Shot fired

A lot has happened in 5 days.  I’m still alive and roaming the earth. 

I got my first COVID shot on Saturday at a local pharmacy.  Moderna was the brand they were passing out and it’s not like I had a choice.  This hurt like hell and my arm was super sore.  I applied ice packs, massaged it and even put on some muscle rub.  A few hours after the shot I didn’t feel the best and the next day wasn’t exactly a picnic.  What I hear is that the effects are so much more worse on the 2nd dose so in roughly a month I will get to find that out.  I am not looking forward to it at all. 

Sunday evening I got an invite for an announcement at work 1st thing in the morning.  My mind went every direction but I wasn’t prepared for what I heard.  I called my boss and he had no idea but said that it probably wasn’t anything to loose sleep over.  I thought it could be good news but it could also be bad news.  Turns out it was a highly regarded and talented co-worker unexpectedly passed away.  I was shocked and then just burst in to tears, the news took my breath away and the words that were chosen in my opinion could have an should have been better chosen.  I just worked with this person on Friday.  They always had a smile on their face and managed to laugh in most every conversation.  There were no details released as to the cause of death, which leaves everyone to speculate.  I spoke with a former co-worker at great length last night and learned that the person had cardiac issues in years past so it was likely a cardiac event. 

Something I don’t understand is that the family will be setting up a memorial fund.  I don’t know why they would want to setup a memorial fund when were all given life insurance at one times our salary.  You can purchase additional insurance on the cheap if you so desire.  It’s not like he was wealthy but there should at least be enough to pay for his funeral with plenty left over. This person lived by themselves and has children that are grown.  I always thought that memorial funds were a way to collect money to help pay for the funeral at other expenses like a hospital bill, etc. Maybe I am just out of touch with the times. Regardless my work life won’t be the same, but you adapt and overcome. 

The lawn guy showed up today and my grass got it’s second cut.  He didn’t say anything about painting and we have great weather right now for painting.  Also, the tree guy I hired told me it would be around two weeks and it would be on a Sunday so that would mean this Sunday, which is Easter.  I really don’t want him working on Easter but he also hasn’t said he would be here.  If I don’t hear from him by mid-week next week I will check in.  I’ve already told everyone else that this guy has the job and the idea of having to spend more money isn’t appealing to me. 

Speaking of Easter my thanksgiving friends invited me over.  They are getting a package meal from our favorite Italian place plus having a ham.  I’ll be going it’s not like I have anything better to do.  I mean I actually do have work to do but it’s tasks that I don’t want to do. I will have to hoof it on Saturday to get everything done because the grocery store will probably be closed for Easter. 

I’ve got a strange computer problem at home.  My external hard drive that stores the bulk of my digital porn collection keeps loosing it’s drive letter.  The disk it’s self is healthy and there are no issues when I ask it to play a movie.  I made changes to the security rights of the drive in the hopes that would help.  It could be a bad cable but I kind of doubt that.  If this keeps happening the suggestions I have on-line is to try replacing the cable and/or copy off the data. Format the drive and start over.  The odd thing is that I have more than one external hard drive and it’s only picking on the one that has porn on it.  Rather odd but then again that is the story of my life. 

Ms. Gator and I have butted heads a couple times.  She didn’t want me to get any sleep on Thursday night into Friday.  She keeps waking me up earlier each day.  I don’t think she is terribly pleased with the food I got for her but the selection at the pet food store has been down.  They have bee out of one of her favorite flavors for two weeks.  The same is true of the grocery store.  I can only hope that changes soon. 

The outside cats seem to have disappeared but my ground hog from last year has re-surfaced.  I think it is living under the patio where I thought the cats were.  A co-worker suggested that perhaps they are cohabitating and I said that is probably not likely.  I sure hope the cats are okay and nothing bad happened to them.  Maybe they will surface again now that I have typed something about them. 

I’ve got a work task that I need to preform later tonight.  Right now Gator just woke up from her nap and it’s supper time.  She’s being very vocal about it so it’s time to play let’s guess what she will like for dinner.  I’m going to heat up some pasta for me and then have a nice slice of Strawberry Cream Cake.  Then we can pass the night away until it’s time for me to shave and shower. 

Hope your all doing well.  Take care and we shall talk again soon. 

Rainy Day

It’s been a crazy busy day all work related, thankfully.  I am not fond of ambiguity and would much rather have clarity.  I had someone reach out today and say they were hacked.  Really?  Do tell.  Once they provided details that helped me arrive at a conclusion it wasn’t them it was someone in a group email that had a serious problem. 

I had an important conference call to join and prior to joining Gator was fine, the minute I got on the call she lost her mind and was crying and walking around here like she was left all alone.  I passed out some food and that helped but only for a few minutes.  The moment the call was over, she was ready for a nap and was quiet.  Isn’t that the way it goes … animals and kids have a lot in common.

I didn’t see any of the new cats and am concerned about them.  I was going to wonder over to the side of the house where I believe they are but it was raining when I took the trash out and quite chilly.  Needless to say I skipped checking on them.

Watched a gaymer play Grand Theft Auto earlier this week.  It sure was fun and a different way to spend the evening.  I figured out how to air play stream from my iPhone to my Roku and really enjoy watching on a large screen vs. my tiny phone screen. 

Glad that the week is almost over with, one more day to go.  Looking forward to eating out this weekend.  Not sure if I am going for pizza or to a new Mexican place that opened nearby.  Either way I am sure I will enjoy a good meal.  Weather man says that the sun will be out, that will be nice.  I am sure I will spend a little more time than normal in bed but that is one of my other favorite things to do. 

Hope the week is going well for you.  Talk with you again soon!

Cats

I noticed on Monday that there was a new cat hanging around my home.  I stumbled upon this by accident and scared the poor thing when I opened the blinds on the back door.  I think it is or was someone’s pet because it scurried far enough away then looked back to see what I was going to do.  Tuesday the cat was back and I was able to observe it without it knowing that I was watching.  It’s a grey and black cat, looks pretty.  It’s a little on the hefty side and I was thinking perhaps she (presuming it’s a female) is pregnant. 

This morning I looked out and we had rainy weather so no cat, makes sense to me.  However, I saw it later in the morning and there was a younger cat with it (maybe a year or two old), it kept looking at the older cat for direction on what to do.  This afternoon I saw another couple of cats.  I think there is a family and they just might be living under my deck.  I am perfectly okay with that. 

My natural instinct is to try to make friends and perhaps starting feeding them, then eventually have them move in.  However, I am not looking to get my heart broken.  I also made a promise to Gator and her now departed family that it would just be the core family, meaning no more strangers.  I think Gator know they are out there but she has yet to see any of them, when that time comes she will loose her mind and start hissing at them.  It won’t be pretty, she will want to drive them away because this is her home.  I kind of hope they never manage to see each other.  I don’t want her to worry that she is being replaced or that other cats are competing for my attention.  My love will always be there for Gator but I can’t convey that to her in words that she will understand. 

I have yet to feed any of them but I think that is just a matter of time before I give in.  I don’t want to drive them away but at the same time I don’t want anyone or anything to try to harm them.  That is what happened to the last family that was born outside but that was probably 17 or 18 years ago. 

Seeing stray cats kind of feels like a sign.  Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket and then all of my current troubles would come to an end and I would inherit new troubles.  Well on with the evening and then to start fresh again tomorrow.

Hope you had a great day and are doing well.  Talk with you peeps again soon!

Therapy on Tuesday

I had to wait until mid-afternoon but the other tree guy came around.  His quote was a couple grand and I got the exact same quote 2 years ago from a different company.  I remember because the dude who gave me the quote was young, handsome and super tall.  We chatted and I got him to lower his price a little bit but not by much.  We spoke about the other bid I got and he cautioned me against hiring the other guy because he never heard of him and said he has been in business for 21 years.  He’s afraid that I will not get great service, the guy will make a mistake and in the end I won’t be happy.  He told me that he would supply me with a full crew of guys who only work on trees and promised they would do the job right. 

I get that one would want to discount or talk bad about competition and I heard what he was saying.  It’s not like I don’t have the money but I want to hang on to it, meaning it’s better kept in my pocket than his.  I hired the lower price guy and he said that he would be by in 2 weeks and that he would call when we got closer.  I honestly don’t think I will be sorry but I suppose only time will tell.

Considering that I just saved some money I thought why not call and get an estimate for how much it would cost for someone else to clean out my gutters.  I am waiting for a call back, probably will be tomorrow.

So much happened yesterday that when I woke up today I thought for sure it had to be later in the week.  Nope it’s only Tuesday. 

On a different note, I am sure that you have heard about the shooting in Boulder that happened on Monday.  I’ve got a friend that lives in that area.  I went to his social media and for some strange reason he hasn’t posted in 3 days.  He’s always putting something up.  My heart was in my throat as I listened to the names of the victims being read this morning on TV.  Thankfully my friend wasn’t on the list.  In fact no one that I knew was and that is a very good thing. 

Everyone is certainly entitled to their opinion and constitutional rights but these types of events are going to keep happening until there is gun control in place.  There is no reason Fred, Sam, Julie or Mary need to carry a weapon that uses a high capacity magazine.  Those types of weapons should be restricted.  There is also another factor at play that no one is really talking about in my opinion and that is mental illness.  We have a bunch of people in our country that are mentally ill.  Sure not all mentally ill people are going to partake in a mass shooting event but there are some folks that are more prone to it than others.  We all have times where we want to “kill” someone but that is a word being used out of context and it’s not something that most of us are going to do.  The way we treat mental illness today is pass out pills.  Some people are in institutions or hospitals but a good portion of people are free and just have to remember to take their pills. 

I can’t fathom why one person would want to hurt, kill or injure so many innocent people.  It’s nothing that I would ever dream of.  When I think about hurting someone it’s myself not others. 

Also contributing to this is the pandemic and everyone being isolated.  Man was not meant to live alone and no man is an island.  I get that things are starting to open back up and people are starting to slowly move back towards what we used to call normal everyday life.  However, we have all been through a once and a lifetime experience that does cause change.  Don’t let it be negative change.  While I don’t think I will see it in my lifetime it would be great if we could all just get along and let there be peace on earth.  We all have enough of our own problems to deal with. 

I hope that your week is going well.  My Gator is telling me it’s food time once again.  I guess I will cater to her because she won’t stop meowing until I give in.  The sooner I realize that and accept it the better off we will both be.  Take care and we will talk again soon.   

BBB–Get’s the job done

I went to the BBB and used their free service to get the word out about my tree trimming job.  Within 30 minutes I had a response and met with a gentleman this evening.  I got a most excellent price that was far less than what I was quoted by another firm 2 years ago.  I’ve got another company coming tomorrow but unless they can beat the first guys price I am ready to hire him.  There is a lot of work to be done and if I can save money in the process why not move forward. 

While I didn’t win the lottery today feels like a much brighter than it’s been in a long time.  Just wanted to share!

A better day

Today has turned out to be a better and productive day.  I got 2 quotes on my lawn mowing project.  The first guy was right on the money but submitted his information way too slow.  The second guy gave me the same price I am used to but only for weekly service, if I want to switch to bi-weekly it will cost me $5 more per cut.  There afraid of “really tall grass”.  Weekly isn’t needed but it’s the option I went with.  Turns out this guy is also a painter and I asked about the trim on my garage door, he told me $50 plus the cost of the paint so I’m thinking $100 or less. The grass was cut today and he will be back later this week or next about the paint. 

It’s only 2p but I haven’t been successful in getting a quote for the trees.  The new lawn guy said the if I couldn’t find someone to let him know and we could work something out.  He can cut but can’t haul the stuff away. I am just surprised that people aren’t more aggressive at wanting to  get me pricing because the tree project will be super expensive and well worth someone’s time. 

Now I feel kind of silly about taking potential deadly action for such a small problem.  However, it’s the overwhelming problem and the late notice I got that made it bad.  I honestly thought I would come out of this worse and that it wouldn’t be such an easy problem to solve. 

Home projects are the absolute worst for me and as time goes on I know that they will continue to mount and always present a challenge.  For now if I can find someone to trim the trees and I can manage to clean out the gutters I think I will be okay. 

The other expensive project is tires and I’d like to get that done as well so I can put all of my worries to rest so to speak.  I know as soon as I solve these there will be others to take their places.  I just hope they are minor and quick fixes. 

For those of you that might have been concerned I thought you would appreciate the update and upbeat post.  Back to work for now.  Take care!

Great week until Friday

The week was pretty quiet and average until Friday, that’s when my world turned upside down.  Before I get into the nitty gritty of what went wrong, I am now the proud owner of a new mesh router.  I bit the bullet and spent the money.  It arrived on Wednesday and it’s been working great.  Setup was super easy.  I still have issues with WIFI calling depending upon where I am at in the house and am considering adding a node, which is geek speak for another connection point.  Basically it will help broadcast my network and that should solve my problem.  It’s not something that is super critical to me, but something for down the line.  Right now there are larger fish to fry. 

I own some personal domains on the internet and use them for my personal email.  It keeps things looking professional and you don’t have to be a slave to your Internet Service Provider or other free email providers.  Nothing wrong with having free email it’s just not for me.  At any rate I transferred registrars and the transfer was completed on Friday.  First I woke up in the middle of the night and found that some of the DNS settings were wrong.  While most changes take place within a couple hours it can take up to 48 hours to fully resolve.  I caught it early enough that most but not all of the kinks were worked out by normal business hours.  It didn’t fully resolve until Saturday morning.  At any rate the big disaster hit when I went to update Outlook.  I heard this little voice that said back up your mail but I don’t know why I threw caution to the wind and by changing the settings when Outlook updated it lost all of my mail.  I thought no problem I have a cloud backup provider and they will help me recover from this.  What I needed was an outlook server file that is called an OST, when you back up your mail in Outlook it’s saved in a PST.  Well much to my horror I learned that my cloud backup provider by default didn’t back up OST’s because most people didn’t find that file format useful.  That’s when I knew I was fucked and not in a good way.  I tried using some fancy software to scan my hard drive and recover the file but it’s gone.  I feel so stupid and have no one to blame but myself.  I work with email on a regular basis for a large organization and I am painfully familiar with PST files and know their importance for archiving mail.  I leaned a little too much on an assurance that my cloud backup provider was truly backing up my system.  Needless to say I’ve since removed the exclusion and they are now backing up my OST.  To be double safe I added a second cloud backup provider and will likely change when it’s time for renewal. 

Saturday morning came and I had finally come to terms with my data loss.  I pushed past it and was ready to have some fun.  I was going about my day in a leisurely fashion when in the afternoon I got a call from my lawn guy.  He told me that he was no longer going to cut my lawn he’s going to retire.  FUCK.  I get retirement but he probably knew this in January but he didn’t tell me until the first day of Spring.  Now I am truly behind the 8 ball.  Most places are already filled up with customers and it’s late in the game to find someone.  That doesn’t mean I am out of options but it means I have a huge struggle on my hands.  My preference is to have it cut every other week and I am now finding that a lot of don’t do that.  I talked with one guy who gloated and told me he cuts 300 lawns per week and that bi-weekly service is too disruptive to his schedule.  He tried to get me to change my mind but that didn’t happen.  I got a snarky email from another guy.  That’s fine I don’t have to beg for someone to take my money.  There are plenty of grass cutters around.  I’ve got feelers out and just have to be patient.  It’s bad enough to find someone but it’s worse because it’s late in the game.  The other huge factor is price, I was getting away with a super cheap rate and odds are I will have to give that up. It’s not like I can’t afford a rate increase but it’s not something I really want. 

Between Friday and Saturday that was enough to send me spiraling into a deep depression.  I had so many plans for this weekend but instead I spent the bulk of my weekend watching TV or sleeping.  I didn’t care about anything and found that I had no where to turn to let this out.  I tried reaching out to a co-worker friend, we talk about stuff like this but he was busy.  That didn’t help me out either, it sent me diving deeper.  I know it seems like a couple of trivial problems, only one of which I have any real control over.  However I just want to stop getting crapped on.  Being by myself isn’t a good thing, I need company if nothing more than someone to pick up the phone and say hey to.  The pandemic hasn’t exactly helped me out.  I kept looking at my cat and I told her that she was once again saving my life.  I promised not to ever leave her and funny thing about me and promises I keep my word.  She helped comfort me as best as she could. 

I woke up this morning and elected to eat breakfast at home because it was so cold outside.  I was going to get dressed and head for the grocery store but someone wanted to cuddle.  So I bowed to her desire and that was my fatal mistake of the day.  I never ever wanted to leave my bed.  I kept thinking how I would call in tomorrow and go shopping then.  However the more I thought about it the more I was like this could easily spiral out of control and before you know it several days would go by and nothing would change.  It wasn’t until 2:30p that I figured out that was a bad idea.  I got up, had a quite bite, got dressed and dusted myself off and went grocery shopping.  The upside of that was I got to see the cute bagger boy.  Came home and have been flying 100mph to try to get everything taken care of.  Things have come together pretty well all things considered.  I am going to grab the laundry and head up to figure out what’s for dinner, plus I have to feed the fur ball.  Then figure out what to watch.  In the process of composing this my co-worker/friend called to check in and we had a nice talk.  That helped. 

Next week is my week for on-call so I don’t think things will be slowing down but I hope for calm.  Hopefully I will get some responses back and have hired someone to mow my lawn by this time next week. 

Thanks for stopping by, here’s hoping that your week was no where near as dramatic or bad as mine was.  I hope your well.  Take care!

BACK TO WORK

It’s been an okay week for work. I haven’t felt the greatest a couple days. Me thinks its allergies acting up. I took some extra allergy medication and pounded the water, that seems to have helped. We had a staff meeting for the entire organization and plans are in motion to return to the office in August or September. They want to do an alternating work schedule where 2 or 3 days a week you will be in the office and the other days you will work from home. It’s to alter who is in the office and who is not. This was the plan for last year when they thought we might go back. Someone asked about sharing your status if you have been vaccinated or not and what to respond to a co-worker if they ask. Bottom line is it’s your health information and you don’t have to share it with anyone. Unfortunately, they are going to allow everyone regardless if you have been vaccinated or not to return to the office. I honestly don’t feel comfortable with that decision. I will share the plans with my physician when I see him next. My hope is that I can continue working from home for the rest of this year, if possible and perhaps return early in 2022. I don’t know if I will get my wish but time will tell. We are supposed to be given 60 days advance notice once the final date is set in place for the mandatory return. The one thing that is not known is how long the vaccine is good for, meaning how long you have immunity from COVID-19 and its variants. If it’s a lifetime that would be awesome but since that will have to play out, I don’t think that things are quite as rosy as everyone is starting to paint them.

As per usual Ms. Gator had me up multiple times during Friday night into Saturday morning. I didn’t have any real plans for the day and was able to loaf around until the afternoon. She was sick a couple times during the week. We did some playing on Friday, which was a real treat for both of us. It was short lived because while she has some interest in playing since she is older. She didn’t get into it like she used to even as late as last year. You could play with her for at least an hour but now it’s more like 15 minutes and she is done. Fine by me. She is still eating like a horse and is doing a great job of keeping me company. I of course return the favor and cater to her every need and desire. If she would just let me work downstairs a little longer perhaps, I could avoid some of the knots in my back from hunkering over the laptop on the couch.

My blood vessels feel like they are closing off and I am just turning into this blob of fat. Sitting can cause my arms or legs to feel like they are asleep. I can wake them up by moving around but even sitting this evening in a restaurant eating dinner, my arms were trying to fall asleep on me. I was eating the greatest artery clogging meal of Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans. It sounds wonderful and it was okay (I’ve had better) but it was a familiar destination and a nice change of pace. I got in the door early before the crowd showed up. There was a large waiting line when I was leaving. Outside of the wait staff I was the only one who had a mask on when I wasn’t eating. That felt a bit uncomfortable and the way they were stacking people on top of people made me hurry up and get out. I took some chicken to go and paid my bill. There was a couple of cute bus boys that I wish would have followed me home. One of them had a rainbow-colored bracelet on, I think he was advertising but there isn’t anything wrong with that. I’ve got a couple of those but have only worn them in public a couple times.

It’s been a fantastic week for movies. I watched multiple movies with the ever handsome and unfortunately straight Joseph Gordon Levitt. The best one out of the bunch was 7500, he played an airplane co-pilot (1^st officer I think) and the airplane was taken over by terrorist. They stormed the cabin and he managed to take it back. He had to endure watching his girlfriend who was a flight attendant get murdered along with the pilot. It was a keep you on the edge of your seat movie. In Premium Rush he played a bicycle messenger and that showed off his assets quite well. It was a drama keep you on the edge of your seat but in all fairness, I knew I had seen it before, just didn’t remember how it turned out and once I bought in, I had to see it to the end.

The JGL movies I saw this week …

7500

Premium Rush

Snowden

Looper

The Trial of the Chicago 7

 

A correction from my post last weekend, The Circus on Showtime wrapped for the season and there was no show last weekend. I don’t know when it’s coming back but they do a good job of covering politics and I will eagerly await it’s return.

Since were talking about Showtime, I saw on social media this week that the cast of Shameless has finished shooting the final season. The show I believe is scheduled to end at the end of April. That will be sad it’s been a great ride and I’ve enjoyed seeing the characters develop. Although my main reason for watching the show was because of Cameron Monahan who plays Ian who happens to be gay. Once again modern cinematography has done a great job of simulated sex scenes. It all started on Queer as Folk and has only grown from there. Regardless if it’s straight or gay sex, they make you think from the visuals that it’s actually happening but unlike porn where you get to see placement of the organ (penis) that is the only thing that is missing.

I am not all about losing an hour of sleep but it’s the name of the game in Spring forward! Hell were still officially in to Winter why can’t this wait a couple more weeks? I really think that we should be like Arizona and just have 1-time year-round no adjustments needed. However, there are worse things in the world.

Best thing is that the boss is on vacation so it’s not like were going to all be working hard more like hardly working unless something major happens, which is usually the case right about the time I fall into dream land, while trying to take a nap, my phone wakes me up. Gator hates it too but I have to play the game because it’s working time. One thing is for sure no naps whenever it is, I return to the office. But I do have a nice credenza in my office with a small pillow it wouldn’t be comfortable but I could easily sleep on it for a few minutes if I had to.

Last night I put on my noise cancelling headphones to check the battery, I had just finished charging it. I was going to give a quick listen and then take them off. That was the plan. It didn’t work out like that I went on a Classic Rock Bender hunting down songs from my childhood, thinking about my mom and times past. That was around 3 hours. Gator was sleeping in my lap so I had to be quiet or I would wake her and face her ire, which isn’t pretty. Anyway, I got to the point where I couldn’t hold my eyes open and just opted to call it a night. I was up to 1a which with the loss of an hour made it 2a.

Gator had me up a couple times in the night and that meant I wasn’t worth anything when I got up at 8a. I fed her, checked my blood sugar because it felt like I was crashing but it was a mere 117. Then I went back to my room, looked at my phone & social media as well as my morning browsing routine checking photos, blogs, porn, etc. Then put the phone up and climbed back into bed. I didn’t care about anything and the only real task I have for the day is going to the grocery store. I feel horrible. I went back to bed for a while got up around 11:30a and had breakfast which was nothing but frozen blueberry waffles & milk. Then pushed myself out the door by noon. Saw a nice younger guy at the store but outside of that I felt like a zombie and don’t know how I managed to buy anything. I got a couple things that I probably won’t eat or at least will take me a while to finish. No cute bagger boys. The checker cut me a break and didn’t charge me for my soda, which considering all of the times I have been double charged, I was due a break. Skipped filling up the gas tank and came home.

The groceries are put away. The work reports are finally done. Working on a little bit of laundry. I am going to loaf for the rest of the day unless I suddenly get a burst of energy and spring to life, which I don’t think will happen. Publishing this, working on finances and then back upstairs to be with the furry little gator and watch TV. I’ll break out the vacuum cleaner as well at least it’s in my plans. The day will be over with sooner and we can start all over again tomorrow.

Time change usually throws me off a little bit, but I feel really out of it right now. I do hope tomorrow is a better day.

Hope you had a great week and that the week ahead is even better. Talk with you peeps again soon.

Wash, Rinse–Repeat

It’s been a moderately busy week from a work perspective. The guy who trained me when I first started in my initial role with my employer is leaving. He’s been screwed over a couple times and I am honestly surprised that he has stayed this long. However, in his role it’s uncommon for a person to be with an employer for as long as he has. I am disappointed in him leaving but it’s not the end of the world. I have thought about leaving more so during the pandemic than any other time. My boss and his vocabulary are grating on my last nerve, not to mention all of the patronization and buttering up he does. While I know he appreciates me – it rings hollow because he says it so much, like every time we talk for any reason. Plus, I am tired of the weather conversation. Be resourceful and look it up on Google, that’s what I do when I want to know the weather in a different part of the country. On the bright side, I did get to work a couple times with a guy that I have a crush on. He’s straight but hey a guy can dream!

I was also contacted by AT&T and am waiting to see what kind of a promotion they can offer me; from the way it sounds they will continue what I am getting which is $70 off per month for 12 mos. – that’s phone and TV. Of course, I just learned they are selling off the majority share in their TV division to include U-Verse, Direct TV and AT&T TV. I don’t really want to go back to Cable but I know it would lower my Internet cost by $10. Once I get AT&T squared away, I plan to reach out to the Cable company about my internet pricing. If you don’t ask for a promotion, of course you’ll never get one. I look at it like this, I am already at no so what do I have to lose by asking – nothing! I really think that my employer should cough up some money to help pay for my internet connection, especially during the pandemic. There is nothing wrong with NOT paying full price.

It’s been a rough week for Ms. Gator. Poor thing had diarrhea really bad for a day. She never stopped eating but did slow up a bit on drinking and got in her usual sleep. She spent a fair number of hours away from me, she just wanted to be alone. I get it we all get that way sometimes. However, it scares me because cats do self-isolate when they are preparing for death. Plus, she keeps going to my bathroom, which is also something a lot of my cats have done as they were on the decline. You can’t tell by looking at her but I know she is an old lady and every little thing out of the ordinary concerns me. She is back to normal at the moment and just getting on my nerves with her incessant meowing. We did spend a good number of hours together this morning both in and out of bed. She also crawled under the covers when I got out of bed. She loves to do that to get warm and hide. I took a shower and all bets were off, she was in the bathroom screaming at me.

The weather is turning nice here and that only means that spring and summer are on the way. Back to paying to have the grass cut, cleaning the damn gutters, painting the trim on the garage and all of that jazz. I also need to call a tree trimmer but I have managed to stack away some money and am not terribly anxious to part with it. I am proud of my efforts and also the small amount of interest that I am earning that helps fuel the savings fire.

I went out today and had a nice meal. Steak Tips, baked potato (with butter & sour cream), salad (with honey mustard) and a cup of vegetable soup. Washed it all down with a nice Diet Dr. Pepper. It wasn’t a cheap meal but something that I have been wanting for a few weeks now. I am not a fan of steak, but these were very good. I do love the tube steak though!

I am beyond frustrated with what to watch on TV. I found a series on Netflix called Buried by the Barnard’s. It’s about a family who runs a funeral home in Memphis TN. It’s very entertaining. They do talk about death but looking past that just the drama & comedy the family generated is what roped me in. It’s not like a funeral home I am used to here – all first class, charging outrageous prices. They are ‘country-ass’ folks but there isn’t anything wrong with that. They also have an outstanding burial package and are the first in their area to have a drive-in viewing, which is especially useful during this pandemic. I binged watched the series started on Friday and finished up Saturday morning. I am ½ way through the movie 50/50 on Hulu. I’ve seen it before but it’s been a while. It’s about a young guy who is played by Joseph Gordon Levitt who has this chronic back ache and goes to the doctor to learn he has cancer. Seth Rogan is in it as well but I am not really a fan of his work. Anyway, the survival chances are 50/50, hence the name of the movie. If you need to shake up your world and get a dose of reality, this movie will do it and provide a laugh or two along the way.

Here's the pity party for one, otherwise known as me and my mental health. Honestly, I am not doing so well in this area. I have a strong desire to write my own obituary and an even stronger desire to check out. However, as has long been the case my cat is what is keeping me from doing anything drastic. I am tired of being alone, I realize that if I check out, it’s a permanent solution to a temporary problem. The problem doesn’t seem to be temporary to me, it’s been 8 long years, add to that the pandemic and viola serious depression. Of course, there is also the weight gain from being at home and mostly sedentary. I lose some weight then have a week (like this past week) where I want cake and wind up packing the pounds back on. I am more than overdue for some serious joy and a vacation. I won’t leave Gator for anything but when she checks out, I will either be planning a nice get away – perhaps a gay cruise or it will push me over the edge and I too will check out. Sure, I may be feeling sorry for myself but it just seems like I really don’t matter to anyone and part of that is from the serious lack of friends that I have. I suppose socialization and making some new friends may help turn things around. That is kind of off the table until the pandemic is over.

Last night (Saturday) I watched a movie called Movie 43. It was funny and a parody movie that had multiple scenes. There were a couple of good laughs mixed in there. Saw this via Starz. If your looking for a laugh might want to check this out.

I struggled falling asleep and was up until a little after 1a. That of course upset the Gator and she told me more than once it was time for bed. Thankfully she slept for a good portion of the time I was up but as we got closer to 1a she woke and was not happy to find me still awake. Just like her mother, she was bossing me around. I gave in and she came to join me in bed but only for a little bit, not even long enough for me to fall asleep. To add insult to injury she woke me at 3a to let me know she was hungry. I fed her and went back to bed.

Oddly enough my Alexa woke me up this morning because the white noise I use was cutting out. Then Gator started chirping and there was no sense in trying to sleep even though it was only 7a. I struggled with it but finally got up at 7:30a. I fed the Gator and played on my phone for a bit. I decided last night that I would hit up Denny’s for breakfast. It would be a change from Cracker Barrel. There aren’t a lot of choices for sit down places for breakfast here. Fast food breakfast, choices are limitless but I’m not a huge fan of the FF breakfast.

Denny’s was crowded but they made room for me. I got a drink right away but it took forever to get my order and I was almost at the point of leaving. I got the Cinnamon Pancake Breakfast. The eggs didn’t have cheese in them. The salt was really noticeable in the sausage and hash browns. The pancakes were good but didn’t exactly look like the photo and I didn’t get cream cheese icing to put on the pancakes they came with maple syrup, which I am allergic to so I just ate them as they were served with Whip Cream. Not what I would call an ideal breakfast. Service was crappy because they were running on next to nothing for people and customers were everywhere. I’ve never had this happen, but I went to pay the bill and a waitress stopped up to open up the register long enough to get me to the point where I swiped my card. She took off and I had to wait for the receipt to print and I had to tear it off of the printer myself because she was busy cleaning tables. Fuck this, I won’t be going back no matter how boring Cracker Barrel is, there service is way better, not to mention so is the food!

My stomach on edge I managed to make it through the grocery store. I really wasn’t much in the mood to buy anything but I bumbled my way through the store and managed to get enough to eat for the week without breaking the bank at the same time. I some how managed to get around this lady who took a bath in perfume and you could smell her 1 isle over, we crossed paths several times. It was nice smelling at first but eventually I was overwhelmed. I thought my saving grace was getting to see the cute bagger boy, but when I jumped in line, I realized it was someone who looked similar but wasn’t him. Shucks!

Made it back home, put away the groceries. Fed the Gator again. We sat on the couch until she got bored with me and went off to my room. She saw me come downstairs and now she is crying her eyes out because she is lonely and wants me to come back upstairs. Sorry but that won’t work right now. I need an escape from upstairs and her as well, I spend the bulk of my time up there and down here is my sanctuary. Plus, I am finishing up laundry.

There is a whole host of things that I would like to accomplish today but reality is that I will put them off as I have been. I will likely work in a nap and then clean the house and call it a day. Store made Lasagna is for dinner. I got the largest and most expensive piece. Then I will have to decide on desert. It will either be Spumoni or Lemon Cake. There’s a technology podcast I watch on Sunday’s and then we move into The Circus and Shameless. Followed by Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. An overall good night for TV but the rest of the week is a struggle. There is a movie that I believe releases next week on Apple TV called Cherry with Tom Holland and I am really looking forward to seeing that.

I’ve got a report to work on for work today and a different report that I will work on tomorrow. I just hate reports, especially the ones with charts and graphs. They look pretty but they are a bitch for me. I know enough in Excel to be dangerous and have messed things up a time or two, but you learn from your mistakes. Outside of that I am hoping for a quiet week but not necessarily a terribly boring week. I like to get in my lunch naps with Gator. It’s about 15 to 30 minutes and we both just collapse in bed side by side. Whoever wakes up first wakes up the other one and then we grab lunch. There is just something special about our routines that I enjoy. Were both going to be lost if we make it to the point where the world goes back to normal and I am required to show up in person at the office each day. For now, I just savor and enjoy the good parts.

A day of rest to be super depressed, nap, eat and recharge. Then I am good for a few days before the walls start to close in on me again. It’s a vicious cycle and it feels like each week I come a little closer to imploding or exploding.

Thanks for reading my blather such as it is. If anything, you may have gotten some decent recommendations for movies or TV, so it’s not a total loss! I hope that your warm, well and safe. Chime in if you desire and let me know how things are going in your neck of the woods. Talk with you peeps again soon!

Demonic Orgasm

This week was way better than last week, from an electronic perspective. From a work perspective it was a much worse week. Plenty of people coming and going, little to no notice and lots of work for me. Hey it passes the time but I will admit I miss nap time a bit. Gator was also a bit upset because we have a schedule and she told me a few times this week it was time for a nap but I couldn’t go because of work. She wasn’t terribly happy but we both survived.

I’ve been watching ads on Twitter for a female vibrator called Magic Motion it is a Wearable Intelligent Massager. It drives the guys wild, there seems to be a beeping tone that is common in the videos and their asses shake wildly, as if they are having a demonic orgasm. It looks enjoyable and fearful at the same time. If you click on a link that is in the ad, they will offer you a special price but claim that it retails for $129. I found it on Amazon for $65. The toy has a pink tail that hangs out a little bit, which is the control tip. The intriguing feature is that it’s remotely controlled by an app on your phone, you can give access to a partner and the partner doesn’t have to be near you. From what I read on Amazon you don’t have to have the app, so I suppose that is where the control tip comes in to play. Your partner can be across town or across the world. You wear it and when they feel the need, they can turn it on. You can also chat in the app. I get the appeal and it sounds HOT. However, I’d like to see someone fully clothed in a professional setting when this thing went off to see if they lose their minds just as bad. I mean how do you compose yourself to talk with your boss, co-workers or even a customer. Sounds like something that would be quite entertaining but if you didn’t know what was up their ass, you’d probably think they were having a seizure and call for help. I’d like to find out if the orgasmic experience is for real but I don’t know that I will part with the money to find out.

I got the results of my testosterone test and found that my levels are normal, which is kind of reassuring. I did alter the schedule of my antidepressants and that has cleared up my sexual issues. I think that it’s all situational, especially since I have been cooped up for almost a year and my depression is now made up of more than being lonely/single.

Speaking of guys and sex. Have you seen Nolan Gould? He is best known for playing Luke on Modern Family. Holy cow, he has an outstanding body. Take a look for yourself. He’s on the right side of the screen.  I’ve always had a crush on him since he was in his late teen years. I know he’s straight but I can’t help who I am attracted to.

I watched Tom & Jerry on HBOMax on Friday. I’ve always enjoyed them and to have them in a movie was really great. It was also nice that Colin Jost was in the film. It was a great way to help close out the week.

Friday night, I took a muscle relaxer because my shoulders and upper back were really bothering me. I added a mild sedative to it and wow, it did a number on me. I was out of commission for all day on Saturday. I just wanted to sleep. I had very strange dreams and just enjoyed spending time in bed both with and without Gator. I was awake towards the afternoon and took my normal sleeping pills on Saturday night.

Today (Sunday) I woke up early at 7a which is a normal day. I opted to get out of bed, feed Gator and dress up as if I was going into the office. Thankfully my pants still fit me. I went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast. Dropped off a letter and grabbed the mail. Then came home. I worked on the computer a bit to pay bills and catch up on porn. Then left to hit up the pet food store, then to the grocery store and finally back home for the day. I didn’t feel terribly great when I got home. I was hot and my stomach was bothering me. I think it was after effects from spending the bulk of a day in bed. I put the grocery’s away and I remembered everything on the list. Got undressed and spent time relaxing in my room. After a bit I went downstairs and started on laundry. Then logged on to work and got lost in fighting with a computer and running my report. Finally came upstairs because Gator was crying. I have spent time with her and had supper. That’s when I realized I didn’t put together a post. So here I am sitting on the couch typing this out. I won’t publish it until tomorrow, provided I have time.

I need a shower and have some TV to enjoy. Plus getting ready for tomorrow. I will be on-call next week and managed to peek outside looks like there is a full moon or at least from my view point. That just means it’s probably going to be a wild and crazy week, which isn’t exactly something I need. It is at least warmer and our snow & sub-zero temperatures are gone. I think we will be heading into spring time in a few weeks.

I hope that you had a great week and that life is treating you well. Stay safe, be well and we will talk again soon. Take care!