Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Trying something very new

I have decided to take the plunge, and participate in this year's NaNoWriMo. National Novel Writers Month. The goal is to start on 11/1, and write a novel of 50,000 words or more by midnight on 11/30. The motto is, "no plot? no problem!", and I haven't a clue what to write yet. The main thing is to write, and see where it takes me.
I've written short stories (many NSFW and not to be shared), but never tried to do anything this major. I don't know yet if I'll post it anywhere, and if I do, it'll be after editing. I'm debating whether to do a mystery, fantasy (ok, they all are, but...), or historical novel. I could combine them all, with the way my mind works, and not even be trying to!
I think it's neat that NaNoWriMo is in November. Samhain season! Samhain is a good time to let go of the old and embrace the new. So I'm going to release the fears connected with my creative side, and do something that I wouldn't normally do. Should be interesting, at the very least.
Oh, if you want to know more....www.nanowrimo.org is the main site. You can still sign up till literally the last minute!

Monday, October 29, 2007

A break from Mundania

Ok, if you want to read the full post about my trip to MileHiCon39 this past weekend, just go to http://eiricmacbean.livejournal.com/ I'm too tired to write it twice!
I'm looking for a cheaper place to live and hopefully will have enough money before I lose this place.
Otherwise, life goes on, with work and cats and the usual stuff.
Better post later, after I catch up on sleep!

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

No news is not good news

Well, I'm still waiting on a miracle. Got a nasty note today that the manager had been in with the pest control people and thought I had no litter box for the cats. Bitch. It smells bad because I had to feed them the cheap-ass food and it upset their tummies.
So I looked through the classifieds to try and find another place to live. Biggest obstacles are lack of deposit money, and having the cats.
Saw a great place listed....too bad it's about 1 1/2 hours away, beyond Taos...
My lottery tickets didn't hit, of course. Thought they should have done something!

At this point, I'm going to enjoy my upcoming weekend at MileHiCon, then see about getting a storage place and finding new digs once I get back. I give up. Well, not entirely. But I don't see another solution.
I've got an email out to a friend in my Abq network, asking her to pass it on and see if anyone is in the market for a roomie w/cats for a while. I could manage to commute that far for a short while, till I can save up for another place of my own. I don't want to cancel the cable till the last minute, since that's my internet, too, but if I have to, I will.
It's so hard to get the energy to clean house and take care of things, sometimes. And there's often not time to do a lot, either. Depression sucks.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

Crunch time...and I can't see a way out.

I just got told yesterday that I need to have $750 minimum by Monday or I will probably lose my apartment. I can't catch up fast enough, and I honestly don't know what to do. Even if I gave them my entire paycheck for the next 3 months, it's too slow. I don't want to give up my jobs that I just got. I don't have any friends in town that I can move in with. There's no help agency that can step in, since I am working and it's more money than they have. Getting a new place is not a valid option, because I'd need even more than $750 for a deposit.
At this point, I'm wondering if I should just put what little I have into storage and try my luck in Denver when I go up this next weekend. Yeah, I'm still going. I need this trip more than ever now.
If it weren't for the cats, I'd be able to live in the truck. I can't go to the folks, because Papa is very allergic to cats. And I don't want to put the kitties in a shelter!
I've got nothing of value to sell on eBay, either, so that idea won't fly. Going back to Indiana won't help, there's no future there for me anymore. Working more hours won't help, I can't get paid in time.
I don't expect anyone to bail me out. My family hasn't got money like that, nor do my friends. Just pray for me, or whatever you do to send energy. I just don't know what to do anymore.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Catching up at last!

Sorry to be away for so long, but it couldn't be helped. I'm online and wireless at home again, now, so that helps a lot.
First off, work. I'm doing okay at work, and learning quite a bit. This week I got moved over to formulation, on the production side of the facility. I've been blending extracts, percolating herb to make extracts and formulas, and learning all the procedures that go with that. All the alcohol we use (pharmaceutical grade, 190 proof) has to be carefully logged. Alcohol and water are precisely measured in proportion to the herbs. Percolating is letting the liquid drip very slowly through the herb mix, which has been moistened a bit to make sure it doesn't expand too fast and crack the glass percolator funnel. The funnels are custom blown glass, and very expensive! There's also lots of cleaning to do, and other tasks. I'm not doing much of the packaging or labeling yet, but that's fine by me. I've got enough to learn!
Home Depot is starting to get easier. Mondays are the worst, since I'm really whipped by the end of the day. I wish I didn't have to give up my weekends, but there's no other option right now. I am starting to get better at knowing where things are, what they are, and how they work. I'm in Plumbing, but also have to know Kitchen & Bath, and since Hardware and Electrical are right by us, I end up needing to know a bit of them, too. Whew!!! Being on the floor as an associate is definitely different from being a cashier.

Secondly, fun and social life. I am starting to get a life, y'know! I just got elected "Alternator" for ASFA (Abq. Science Fiction Assn.). Basically, I run the meetings if the Moderator can't make it. That doesn't happen often. Kinda neat, getting elected to something when I wasn't even eligible to vote yet... We also played a neat game at the meeting. It doesn't really have a name yet, but it involved pulling pieces of paper out of a bowl and trying to get people to guess what's on the paper. The papers were names of authors, characters, people, etc. First round, whatever clues you want to give. Second round, two words only for clues. Third round, charades. You use the same answers for each round, so memory helps! It was a lot of fun, even though my team didn't win.
Last night, Wednesday, was the Weird Al Yankovic concert that I had won tickets to. My friend Rozlee, from ASFA, went with me. She's a big Tathata fan, too, and is friends with Dave the harpist. Told ya, it's a small planet out here!! Anyway, we met up for dinner at Turtle Mountain Brewing Co. Very good beer and decent fish 'n' chips. The concert totally rocked, and Al didn't do "Albuquerque" till the sixth encore! The fifth was a song he cooked up about Rio Rancho, which is where the venue actually is. Too funny. Just amazing talent and humor all night long, and we had a blast.
Next on my social agenda is MileHiCon, of course, and I am really looking forward to that for many reasons! I plan to have a very good time. More on that later.
For now, I'll be working as much as possible, trying to catch up and get out of the hole I'm in. I've got two months till Yule, and while I'm not sure how I'm going to get my stuff back out here, I know that I *will* be going back to Indiana for a good visit. Beyond that, I'm not going to worry too much.

Monday, October 15, 2007

Long day, but back online!

Long day, because I worked both jobs today. 17 hour days suck, and I am sore and tired.
Back online, because I finally got fed up and got Comcast internet again while it's on sale.
Gotta get to bed, but I will update more tomorrow. G'night!

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Net's off, sorry

Couldn't pay the bill in time, so the internet's out at my place. Sorry. I'll try to get it back on as soon as I can.

Friday, October 5, 2007

Stressed

The stress has really been getting to me this week. My temper has been short, I've been clumsier than normal, and I've been horribly depressed. I don't think I can blame it all on that time of the month, either. I know it's bad when even the cats get on my last nerve.
Part of it is the financial stress, I know. I got paid this week, but I just can't see how I'm going to be able to get out of this huge hole I'm in. I'm worried that I won't be able to get caught up in a timely fashion. There are too many new and unfamiliar things to work through, and it makes me nervous. I know in my head that it'll work out, but that doesn't make it any easier. I hate not being able to see where I'm going!
I do have my cellphone back on, at least. Internet's okay, too, obviously.
Anyway, I don't want to bring anyone else down, but if you've got any good energy to spare, I could sure use it. The loneliness is the worst part. Even my new friends out here are only casual acquaintances, and none of them are in town. And sometimes, talking on the internet or the phone just isn't enough. Not that I'd turn down an email or the like, especially from a few certain people.
Oh, well, don't worry about me. I'll get through this. I have before. I just don't like it.

Monday, October 1, 2007

Busy week!

Sorry for the delay in updating. I've been trying to work as much as possible, and I've been pretty tired most evenings. I did make it to Abq for the Gofer Pizza Party last Saturday, and that was a nice break from routine.
Work is going fine at the herb factory. This is a busy season, especially with winter coming on. Add in the inventory we had to do on Friday (which had to be checked today - more delays) and we were swamped today! It's more physically demanding than you might think. Sure, we're picking and shipping little bottles of extracts and blends, and bottles of softgels. But they really add up to a fair amount of weight, a few ounces at a time. Plus, I'm reaching, crouching, twisting, lifting and standing for most of the day. Tossing those boxes to the UPS guy is a workout, too.
Home Depot's still not up to speed yet, as I'm doing my web-based training and working on getting a workable schedule.
I'm surprised that I'm still online, as I think my phone's cut off. Cell phone's been out for over a week now. Cable's acting funny, but I'm not sure if it's the bill or the box that's to blame. I hate being in the hole again, but I know I can get out again. Just hope I can do it in time.
Anyway, I'm trying to economize as much as I can. Which means I'll probably cut back the cable to just basic, the A/C's been off for weeks, and the heat's not coming on till I absolutely can't stand it anymore. The mornings are chilly, but not horribly cold yet. I have some warm clothes with me, so I can always put a sweatshirt on.
Other than that, there's not much going on. Hopefully, I'll have better news soon.