to price clothing. As of today, she has authorized someone else (not me) to as well. Unfortunately, that person ran out of time before they were able to do so. (It's also hard to know what should go out at this time and what should stay back for now.)

While I was in the back tagging and hanging up clothes, I found something that made me think of someone in my family. Even though I've already gotten a present for said family member, I decided to buy this item for them. So, their present will have two parts to it.

That's been my day. Maybe more exciting stuff will happen on Monday.

Went Christmas Shopping Today

I managed to find presents for my mom, dad, and sister. (I won't go into details though.) But I haven't found anything for my stepdad or anyone else in my family. (My stepdad said he wasn't all that sure about what he wanted this year.) It has yet to be confirmed whether or not I will see my dad at Christmas. If it turns out that I won't, I will arrange to mail his present to him.

Now, I'll just need to get the presents wrapped.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 57

I started the day off with getting some hangers from the front to the back room. I also tried to make the purse section look a little better than it did but no luck. We have a lot of purses, so they're generally a dollar apiece until further notice.

Shortly after that, there were clothes to be put out. A few skirts were wrinkled (presumably through no fault of anyone on the staff). I tried getting the wrinkles out via a method that involved a wet rag per the manager's request, but I might've done it wrong.

We have a section called the "bargain section"" for clothes that are priced at a dollar or less, which was started in the fall. I nearly accidentally put something in that section that wasn't supposed to go in there. The manager had caught me doing that and asked me if the item in question had said it was a dollar. I checked again and put it where it needed to go. This was not the first time I made that mistake. Despite correcting said mistake, I was super mad at myself for having made it in the first place. For one thing, I try to be professional there (even though it's an unpaid position), and I feel that any time I make a mistake of any kind there, I'm being anything but professional. Second, a value that I was raised on was "acting one's age", and part of this meant I was NOT to make mistakes that I could have VERY easily prevented had I properly engaged my brain at the time. (And you would think that at 25 I would be completely on the ball at all times, but I'm not.)

The rest of the day was spent tagging and hanging up clothes.  I, along with a couple of other people who were in, got quite a bit done in that direction. Unfortunately, we ran out of places to hang stuff, so some of it ended up draped over the top of one of the racks.

That's all I have for now. Who knows what Friday will bring?

I Made Today Laundry Day On Short Notice

I saw a copy of my stepdad's work schedule. He works today but is off on Thursday, which is when I normally do laundry. (I have whites in the dryer and colors in the washer as we speak.) I try to do my laundry at a time when nobody will be home or I have to check signals in order to avoid any conflicts.

Besides which, I've got Christmas shopping to do this week. I tried to find something for my mom but no luck. (I found some possibilities, but I'm not going to risk mentioning them here, and I want to check to see if it would be stuff she would like.) I did, however, pick up an application to a store that I had put in for in twice in the past.

While we're on the subject of Christmas, I may or may not be spending it with my dad this year. I haven't seen him since October of last year when he had surgery that put an end to my living with him. It may be that I spend the actual Christmas day with my mom and have a later celebration with my dad. But whatever will happen will happen.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I should probably check on my laundry.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 56

It's been another day of tagging, hanging, and putting out clothes. Someone else took care of getting the hangers organized. Unfortunately, there were more hangers than places to put them. Nonetheless, I think we're getting more of a dent in the clothes. Maybe we'll get caught up sometime this winter.

That's all I got for now. I'll let you all know what comes up on Wednesday.

Will Be Babysitting The Four-legged Nephew Again

My sister's corgi Cosmo is coming to stay with us tonight. My mom and stepdad will be at a party at my mom's work so I'll be doing it alone...sort of. (No doubt he and his "Aunt" Layla--stepdad's lab mix--will be wrestling at various times. Then again, he'll probably also "ask" me to play fetch. I usually do, but it isn't helping him burn off weight that he needs burned off.)

I don't know exactly when he'll be coming, but until then, I'll probably be going back and forth between reading and doing stuff on the computer. (The latter includes doing stuff for Facebook.)

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 55

My day started out with getting some empty hangers from by the register to the back room. Part of my time was spent tagging, hanging and/or putting out clothes. At one point, I was given the task of stamping some small envelopes for the Humane Society to put into larger envelopes. After that, I returned my attention to the clothes.

One of the things that needed to be done was to organize the hangers. Unfortunately, time ran out before I or anyone else was unable to get to it. I might do that on Monday if it hasn't been done before then. (But it'll have to wait until after the first hour of the store being open unless there's someone else to run the register in my place.)

That's all I got for now. Who knows what will happen next week?

Delay In Doing Laundry Today

This morning, my stepdad discovered that there was no running water. He called the water department, and it turned out that we weren't the only ones, that there was a hydrant that wasn't working. No running water meant I would have to hold off on my laundry. I was needed to stay put to check for when the water did come back on, so going up to a laundromat was out.

The water was back by 10:15 in the morning, my time. I was told that the water would be on no sooner than 10:30. However, I needed to use a bathroom, even if I had to do so somewhere else. So, I had turned the faucet in the bathroom to the "on" position so that when I returned, I could check to see if the water was back. It turned out that the water was running and not even rusty. So, I was able to use the bathroom at home and proceed with my laundry. However, the timing of this was such that I was unable to go to a poetry reading that I had thought about going to. As I write this, my load of darks (last load) has less than half an hour left in the dryer. I'll probably do more Facebook or something after I have all of said laundry folded and put away.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 54

There's not a lot to report this time, I'm afraid. One of my first tasks was to take empty hangers to the back room. I had three bags of clothes to take there as well. There were some purses I put out. I straightened up the front of the store off and on throughout the day and swept the entryway of leaves. I also wiped down a vacuum and a pair of shoes per the manager's request.

One girl that does her community service with us came in today, but she was only able to stay for an hour. She rearranged some of the books (something the manager wanted done) so that books of a similar theme (e.g. How-to's, cookbooks, etc.) were together.

I had a few clothes to put out, but there wasn't a lot ready to be put out as the prices on them have yet to be determined. I did, however, find some clothes that were stained and/or out of season and thus were to be recycled.

That's all I got for today. Maybe I'll have more to talk about on Friday.

Resuming Around Town Tuesday

The last two Tuesdays I spent at home. I resumed going out on Tuesdays today.

I was late getting out of bed, and it wasn't until late in the morning/early afternoon that I finally got out. I took some recycling to the college campus and dropped off an application to the local Shell Station.

I didn't get home until closer to three in the afternoon. I had a hot pocket for "lunch".  (I wonder if I should've skipped lunch due to timing. After all, three is outside of lunch hours, and dinner hours start at five. There's no telling how big a dinner Mom will want to fix.)

That's all I've accomplished for today. Maybe I'll do more later.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 53

My day basically started with clearing out-of-season stuff that had been stored under some tables so that said tables could be moved. (The stuff that was cleared out was taken to a storage area in an upstairs area that has to be access from outside. I've been upstairs a couple of times.)

In the past week or two, the fate of the back room fell more or less onto me, if not the manager, as there had been no one else available for whatever reason. However, a couple of girls were in today. (One of them I had met before, but for the other, this was her first day.) Parts of the day were spent tagging and hanging up clothes and parts of it were spent finding places to put things up front (especially that which pertained to Christmas).  I think at least one of the girls was able to put a major dent in the pile of clothes that was behind the counter in the back room. It doesn't look like we'll be caught up any time soon, but I think it's a step in the right direction. (What of it the manager will be putting out this week remains to be seen.)

The dining room table that we have had up for sale as of last week still is, but it's also being used to display some things for now. (Presumably, the chairs that the HSP had brought with said table are supposed to go with it). At some point, a computer chair came in, and that has been put up for sale. (You'd be surprised by some of the things that get sold there.)

Closer to the end of the day, I straigtened the bargain room a bit, putting like items close together on the shelves and putting clothes of the same color of each size together. (The more cohesive the displays are kept, the better.) I think some dents may have been made in that as well, especially the kids' section (unless we haven't had much to put there). We might be able to put more out there. Who knows?

I Might Be Staying Up Late In The Name Of Facebook Again

There has been at least one other time when I have had to stay up late because of the timing of something for Facebook's Cafe World. (Then again, I was basing a scene I was writing on a Cafe World scenario.) I might be doing that again tonight.

I recently started on one of Cafe World's newest challenges known as "Cooking Academy" where I have to spice a certain number of dishes, add certain items to my cafe, and serve certain dishes a certain number of times. The particular stage I am at on it requires that I "upgrade the cafe expansion", earn 5000 coins, and serve triple berry cheesecake 12 times. I've gotten the expansion and coin part done. It's the cheesecake part I'm waiting on. I've already served it five times with the help of some instant thyme spice that makes a dish ready right away. The time that each of the remaining rounds has before being ready ranges from five hours and eight minutes to six hours and twenty-one minutes, which means it'll be sometime after one, if not two in the morning my time before the cheesecake will be all done and I can go to bed. (If I wait too long to take the cheesecake off the stove, it ends up spoiling. I at least have some "salvage spice" to use on it if I have to, but hopefully I won't have to.)

Right now, I'm watching what's left of Grease on Vh1. (I tuned in a bit too late.) I might see what else is on after that. Failing that, I might be doing some reading that I put aside roughly a month ago. (Speaking of reading, I'll probably need to plan another Doggie Bag trip to buy more books. I've got one "current read" and one book waiting to be read at all.)  I may or may not get more of my novel finished tonight as I've hit a spot where I'm stuck. Oh well, I'll think of more things to do tonight I'm sure.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 52

My morning started out with stuff to bring in. (Someone had left some donations by the front door.) Following that, I was given the task of pulling any books pertaining to Christmas, as well as anything small enough to be a "stocking stuffer" from the shelves so that they could have a special display devoted to them. There were a couple of times in the day where I had stuff to tag, hang, or put out on display. I also straightened the front a bit, per the manager's request.

In the afternoon, I was given the task of decorating the Christmas tree that we currently have in our window. This involved gold and silver garlands, and red, white, and gold ornaments. (The manager did originally have me put a couple of purple ones on there, but later she decided that they didn't fit in with the rest of the decorations as well as she had thought they would. We also have an angel on top of the tree. Since neither the manager nor I were tall enough to get it on top though, her boyfriend took care of that.) Closer to the end of the day, somone brought some Christmas stuff, including a tree.

Maybe given what month this is, we'll sell enough to put a dent in the shelves and racks and we will thus be able to put more of the donations up for sale.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 51

One of the things I had to do today was move a table outside in the morning and move it back in after closing time. (When someone will buy it remains to be seen.)

Most of my day was spent either tagging and hanging up clothes or putting ones that had already been priced out on the sales floor. (The manager has gotten selective as to what she wants out at this time as there are some items she is not comfortable with selling for fifty cents, which is what a lot of our clothes are going for for the time being.) At one point, per the manager's request, I marked the tags on merchandise in the bargain room with a red pen so that there was no question that said item came from the bargain room.

That's all I got for today. I don't know what Friday will bring.

Doggie Bag Days Season 2: Day 50

Today started out with me on register for the first hour. When I was out front and it wasn't busy, I straigtened things up a bit per the manager's request. Later, when someone else came to take over on register, there were a few clothes waiting to be put out. We have so much clothing right now that whatever of it is in our bargain room is 25 cents and selected items in the main part of the store are 50 cents.

Later, the HSP had brought in a table and some chairs to be put up for sale at some point. For a while, they were sitting outside, but at the end of the day, they were brought inside.

My afternoon was basically spent trying to make the back room less cluttered, including consolidating some of the clothes that were due to be recycled. (And once again, I managed to salvage a few bras that were in my size or that I suspected were close to it anyway.)

That's all I got for today. (Note: I had meant to post this on Monday but forgot to, so I'm posting it today.)