Life lately
Nov. 10th, 2013 07:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
urbpanYou wouldn't think I would need to make a post like this, since I literally take a picture every day and say something about my life. But 3:00 doesn't tell the whole story, and it doesn't get off my chest what I need to right now, I guess.
Thursday was the Bowling for Rhinos event, the second one that I presided over as President (presidents preside, I suppose) of the local AAZK chapter. Initially we were worried because we only had spots for 40 bowlers, then we had problems filling even that many (we had about twice as many last year). Anyway, what ended up being a bigger issue was that the location was in Boston proper, meaning bad traffic and bad parking situations all around. People spent a lot of time in traffic and circling the block, so getting going was rough.
But once the event was rolling it kind of ran itself. The other AAZK officers snapped into their roles and made me feel like I didn't have to worry about every little thing. I delegated. I trusted. I circulated and saw that people were happy. I even bowled.
Friday Kikipuff called me and asked if we could get a beer after work. I went to the bank and deposited over 2000 dollars from the bowling event. Then I went to the other bank and checked my personal bank balance, discovering that I was overdrawn. Kikipuff bought me dinner and a couple beers, and I circled the drain of despondency that money troubles always drag me to. She offered to lend me money, I refused.
Kiki was going out with friends later, but wanted to hang out a little while longer, so we went to a second hand shop across the street. We flipped through CDs--an activity that I find at once comforting and depressing. I hadn't done it for years, but found that many of the same titles were in the racks. (Poor Frente!) The records were even worse, but I did come across Gordon Lightfoot's Sundown, and showed it to Kiki. She didn't really know who he was, and I don't know why I showed it to her, saying "the title track is a really catchy soft rock tune."
That night the dogs woke me up three times (to get drinks of water, and to pee). One of the times I decided to use the unexpected awake time to learn all about Gordon Lightfoot. I listened to the song "Sundown," and got it in my head for about 36 straight hours.
Saturday Alex came over, offered to lend me money--I refused. We had a nice time playing with the dogs and hovering around the fire, and talking about movie night this coming Tuesday (Pacific Rim, if we can get a copy, otherwise I'm making everyone watch Snakes on a Plane). I borrowed 30 dollars from Alexis.
That night was a housewarming party, I bought a pumpkin pie with my borrowed money, drank other peoples' beer, sat around another fire with Kiki, and made her listen to Sundown. On the way home (about 25 miles) my low fuel light came on.
For a while this morning I was sulking about being broke, thinking about begging on LiveJournal, selling things and putting out a paypal button or something. I was worried that some autopay thing would go through and hit me for another overdraft fee. I asked Alexis to paypal me some money so my account could absorb such a thing.
Today I noticed a leak around one of our toilets, said it was probably the wax seal around the drain pipe (I'd seen this happen with plumbing at work). Alexis googled it, watched a youtube video of the repair, and said, "we can fix this ourselves." I said "Are you fucking kidding me?" I'm a big proponent of paying specialists to do specialized work, but obviously was in no position to argue, what with having no money. She went to the store (with my car, getting me enough gas to last until next payday) and got a wax seal. She did all the work except moving the toilet, which I did. We put it all together and it still leaked a little. She took it apart again, then googled the problem, and decided we needed a wax-free seal thing (a big rubber thing that sticks to the underside of the toilet.
Alexis had had it with the store--already too much xmas shit and xmas shoppers. I volunteered to go buy the thing (it somehow felt good to buy something) and then we set upon fixing it again. Once it was all back together the last nut wouldn't screw onto the last bolt, even though we'd done it twice before. We gave up on it. The toilet isn't leaking. Alexis made shepherd's pie, and eating that and writing this has made me feel a little better about having no money.
Thursday was the Bowling for Rhinos event, the second one that I presided over as President (presidents preside, I suppose) of the local AAZK chapter. Initially we were worried because we only had spots for 40 bowlers, then we had problems filling even that many (we had about twice as many last year). Anyway, what ended up being a bigger issue was that the location was in Boston proper, meaning bad traffic and bad parking situations all around. People spent a lot of time in traffic and circling the block, so getting going was rough.
But once the event was rolling it kind of ran itself. The other AAZK officers snapped into their roles and made me feel like I didn't have to worry about every little thing. I delegated. I trusted. I circulated and saw that people were happy. I even bowled.
Friday Kikipuff called me and asked if we could get a beer after work. I went to the bank and deposited over 2000 dollars from the bowling event. Then I went to the other bank and checked my personal bank balance, discovering that I was overdrawn. Kikipuff bought me dinner and a couple beers, and I circled the drain of despondency that money troubles always drag me to. She offered to lend me money, I refused.
Kiki was going out with friends later, but wanted to hang out a little while longer, so we went to a second hand shop across the street. We flipped through CDs--an activity that I find at once comforting and depressing. I hadn't done it for years, but found that many of the same titles were in the racks. (Poor Frente!) The records were even worse, but I did come across Gordon Lightfoot's Sundown, and showed it to Kiki. She didn't really know who he was, and I don't know why I showed it to her, saying "the title track is a really catchy soft rock tune."
That night the dogs woke me up three times (to get drinks of water, and to pee). One of the times I decided to use the unexpected awake time to learn all about Gordon Lightfoot. I listened to the song "Sundown," and got it in my head for about 36 straight hours.
Saturday Alex came over, offered to lend me money--I refused. We had a nice time playing with the dogs and hovering around the fire, and talking about movie night this coming Tuesday (Pacific Rim, if we can get a copy, otherwise I'm making everyone watch Snakes on a Plane). I borrowed 30 dollars from Alexis.
That night was a housewarming party, I bought a pumpkin pie with my borrowed money, drank other peoples' beer, sat around another fire with Kiki, and made her listen to Sundown. On the way home (about 25 miles) my low fuel light came on.
For a while this morning I was sulking about being broke, thinking about begging on LiveJournal, selling things and putting out a paypal button or something. I was worried that some autopay thing would go through and hit me for another overdraft fee. I asked Alexis to paypal me some money so my account could absorb such a thing.
Today I noticed a leak around one of our toilets, said it was probably the wax seal around the drain pipe (I'd seen this happen with plumbing at work). Alexis googled it, watched a youtube video of the repair, and said, "we can fix this ourselves." I said "Are you fucking kidding me?" I'm a big proponent of paying specialists to do specialized work, but obviously was in no position to argue, what with having no money. She went to the store (with my car, getting me enough gas to last until next payday) and got a wax seal. She did all the work except moving the toilet, which I did. We put it all together and it still leaked a little. She took it apart again, then googled the problem, and decided we needed a wax-free seal thing (a big rubber thing that sticks to the underside of the toilet.
Alexis had had it with the store--already too much xmas shit and xmas shoppers. I volunteered to go buy the thing (it somehow felt good to buy something) and then we set upon fixing it again. Once it was all back together the last nut wouldn't screw onto the last bolt, even though we'd done it twice before. We gave up on it. The toilet isn't leaking. Alexis made shepherd's pie, and eating that and writing this has made me feel a little better about having no money.
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no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 12:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 12:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-12 05:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-12 02:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 12:58 am (UTC)(Actually, I guess I wish that for most people, but.)
no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 01:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 01:19 am (UTC)Also, I truly hope you are good at updating things on your profile page. Making sure they are correct and currant. O:)
no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 03:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 05:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 02:24 am (UTC)On the other hand, Sundown is one of my all-time favorite songs and I'm excited you forced someone to listen!
no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 03:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 03:51 pm (UTC)Although nothing is certain in the world from day to day, in the normal range of expected security of things, I have finances, you have a partner. As Rosanne Rosannadanna used to say, it's always something.
Sounds like you have a few kinds of stress at the same time, which can be hard to handle until something gives.
no subject
Date: 2013-11-13 04:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 04:30 am (UTC)I used to hide a twenty in a winter coat so I could discover the following winter. Lack of money never feels quite as bad when the weather is nice.
I'm glad you felt better. Having skills for fixing plumbing stuff is super!
no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 03:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 06:36 am (UTC)discovered we were locked into the bathroom. We'd shut the door to keep the animals from "supervising", as they love to do, it was a humid summer day, and the lock in the door handle jammed. Ha ha ha, I still get a kick out of the memory even now. Emily had to rescue us, by using tools from my truck, under my instructions. The hardest part was trying to stop laughing long enough to tell her what to do. Okay, I know we're weird...
no subject
Date: 2013-11-11 01:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-12 05:01 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-12 03:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-12 05:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-12 05:23 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-12 05:45 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-04 09:20 pm (UTC)