Wednesday Words

"She was an earnest little thing who had a way of blinking distractedly behind the thick lenses of her glasses when she was nervous; the kind of girl, Rusty thought, who might treat herself to a mental breakdown about fifteen years after graduating summa cum laude from Smith or Vassar."

-"Under the Dome," Stephen King

Seven steps to a bad day

1. Stay in bed too long and rush to get ready.
2. Be unable to get out of apartment building due to jammed door.
3. Wait 7 minutes -- for second day in a row -- for a red line train because of delays.
4. Wait 25 minutes for a yellow line train because of delays.
5. Arrive to work 45 minutes late.
6. Discover approximately 5 cuts on hands after applying hand sanitizer. (Cuts due to this week's arctic weather?)
7. Develop a headache around 11 a.m. that doesn't go away until about 6 p.m. and leave work early as a result.

Let's look at step 2 a bit closer as that's really the only out-of-the-ordinary portion of this terrible day.

The door to get out of my apartment building has a push lever like in the picture below that locks it. I pushed it, heard it click, looked closely and saw it unlock, but as hard as I pushed, the door wouldn't open. I kept pushing for several minutes, but still, nothing happened.

As I was already running late, I decided to go to the basement and exit through the garage. So I took the elevator down a floor but, as I walked through the garage to the door, realized that I don't actually know how to open it. Or, even, if it's possible for me to open it without having a car. I waved my hand around the door looking for a sensor, and even jumped on the cable that cars drive over to trigger it, but alas, I don't weigh as much as a Buick, and nothing happened.

Defeated, I got back in the elevator headed to the lobby, forgot this though and went back to my floor, then walked back down to the lobby and tried again. Still nothing. At this point I began to wonder if my two weeks away had made me forget how to operate the door. (Like how I've been having trouble working my shower.)

But no, it wasn't me, it was definitely the door. Panic started rising from my stomach to my throat as I continued my fruitless pushing. And, also, why in the hell weren't there any people leaving for work? Then, just as I heard the elevator whir, signalling someone was finally on their way down, the door swung open and out. Finally, freedom! Sweet, sweet, cold freedom. 

However, given the way the rest of the day went, I probably should have just gone back to bed the first time the door wouldn't open.

Photos: here and here

Snow Fatigue

I'd love to be able to go more than a day without using the word "snow" in a post, a status message, a phone call, an email, or in casual conversation.

Today is not that day. We're expected to get 7-14 inches more tonite, down from the original projection of 10-20 inches. I've never been so happy about just a foot of snow. Except the happy only lasts for a second because I'm tired of the snow. Tired of being trapped in my apartment. Tired of not being able to go to my office. Tired of stressing about the fact that I have a trip planned for sunny Los Angeles and a plane ride on Thursday evening that might not happen.


Not to mention that I'm physically tired from little sleep due to congestion and mentally tired from having writer's block and struggling with my work. (And as the picture shows, I had to resort to a high school method of producing productivity: pigtails. It's a long story. Also, just to clarify, I wasn't taking a nap, I was banging my head on my personal computer. The computer on the right is my work computer.)

However, I'm trying to be happy, I'm really trying to appreciate the simple pleasures. So here are five:

1. We haven't lost power or hurt ourselves, we have food and water.
   
2. I have a job that allows me to work safely from home for what is about to be five days now.
3. I share a living space with a good friend and though we've had very little contact with others, we haven't killed each other.
4. There were new episodes of some of my favorite shows last night: "How I Met Your Mother," "Big Bang Theory," and "Life Unexpected." This last one is a new show that I simply love, everyone should watch.
5. Robert Gibbs mocking Sarah Palin's hand notes during the White House press briefing.
   

Ok that hurt, time to go back to being tired and angry.

"I'm the Doctor. Doctor...Fun."

Today was not a good day. Just awful. But instead of listing all the reasons why, from way over-sleeping to spilled soda on my clothes, I'm focusing on the happy. I'm putting it behind me and moving on. Besides, it got infinitely better when Jan reminded me that there was a new Doctor Who special out, at last!
So that's what I'm doing. Curling up in bed with my laptop and YouTube and the Doctor and Mars.

Word of the Day

strug∙gling

Verb

1. to proceed with difficulty or with great effort
2. to lose a shoe while walking in the crosswalk on a major street – for the THIRD time in one’s life
3. to swipe an ID instead of a debit card at Walgreen’s and then stare in confusion at the machine
4. to only make it through the day because at the end lies Glee
5. to realize way too late that due to the putrid and festering sore on American leisure - aka baseball - there will be no Glee in Whoville tonite
   
   
   Will: Who's to say everything I do is 100% on the ball?
   Sue: No one would say that.
   -Glee

Tuesday...FAIL

Alarm clock...FAIL
(After seven years of faithful service, it didn't go off Friday, Monday, or today. Worked perfectly on Saturday and Sunday, however.)

Wardrobe...FAIL
(I ironed four shirts, tried on six, finally went with the first one I put on.)

Bus driver...FAIL
(Saw me running to catch it, pulled away anyway. Bastard.)

Caramel apple cider...FAIL
(I figured if anything could salvage this day, it would be this. I didn't take in to account searing hot cider burning my esophagus.)

Work...FAIL
(The problem with getting paid to write: WRITER'S BLOCK. Do they have worker's compensation for that ailment? Maybe if we had a public option.)

"Some days, even my lucky rocketship underpants don't help."
(Calvin, of Calvin and Hobbes)

(Not that I have rocketship underpants -- though maybe that would help?)

Day 225: Enough is enough

Today I lost my internet connection at my apartment, for the first time ever. While working at home, in the process of moving my document, due in 10 minutes, to our fileserver. I then had to race to Ballston in search of free wireless. An hour later, I got the file sent, and bought my first-ever salad at Cosi. That's enough new for one day.

Day 205: Next stop...your stop

Continuation of yesterday's drama meant I had to leave work an hour and a half early, the earliest I've ever left with no warning, to hopefully seal the deal...again. And consumed with worry on the way back, I missed my stop. Sitting on the metro, reading the sign, and only as the train pulled away did I think "hey, that's yours, doors aren't closed, get up, run." Or, just close your eyes and breathe and wait for the next one. That works, too.

Day 204: "Don't even worry, we're gonna make it." (David Noel and friends)

I've lost count of how many times I've used this quote, this mantra, as a subject line or topic in a post. But some days it's all I have. Not today, however, one of the worst days I've ever had, but at least I had people helping me along. A lot. Highly stressful situation on top of another highly stressful situation, but I didn't cry. I always, always cry. I panic attacked and shook and pulled my hair and couldn't breathe but I didn't cry. Drama with the apartment we thought we had, but it hopefully will work out. (no jinx no jinx no jinx) And if not, David said we're gonna make it, and Roy's Boys don't lie. That much.