that game was quite possibly the *best* thing about elementary school, despite never having enough time to ever get to oregon. someday, baby, i'll get there.

now i'm going to buy some oxen, which i will probably lose when i ford the river. and, yes, i'll ford the river, 'cause i'm fearless.  

:D 

did i mention that the kat is going to be working with me? i don't think so. well, he is. aside from being able to spend lots of time with him, would you like to know what i'm looking forward to? hehe ... i'm looking forward to the first time that cow i work with goes up to him with some bitchy request and then seeing the look on her face when she gets his "fuck you-ish" response. ha! it's going to be great. 

i'm almost done module 4 (of 6) for my broker's license course. finally. 

that is all.

bah.

so, i started up a meetup.com group for polyamorists. our first get together is in two weeks and i'm quite surprised at the interest in the group. i guess all someone needed to do was set a date.  :P   so far, 14 people have rsvp'd "yes" and another 6 said "maybe." heh - i'm surprised a lot lately. 

i'm also spending too much time on facebook. 

speaking of meetups, i went to the pagan get together yesterday. the woman i bitched about yesterday wasn't there. *thank the gods.* there were a bunch of new people though - it was a nice group. *and* i have my registration forms for panfest ready to go   :)  yay!

finally. we will have weekends and evenings together. actually, we'll have all day together. we can take vacation together. we can carpool. he's going to be sick of me!  :P

so panfest is coming up again. they emailed me the registration form, so i'll have to send them money. one thing i definitely want to do is get one of those raised beds. i get *unbelievably* cold at night, so i'm hoping this helps. maybe i'll get some sleep this year. (provided we don't have Angry Dad and his passel of kids living next to us all weekend. 

 ... why they didn't get one of the cabins is beyond me. setting up a tent at midnight with 3 screaming, whining children (all under the age of 7, i'd guess) and then screeching at them is stupid.  

i have a busy weekend. i need to figure out a restaurant which provides vegan-y goodness within walking distance of hotel mac.  :\   whatever. i'll probably end up eating a bowl of mixed greens since so few restaurants give a damn about vegetarian food.

and vegetarian food need not be coated in cheese and fluids squeezed out of animals to create a satisfying meal. (bleh) 

today, i'm supposed to meet those pagans i haven't seen in months. presumably, there will be a lot of chatter about panfest and panfaire. hopefully, i don't have to talk to that woman who figured i wasn't a 'real' pagan for being a non-theist. wtf. "zomg! a real pagan, you say? that sounds an awful lot like something a person brainwashed by organized religion would say." bite me, fluffy bunny. 

ahem. you likely don't know her, she might be a very nice lady and i'm *obviously* in a bad mood, so i'll shut up. 

i need more coffee. tah tah. 

i suppose my lack of interest is due, in part, to the fact that things seem to be going relatively well. that bout of depression of the last part of ought-six is over. blessedly. i'm sure the kat agrees.  *sigh*  i'd probably be more even on some kind of poison medication, but i can't bring myself to go through that again. i'd rather feel sad for no reason than dead inside  :D  it's not like i'm going to off myself. 

emma is a chicken-shit. 

anyhoo...

it snowed yesterday and someone has eaten my triscuits. they were the *only* vegan snack in the office and they were mine. mine! (the next box goes in my desk.) the skiff of snow that fell yesterday made the highway icy overnight and ama had a travel advisory that was last updated around 5:30 am today. 

two employees decided it was scary and they didn't want to come in. one emailed me to say that her dad told her not to go in. (wtf?) guess who's not getting paid for today?  :D  the roads were *dry* this morning. 

they seem to have some crazy idea that the edmonton labour shortage applies to clerical jobs - not true. by the way, that other one who was giving me so many problems has been a paradigm of kindness. she's even here more often and *doing her job!* hallelujah.

what else?

so, i met this girl and i like her. we've gone out a few times and i met her friends on sunday at a dinner party she hosted. i don't know. so far, i have no definite, pigeon-hole-ish way of describing things - maybe we're friends. i think the kat likes her. oh, this poly thing ... 

she's in a band. i saw her do some songs at an open mic night and she's actually quite good. how cool is that? *plus* she can carry on a conversation! that's sexy. she does, however, call me emma. and, as some of you may know, i normally go by a Given, rather than a Taken name in Real Life. it's not that she doesn't know the Given Name, but i understand there's some anger attached to the Given Name. i guess i don't care... it's quirky. 

not that there's anything wrong with that.

jebus - is rae reading this? um ... yeah. don't tell mom. the last time i came out as anything to mom, it didn't go so well. i think she thinks that when i dated a guy, it meant i was over my "bi phase." ahh, memories:

"Jesus Christ! You haven't told anyone HAVE YOU? I would know if you were 'that way' and you're not! What in God's name is wrong with you?!" 

i guess that's a better reaction than a lot of people get, but still. i shouldn't have expected an enlightened response from that one. 

...

i watched the transformers movie last night. so awesome.

it's almost 5 pm. no more crazies can come at me 'cause i'm not answering my phone. :)

tina - email me sometime. your emma misses you. we can discuss parepin. 

i suppose there were really two dates and there's certainly more hope for the second. who doesn't love jabbering about a raid or some snazzy new drop to someone who's eyes don't gloss over? 

i've been busy with work again. i found a new employee who started this morning. she seems to be a solid person: emotionally mature, evolved sense of self-awareness, etc. in other words, a rarity. gods, i hope this works out. 

as for the Other One who wriggled onto my shit list a couple of weeks ago, she's making some effort to be less of an ass. i'm waiting for certain other things to fall into place and, so far, the universe isn't being a jerk about my plans. patient, patient...

do not cry havoc, where you should but hunt with modest warrant ... and all that good stuff.

if she knew what was good for her, she would have kept me angry and upset. now, i'm just angry.  :) 

but, today, dear reader, i think i got what i need to get rid of her. not in the mob sense, sadly, but maybe enough to fire her   :D   or at least enough to put her sorry behind on probation and *then* fire her. 

ha    ha    ha    prepare for your comeuppance! 

if only you could see the look of glee on my face. *ahem* 

i'm dizzy with anticipation. plans are underway. the universe seems poised to hand me the sweetest, juciest bit of revenge. and, if you know anything about the universe, you know that revenge like this only comes along a few times in the average human life span. i've only seen it once before. 

by the way, universe, if you pull this away from me i'll shake my fist at you. 

...threaten you with the wrath of doom, if you will.

oh - i have a date this weekend.   :)   details to follow. 

now i feel vaguely, um, bad. i shouldn't relish this moment as much as i do. (and i really, really do.)

benjamin was born on feb 16 at 7:47 am and weighed in at 6 pounds, 14 ounces. he and bean are doing great  :D

so that's been the highlight of my week. i had my wisdom teeth pulled the day before he was born, so i was a little loopy and puffy. meh - it was still fun. 

i've also managed to yank out one set of stitches with my toothbrush (ow ow ow). i'll be happy to have a normal mouth again. 

i'm also looking forward to not-soft food. and rice ... gods, do i ever want to eat rice again! 

must get back to work ... 

the kat and i got a ps3 yesterday ... it's pretty, but i'm not sure i need to spend more time in front of a screen. of course, sonic is oh, so much fun. 

my parents are back from their cruise (thank the gods). i was taking so many calls from people who assume we share a telepathic link. i'm not so gifted. virtually every question could have waited until their return, but, no, we live in an on-demand world. people can be so tedious. 

i just went through every archive box at the office. we're getting everything put into offsite storage. i'm amazed at how no one seemed to believe me when i said, "it's important to list the contents and dates on each boz." unbelievable. i wore out my poor little sharpie. and, now i'm covered in dust. ick. 

one of my -ees has been particularly irritable lately. really irritable. she has a doctor's appointment this week to see what's up. i (selfishly) hope she's not pregnant. i don't want to look for a short term replacement  :\  

*looks to the heavens* please, universe, no more interviews! i grow weary of training new -ees. 

i am so ready for a nap. 

bleh. so, being the master procrastinator that i am, i managed to ignore a broken tooth long enough that it became a problem. i had a root canal on monday. people say root canals rarely live up to their reputation, but i was unlucky enough to experience one of the bad ones. my dentist called it a "hot tooth." unpleasant stuff. my jaw is killing me. 

i guess i should get my wisdom teeth out now that i've found a dentist i like. *sad* 

any thoughts on extractions, guys? i'm a little anxious about this. the dentist says i can do either local or general anesthesia (the g.a. costs about $400 extra) and i'm not sure which way is best. 

holy smokes! bean just messaged me saying she has mini-contractions happening! i'm getting a nephew soon!  :D

my computer is possessed by an evil demon. it's restarted twice this morning! i'm trying to blog (i.e. shirk off work)  :\  i have to have some time to myself before that awful auditor comes in. (such a bastard.) he seems to come in on fridays only. i'm not sure why, but it sure helps me appreciate saturday that much more. ah crud - i shouldn't have written about him. i just heard him announce his presence downstairs...

i've spent far too much money on ebay lately ... but i sure have some pretty things to wear now  :)  mr. kat, if you're reading this, let's go out this weekend. i still need to find some cute shoes. 

anyway, i must get back to work. 

happy groundhog day!

but i'm sure i can learn the job. anyone can get a real estate license."

"why haven't you called me? what do you mean you don't have my resume?! i'm not arguing with you and i'm not trying to be pushy, but i need this job for my family!"

"i've been a condo owner for a while, so i would know how to be a condo property manager."

"that was a strange interview! *guffaw* you didn't even ask about my greatest weakness!"

"but i have a degree... why would my pay be at the bottom of the salary range?"

"i seen (sic) your ad in the paper."

sometimes i hate the hiring process or, rather, the people who read the job description but fail to comprehend things like ... 3 to 5 years of direct experience is required. i've heard it all these past couple of weeks.

here are emma's 6 super-special tips for job hunters:

  1. 'direct experience is required' means 'direct experience is required.' if you don't have it, i may recommend a different position. or not.

  2. don't call me 6 times a day and demand to know why i haven't called you. desperation, anger and impatience aren't attractive qualities. the first few crazy calls are exactly why i'm not calling you. ever.

  3. your status as a consumer of the service we provide doesn't mean you know anything about delivering the service. i drive a car, but i'm not qualified to be a mechanic. i'm barely qualified to change my own oil and wouldn't dream of doing it. that's what the kat and mr. lube are for. see super-special tip #1.

  4. don't tell me i'm strange. i'd like to hire someone with an "appropriate comment" filter between the brain and mouth. i suppose i could do a normal (i.e. bad, useless, asinine) interview and recite a series of questions out of a book like the random h.r. halfwits you've encountered previously: tell me about your special skills...what interests you most about our company...where do you see yourself in 5 years. blah. it's a conversation, not an interrogation - you talk, i talk, we learn about each other. anyway, i'll know your greatest weakness within 20 minutes and you won't be forced to lie to me.

  5. i don't care that you have a degree in basket weaving or classical lit. if you're completely inexperienced, you only qualify for an entry level position because someone has to train you and we have to like you enough to want to pay for training time. ka-ching. by the way, i'll want to know why can't you get a job in your field.

  6. i'm not really a grammar hound (behold! my stupid blog), but if you say, "i seen something," you're immediately disqualified. you won't be opening your bibliophobic, trailer park mouth around my clients. geh ... so painful.

...

i actually posted a bit at the end of january. interested?