I need a break from life.

Oh my word, it has been a long time. I'm so sorry. If I had some sort of device that lets me transcribe what I think into my computer, that would be great. As it is, whatever I want to talk about normally comes to me when I'm trying to get some sleep..


Anyway, let's talk about why my day has sucked. =D

I've been battling a cold for the past week. I had it during Christmas, and because it's been non-stop activities, I have not had much of a chance to recover. Either I was celebrating Christmas on the weekend, or I've been working. Yesterday I finally had a day to rest, so I spent it with my boyfriend, sitting on his couch playing video games, and later up at a friend's house playing Magic. Nothing too strenuous. But I woke up this morning, and I actually felt worse.

Not because my cold had gotten worse. It was pretty much the same, maybe slightly better because my nose wasn't dripping like a faucet. What made it worse was that my left eye was almost glued closed because of gunk that had formed on it over night. And why was it so gunky? Because my eye was very red. I'm pretty sure I have pink eye, but I can't call in sick to work, because the next few days are very important for my training as manager. So I spent the day wanting to claw my eye out, but not being able to touch it. My hands are dry from the amount of hand sanitizer I've been using, and I found out that apparently the two weeks between Christmas and the first week of January are a holiday, because all the walk in clinics are closed 'for the holidays'. If that's the case, I expect to be paid holiday hours for every day I've worked. I don't know what goes through the minds of the people that make those choices. Do they expect that people won't get hurt just because it's Christmas?Do they think that they're not an essential service? Just about every other place is open regular hours, and most of them are not even important. The only clinic that I even had a chance of getting to was the one inside of Wal-Mart, which said that they were open until 6. Well normally they are, but when I got there, their 'holiday' hours were 9-4. I work 9:45 to 4 today and tomorrow. So good try guys, but you're still useless.

And to top it all off, when I finally got home from work, I tried opening the front door with the only finger I had available after carrying all my bags and holding my keys. But my thumb slipped, and instead I rammed my nail into the door handle and ripped it into the skin. It doesn't even look that bad, but dang, the thumb hold a lot of blood, and a lot of nerves, because that hurt, and now it's throbbing, and I keep finding blood on my hands, even though I have a bandage on my thumb.

Can this whole year just be over yet? I need to start fresh.

Who Goes Shopping on Thanksgiving

Hey, long time no see! Sorry for the long absence. I haven't been feeling like writing about myself lately, and now that school has started, I've been focusing a lot on writing for class.

Anyway, the reason why I'm back is because I have to rant. This weekend is Thanksgiving up in Canada. I accidentally took the wrong weekend off (I could have sworn that my dad said the 22nd...), so I had to scramble to get enough time off to join my family on the Island with the rest of my extended family. We decided this year that we would get together for Thanksgiving instead of Christmas, so going to this get together was pretty important for me. My coworkers were great, and I was able to get off of work at 1:30 on Saturday to try and catch a 3:00 ferry. So I rushed out of work as soon as I got off, and everything was going pretty smooth. My boyfriend and I were about ten minutes away from the park and ride for the ferries, with half an hour to spare, so I was pretty confident that we would make it.

But of course, we got stuck up in traffic. I kind of expected some, because we reached a section of the freeway that had a light on it. However, we were stuck in traffic for the whole half hour. All because of a mall that recently opened up.

Normally a mall wouldn't be too much of an issue. But three incredibly stupid decisions on the mall's part caused me to miss the ferry. First off, they put the building right next to a busy freeway that leads to a ferry terminal. Second, they opened it up on the week of the long weekend. And third, they only had one entrance/exit open. I keep hearing about how bad the parking lot was, and how aggravated the shoppers were, and I just want to smack them all in the head. Because the shoppers made a choice to go to the mall, and to stay in the lineup, and to try and get a spot. But I didn't have a choice to wait in traffic. I couldn't just wait for the next ferry, because, to top it all off, Saturday was the only day that did not have a 4:00 ferry.

It wasn't even just the stupidity of the mall, but the stupidity of the drivers and shoppers. I was in a lane that was next to the line up for people getting into the parking lot. And several people just stopped because they had got to the front of the line, and now wanted to budge in. And because the people in line didn't want to let anyone in, the people in my lane just sat there. I would have tried to get into the lane on my other side, but by then there were non stop cars that wouldn't let me in. At the time, I thought there was a 4:00 ferry, so once we got through all the traffic I went to the park and ride, which was full, so we went to the ferry terminal parking, bought a 24 hour parking pass, went and bought our ferry tickets. Then realized that it said 5:00, not 4:00... So we got a refund on the ferry tickets, and went home.

I had a very good Pho dinner for Thanksgiving, then snuggled up with my boyfriend and played some video games. I guess it wasn't the worst Thanksgiving, because at least I had my boyfriend, but it would have been nice to be with my family.

And I still blame the mall for 90% of the problem... and myself for booking the wrong weekend off.

I Caved...

So I finally got my new phone after my old one was stolen. Which means I'm back to using a device that can support Pokemon Go. You can probably guess what one of the first things I did was...

First off, I know that there are a bunch of bugs, and even more cheaters. So far I really haven't encountered any of that, except for a few times that the app just stopped working. It's never been an inconvenience, so I'm still happy. I have also never used it while driving, unless I'm in the passenger seat, and while walking, I've tried to stay aware of my surroundings. Just a few quick guidelines for anyone thinking of using it. The app gives you a little notification to remind you of these things, but who pays attention to those?

Alright, so I started playing it yesterday (Wednesday), and I'm already at level 6, halfway to level 7. Unfortunately, my neighbourhood seems to be a dead zone, but the Costco near my house has plenty of pokemon. And I'mm be travelling to school by bus a lot in the fall, so hopefully I'll catch some there. Not to mention that the library at school seems to always have a lure placed. I guess I've found my new hang out spot before class.

So my view on Pokemon Go: It's been a lot of fun. I can see why people get distracted while playing it, especially if they have some sort of lure up. It's better when playing with friends, of course, but also fun to play just while eating lunch, or sitting on the bus. I also love how the Pokestops are small landmarks, ones that would normally get passed by. It's nice that people visiting my city can find these little out-of-the-way art pieces while they wander around.

Rules of the Road (For Idiots)

Alright, let's start this little lesson off with a nice anecdote about how I had a heart attack while driving!

This late afternoon, I was driving to go pick up my boyfriend. To get out of my neighbourhood, I have to drive through a forest area. At one point, there's a path that ends on one side of the road, and continues on the other side. So the city put a crosswalk here. They were even smart enough to put in a stop sign for the crosswalk, so that anyone trying to cross the road has to stop for cars, not the other way around. This is important, because while drivers going North can easily see pedestrians from far away, the drivers going south are blocked by a curve in the road, and do not have as much reaction time. Thus, pedestrians stop for cars.

So I'm driving south, maybe doing 55kpm in a 50kpm zone. I had to slow down because of the curve in the road, but still doing around 50kpm. I get around the corner, and I see a bicyclist on the road. This is normal, I have enough room to get past them. But just as I'm maybe five metres away from the crosswalk, this cyclist suddenly turns to cross the crosswalk. They didn't look behind them, they didn't check for cars, they didn't get off their bike, they didn't see the stop sign for them. I have to slam on the breaks, and luckily the person had seen me and stopped their bike, or else I probably would have hit them. Not hard, I managed to stop barely in the crosswalk, but I definitely would have bumped them over. So they guy gives me a weird look, and I slowly continue to drive. He continued across the crosswalk, still riding his bike (that means he's technically a vehicle).

At this point, I'm angry, but I can continue on this my life. At least I didn't hit him, and the world is all good. I stop at the stop sign at the next intersection, then continue.

And then I hear a siren. I freak out and see a ghost car behind me, so I pull over, thinking that I was going to get in trouble for not letting the cyclist cross before I continued on again.

The police car drives right past me, and zips down the street. I just sat there for a few seconds, until it clicked that I was not being pulled over. Once I was able to breathe again, and my heart started working, I continued on my way.


Moral of the story for everyone:

Drivers: Expect everyone to suddenly pull out in front of you. If there is a cyclist near a crosswalk, at least slow down. They might have no idea what they're doing.

Pedestrians: Please be aware of all cars around you. It is possible for you to have to stop for cars, not the other way around. Even if you normally have the right away, don't think that you're invincible. Make sure that a car will be able to stop for you before you step out onto the street.

Bicyclists: GET OFF YOUR GOD-DAMNED BIKE BEFORE USING A CROSSWALK! If you stay on your bike, you are considered a vehicle, and other vehicles do not need to give you the right away, unless it is deserved, like at a light or a stop sign. Learn to use hand signals, so that other vehicles know that you're planning on turning. Same rules as when you're in a car, but you have to use your hands, not a blinking light (though too few people use that now a days either...) And look before crossing a street. My car is far from being quiet. It is impossible for me to sneak up on anyone. It would be like a toddler in squeaky shoes running up to a shelf of stuffed animals. So there is no reason for you to believe that there could not possibly be any cars on the road.


You know, come to think of it, I don't even know if that cyclist was wearing a helmet.

Adulting is Hard

So last week my wallet was stolen. This week I found out that my dental insurance through school is worse than my dad's. My dad's insurance coverage is famous in my dental office for being the worst that they've seen. And mine is worse than that. For example, my insurance covers one cavity every two years. I normally get at least one cavity every visit, which is (supposed to) be every six months. Okay, I admit, part of that is my fault. I love sugar. I can blame part of it on the dentist though. Twice now they've charged me for a filling that they had to replace because the last one they put in was either 'falling out' or wasn't done properly the first time. And by 'falling out', I mean they had to drill it out of my mouth. Then they charged me the full amount.

So I'm going to have to start declining fillings, because I just cannot pay for them. Not to mention I can't continue to pay for the dentist's mistakes. I also suspect that they messed up the last two fillings that they did, because right after they were done, my teeth were super sensitive. They never felt like that before the fillings, and I've never felt that after any other fillings. So I'm seeing another couple replacement fillings in the future, that I will also have to cover.

Thanks dentist.

Cats are less of an asshole than some people

Never trust anyone! Seriously, lock up everything you own and guard it like a dragon guards a treasure.

I was working today, four hours by myself, as usual. My shift ends and I close up the store. When I'm getting my stuff, I notice that my phone isn't in my bag. No big deal, I probably left it at my boyfriend's house. I would just pop by before heading home. Once I get there, neither of us can find it, so he gives it a call. It's turned off. Which means that it's been stolen. My phone was basically fully charged before I left for work, and I never turn my phone off. But it went straight to voice mail, which means that it's off.

My naive brain thinks 'Dang, I must have left it on the shelf in the backroom, or maybe it fell out of my purse and I didn't notice. I guess I'll have to get it tomorrow.' My boyfriend asked if I still had my wallet. And of course that's gone too. I didn't even notice when I was doing my bag check after work.

Luckily the thief didn't gain more than five dollars, because I had spent all the bills I had until now. I managed to cancel all my cards, and lock my phone, so that asshole won't get more than an old five dollar bill folded into an oragami heart. I hope that makes your pathetic life just a little better.

So yeah... That's what's been up with me lately. My regional manager says that he's doing everything he can to figure out what happened, but I know that there isn't much that can be done. The cameras in the store will tell us about any customers that went near the back room, but it won't show who actually went back there. Tomorrow I'll go to the police and file a report, then work on getting cards, phones and ID's back in order.

Being unlucky is hard work.

Adult Drama

I'm back! Sorry for the break... Again. I have a bit of a rant today.

When I was a kid, my dad would always make sure that I was inclusive. I could never say no to a friend while saying yes to another. This was a bit of a problem, as none of my friends got along with each either. This was mostly because their parents didn't get along, or because they were sister. However, they had to bear it, because for some reason, I was the popular kid in my neighbourhood. If they wanted to play with me, they also had to play with my other friends. And it worked out. They might have fought a bit, but otherwise they acted civil. If something got on the nerves of one of them, they would just leave for a bit, then come back when they calmed down. This was back when I was ten years old.

So you can imagine my annoyance that now, when I'm twenty two, my friends cannot even pretend to get along. Rather than  bearing one person they don't like to be able to hang out with several people that they do like, it's more like 'Oh, that person is invited? I guess I'm not coming then.' This is what I expected in high school. Maybe that's why I didn't have many friends back then. I skipped the drama then, and I'm facing it now.

To be fair, it's only a couple friends. Most of the time, everyone gets along. It's when I introduce some old or newer friends, ones that are not part of the core group, that I seem to have trouble. While I want to make my core group of friends happy, the younger me that was taught to never exclude people screams at me.

Sometimes it's hard being nice.