Brush with greatness...

Check it out! My dear friend, the Queen of Cheese, has hit the big time!

She and the latest addition to her family have appeared on Her Highness' very favorite website, an excellent spot for a daily dose of the warm fuzzies.

Be sure to surf around there. You'll find some high-larious stuff...

Wow ! I know someone famous !!

I can hear you now, dammit...!

For as long as I can remember, I've kept the phone as far away from my bed as possible. I've worked all sorts of funky schedules that have forced me to sleep when normal people are awake, doing business or making social phone calls. So it was a matter of self-preservation to keep the phone away from my sleeping area.

My friends would often joke about calling me in the middle of the night on my days off to fuck with me, and I always dared them to do it... because they'd be talking to my answering machine only. Ha haha hahahahaha ha HA, can't catch me.

But now that I'm all important and stuff, with actual, you know, RESPONSIBILITIES, I have to keep a phone in the bedroom. I even have TWO phones on my nightstand now -- the landline, and the cell. I have to be available for emergency calls. (Stop laughing, John...) I knew that would be the case when I took this job, and I'm ready to deal with it. I can't say I'll enjoy it, but it is, as I used to joke when I was not a manager, why they pay me the "big" bucks.

And because of a big debacle involving the phone company (partly my error, but mostly theirs), I have a new phone number. And that's not such a bad thing, even though I'd had my other number for nearly 20 years and am still trying to remember what the hell my new number is. I figure the new one might reduce the number of calls I don't want... especially if I'm trying to sleep in on a weekend morning.

So imagine my surprise when my phone rang at about 11:25 Saturday night. I had conked out on the couch, but woke up quickly, thinking something must have happened that required my attention.

Nope. There's a name on the caller ID I've never seen before. Wrong number. Fine.

But last night, around 11 p.m., just a little while after I'd fallen asleep, the same person called! I didn't manage to get the phone before the machine picked up, but how can this clown not get that I'm not the person he or she is trying to call??

It then took another hour or so before I could fall back asleep again, goddammit.

If I get another one of these calls, a Chieko Evans and I are going to have an interesting little chat...

Pluto's revenge??

You know, ever since Pluto got snubbed, life's been pretty hinky at work.

The phones went all haywire (and they're weird even when they're "working normally") and even went down for awhile.

We lost internet access for a time.

My computer ate a staff schedule I'd been working on.

People started getting sick.

There were some... uh... challenging staffing issues.

There've been many equipment malfunctions.

Projects that should have been relatively easy to set up turned nightmarish.

Please, science folks, let Pluto be a planet again!

(no, that's not a disco ball.. but a picture of pluto taken by the hubble telescope. the first image that google gave me? was a picture of goofy, the dog. hahahahahaha.)

My first...

You already know that I have too many celebrity crushes (hey, let's face it... they're more fun than any I've had in real life recently. In fact, I haven't HAD any in real life recently...but that's another post altogether).

And it all started long, long ago with a certain fella with feathered hair and a lovely singing voice. I am, of course, referring to David Cassidy.

The alarming thing about that crush is how young I was when I had it. I must have been about 6 when it started. Doesn't that seem awfully young?? He was so pretty, though...

Anyway. I remember what a thrill it was when "The Partridge Family" was on TV each week. I remember the first time I had strep throat and was laid up in bed, my dad, the strict military guy, uncharacteristically bought me a bunch of teenybopper magazines featuring Mr. Cassidy to make me feel better. My dad even once tried to get tickets so he could take me to see him in concert, but the show was sold out.

This early crush is tied to some of my memories of my father (NOT in a twisted way, mind you!). And I lost a lot of those memories after his death, so the ones I have, I treasure. So I have always had warm feelings about David Cassidy, in a weird sort of way.

In the late 90's, during a trip to Vegas, my friend Ellen and I were hoping to see him in some long-running show he was in, but he was on vacation the week we were there. I was bumming, because it would have been fun to finally see him after all those years.

A few years ago, he was set to perform in Tahoe right around my birthday, so she got us tickets as my gift. I was just tickled.

And then one day, just before the Tahoe show, he showed up where I work. Worked, I mean.

I walked in the door one morning, and one of my co-workers told me that someone I really, really like would be doing an interview in a little while with our sister station. She wouldn't tell me who it was. I couldn't figure out who it could be.

My co-workers then made me stand in the hallway at the appointed time, and when he rounded the corner, all I could do was blurt out, "Oh my God." Like a 6-year-old dork. Because the last thing I ever expected was to actually meet my very first teen idol. At work, no less.

He was very friendly and polite, said hello to us all, and was swept into the studio for his interview.

Despite my extreme dorkdom, I am not in the habit of ambushing celebrities. Especially at work (just ask Angela how well-behaved I was when Dave Matthews was on the premises). I figure they get really tired of the gushing from dorks, and when I'm at work, I DO try to be a professional. (I said TRY.)

But after I got some work done, I ran back down the hall and told him the little story I've just written here, and he gave me a big hug and signed some CDs and this picture for me. He couldn't have been nicer.

It's so nice when your childhood idols don't dash your illusions.


p.s. The hilarious thing is I can't read what he wrote there. It looks like "To Terry, Much Furl, David Cassidy." No one else can decipher it either...

A dream come true...

Make one of your own here.

Hey, remember me?

I'm that dork who couldn't bear to miss a day in blogland. I can't believe it's been nearly two weeks since I've spent any real time here! Yikes.

That's another cool feature of having a new job: time flies. I'm working longer hours most days than I used to, but it doesn't FEEL like it. I'm sure that will change one day, but I'm liking that feeling.

Also? Still sleeping better, now that I'm past the anxiety of that first week. I am SO happy about that.

This past week was a little more challenging than the first two, in that we implemented a new organizational system (how's that for vague corporate speak?) and it was received better by some folks than others. Actually, I was really pleased at how many of my new colleagues took to the new system. Some even raved about it, which was really cool. It still needs tweaking, but we're past the hardest part.

Another cool thing? I got to go to the Raiders-49ers game last Sunday, courtesy of my new employer. I went with a co-worker I've actually known socially for a few years and her boyfriend, who was all nervous about making a good impression on his woman's new boss...!! Imagine the snort-fest I had over THAT notion. I can't say we paid much attention to the game, between the chatting and... uh... the alcohol... but it was good fun. And my ears are still ringing from all the extraordinarily loud chanting of "Raaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiddddddddddddderrrrrrrrrrs" before, during, and after the game. Good times.

(abrupt topic change)
It's amazing what a difference $900 worth of work can make in a car. I've known for awhile that I really needed new tires and definitely needed a tune-up, and kept deferring the work. I wasn't driving my car daily, and oh yeah, didn't have much wiggle room financially, so I was waiting. And waiting. And waiting some more.

But my car started crying for help, in the form of squealing brakes, so I knew it was just a matter of time before disaster struck as I drove down the steep streets of Potrero Hill after hula class. Luckily, I got the car into the shop BEFORE anything bad happened, but I was white-knuckling it, every time I got behind the wheel. And now, after some new front tires, new front brakes, a tune-up, oil and lube... it feels like a brand new car. A safer one, with an engine that practically purrs. (It, too, had been crying for help, but I was pretending not to hear.)

Speaking of hula class? He's started adding arm work into the steps now and I feel like a complete spaz again. But I ain't quitting...

I'm alive!

I'm just too busy to post. AND to surf...!

And there's nothing interesting I can write about.

Miss y'all...

A whirlwind week...

...but a good one.

I really did feel like the new kid in school on Monday, and had to laugh when I was shown my new office. I've never had an office. Ever. I've always worked in a room where we each claimed our own spots during our shifts, and some were assigned, but the workstations there are shared.

I can actually leave things on my desk now, when I go home for the day.

I HAVE my own desk now.

I will not find foreign, rotting foodstuffs on the keyboard when I come in in the morning.

I can (omigod!) put up pictures, if I want.

Some people I dealt with frequently in my old job sent me a gorgeous orchid to brighten up my new space, and it made me so happy. A living thing! On MY desk! In MY office!

And from my office, I can see out the floor-to-ceiling windows that run along the side of the larger room outside the office (there's even a long deck out there, with a nice view)... and see the world outside! And I can also see my old office building. I told you my old and new employers are about a block apart, right?

I even saw my former boss when I was out foraging for lunch on Friday. He was a block away, and I didn't feel like shouting to get his attention, but I cracked up.

That's another thing -- lunch. I can go out to lunch now. When other people go out to lunch. I could have gone out to lunch at my old job, but who eats lunch at 10 a.m.? Not to mention, finances have been really tight, so I have been in the habit of bringing my lunch to work every day.

I've even found a place with very cheap sushi. It was yummy, too.

I got to have lunch last week with the delightful Misses Cheese and Angela (and young Luke, natch) at the place Miss Cheese and I have now dubbed The Taint, because it's right in between both workplaces. It's making the transition a little easier, knowing that I CAN see my pals, even if it's not every day.

Everyone at my new place of employment has been tremendously welcoming and helpful, so the honeymoon is off to a good start. They're a smart and talented bunch. It would appear that I've already managed to intimidate one of my new co-workers, and that is surreal...because, as we all know, I am a major dork.

But a dork with some skills. And I know what I do well.

I have a bunch of administrative stuff to learn, and it's challenging because my boss -- let's call him D -- has only been there for a few months himself, and my predecessor left about a month into his tenure, so even D doesn't know a lot of these things. Fortunately, my predecessor kept very detailed files on everything, so it's just a matter of digging for the info. And all that detailed filing is providing for some interesting reading...

It's weird not being such a slave to the clock. It's weird walking in the door and NOT facing a deadline a half-hour later. It's weird handling what I've been doing all these years in a completely different manner. It's weird answering the phone and trying to remember to say the correct company name. (I haven't screwed that up yet, but I will...)

But so far, the weird is good.

Meme-ing under the influence...

So, I can't really think straight, as I'm pretty wiped from this week... and also because I've chosen to crack open the yummy bottle of sparkling wine I received as a gift from a good friend last weekend (and by the way, Tom, I've already dipped into that amazing tequila you gave me ... and it is AMAZING!)... so here's another fun meme, since I was tagged by her Shrewness...


2 moments in your life you'd like to erase:
*The moment I said "I do"
But here's the thing: the wedding was just about everything I wanted. It's not every day that you're surrounded by so many people you love. It's the marriage that was a mistake. (And if you're new to this tale, you'll find more info here and here.)
* The first time I bought into the notion that I was fat and ugly. Because I wasn't.

4 moments you'd like to relive:
Wow... this is really hard...

*The first time I realized the man I loved, loved me too. Unfortunately, it involved the assclown in the tales mentioned above, so... hmmm...maybe not...
*The night I saw "Spamalot," with the original cast (Tim Curry! Hank Azaria! David Hyde Pierce! Sara Ramirez!) See, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" is one of my favorite movies of all time, so I went into this with very high expectations. The musical more than exceeded them. Best show EVER (and I've been lucky enough to see many shows). Then I took myself out for a cocktail at the Algonquin Hotel, and pretended I was half as clever as Dorothy Parker. A magical NYC evening, all by myself.
*The moment Dave Matthews winked at me, when he passed by me while leaving a studio. I swear, I didn't make this up.
*Much of my early childhood, so I could find my own memories of my Dad again... and not the tales others have told me.

2 places you wouldn't want go to/go to again:
*Depression-ville.
*Iraq. (No, I've never been there. I would never want to go there.)

4 places you can't wait to visit/visit again
*Europe
*Australia
*New York City
*Love

2 foods you can't stand:
*Tomatoes. Tomato sauce, fine. Ketchup, okay. Pure, unadulterated tomatoes? Eeeuw.
* Cilantro. Ick. A friend just told me there's a genetic component to how we taste cilantro. I have the gene that makes that shit taste like the nastiest soap ever.

4 foods you love:
*Chocolate
*Chocolate
*Chocolate
*Salmon

2 current songs that make you change the station:
*Okay, it's not that current, but that fucking Hoobastank song... "The Reason?" Is that what it's called? Is that even the right artist?? I hate it so much, I don't care. Not gonna look it up.
*"Crazy," Gnarls Barkley. I loved it at first. Now, I'm done. (I do, however, enjoy their Violent Femmes cover...)

4 current songs you play over and over:
*"Put Your Records On," Corinne Bailey Rae. Love it. Love her.
*"Over My Head (Cable Car)," The Fray. Who are these guys? I don't know anything about them. But I love their CD.
*"Unwritten," Natasha Bedingfield. I know... it's two years old. It's all over the radio now, though. It's cheesy. But I found it to be really inspirational when I was in the middle of all that job angst. I kept thinking it was a sign, since it seemed like it was on the radio every time I turned it on... and every time I walked into the hallway at my old job. Coincidence? I chose to think not...

"Reaching
For something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is
Where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten..."

It's even on my iPod. Yeah, it's like a teenaged girl's journal entry. So shoot me.
*"DOA," Foo Fighters. The song just kicks ass.


2 books you'd never finish/read again:
*"Interview With the Vampire," Anne Rice. I've tried reading this many times since it first came out eons ago. And I've never been able to finish it.
*Just about anything by Earnest Hemingway. At least, everything of his I had to read in high school and college.

4 books you have read more than once, and/or will read again:
*"A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius," Dave Eggers. And not just because he lives in my fine city.
*"Running With Scissors," Augusten Burroughs. As a friend said, it's twisted. And I mean that in a good way. Hope the movie's good...
*"Me Talk Pretty One Day," David Sedaris. I heart him. I wonder who I lent this book to...because I really WOULD like to read it again.
*"Little Women," Louisa May Alcott. It's a classic. Need I say more?


Now I need to tag 2-4 people.
Dzer
Buddha Girl
Jmai
Natalia
And anyone else who'd like to take this on! I recommend doing it sober, though...

New job haiku...

uh, i spoke too soon

my sleeping troubles are back

can't shut my mind off

I know that will stop soon, once I get more settled in... but DAMN. Had to go in verrrrry early this morning, and was exhausted when I went to bed last night... but still couldn't sleep. Got about three hours before the alarm went off. About 4 the night before that, and maybe 5 the night before that.

I can't even see straight right now.

Nighty-night.

No time...

...or energy to say much right now... but I got a kick out of my horoscope for today:

You're at your best during a competition, especially when it's with yourself. You'll be astonished at how high you can fly when you push beyond your perceived limits. Friends provide support from the sidelines.

I'm definitely feeling that support.
Along with the exhaustion of taking in an overwhelming amount of information. Boy, do I have a lot to learn... !

I'm George Bailey...

...the richest (wo)man in town.

Puzzled? You need to rent "It's a Wonderful Life" immediately. I don't care that it's not Christmas, and that it's probably 99 degrees where you are. Watch it. NOW.

(And yeah, I cry at that part every single time. Harry Bailey's toast, and Clarence's final message to George: "Remember, no man is a failure who has friends.")

Anyway. I am referring to my now-former co-workers (but friends, always) who threw me a great farewell party last night. At one point, I stood there and looked around the room and was just stunned by the number of people who'd turned out and all the amazingly generous and kind things they said.

I mean... WOW. I still can't really absorb it all. And it was yet another reminder of how hard it will be not to see these fine folks every day.

And then Rebecca, Laura, Miss Cheese and I stayed up all night talking. I'm not kidding. We didn't leave Re's until after 5 a.m. What, do I think I'm still 21 or something??

So I'm not hungover from too much liquor, but not enough sleep...!

And tomorrow, the big new adventure begins. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a bit anxious. I feel a little like the new kid at school. But I mean that in a good way.

Just call me...

...a Lady of Leisure.

Sometimes, I'm amazed by how lazy I can be. You'd think, with two weeks of unplanned vacation time suddenly on my hands, that I'd be doing more.

I mean, one day this week, my biggest task was to get a manicure. That's it. Oh, wait, I also went for a long walk. Okay, so that's two things.

Another day, all I did was drop off some hiring paperwork at my new place of employment. That took all of, oh, half an hour. Maybe 40 minutes.

I haven't even done laundry yet this week!

I was checking the movie listings the other day, thinking this would be a good time to catch some matinees... but there's not much out right now that I'm just dying to see.

And if I were a little more flush with cash, I think I'd be out playing more. Okay, shopping more...

Then again, I don't think it's such a bad thing to really take a break from the grind. I'll be back in it soon enough. And I've had some fun socializing opportunities.

Last night, my friend and regular theatre date Patti and I went to see "A Chorus Line, " which is heading back to Broadway for the first time in years, but is doing a pre-big time run here. It was great to see it again, and the performers were fabulous. We stopped in at the after-party, which was packed, and spotted Marvin Hamlisch! (He'd actually been sitting in front of our friend Rebecca during the show). And Francis Ford Coppola! How very 1970's the evening was.

Today, it was a lovely lunch in the East Bay with Angela and the adorable Luke, who didn't act like he minded much when we browsed through Restoration Hardware, the Crate and Barrel Outlet, Kiehl's, and the MAC store. Also, it's a good thing I'm still pinching pennies, or I'd have been in big trouble today. I've decided I want my entire apartment furnished by Restoration Hardware. *Sigh...

This weekend, I'm off to two parties, one of which is in my honor....so I expect to be a tad hungover on Sunday... when I go to a friend's birthday party!

See, I'm just resting up for all of that. Yeah. That's it.

The cure for what was ailing me...?

You know how I was convinced I had a sleeping disorder? Had trouble falling asleep, even when exhausted... then had trouble staying asleep for more than five hours? Even on my days off? Unless I was using over-the-counter sleep aids?

I haven't needed to use them in days.

That's right. I'm falling asleep shortly after going to bed, and sleeping for the better part of eight hours.

And several times in the past few days, I've just felt very much at peace. Like everything was as it should be, for the first time in... well, uh... a really, really long time.

Yeah, it helps that I'm on an unplanned vacation for several more days. And I don't kid myself that this new job is going to be a cakewalk. It won't be. I'm facing some big challenges on day one, especially since I'm coming in as an outsider from the "competition." I know that my every move will be closely watched, until my new co-workers get to know me.

But everything feels different. One of the major stressors in my life -- money -- won't be as much of an issue anymore. That's huge.

I'll be interested to see how long this feeling lasts. For now, I'm going with it!

(yes, that is an actual artist's rendering of me sleeping peacefully. see the smile? and yes, i know i can't draw....but i cracked myself up with this one.)