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.

Friday night fun, Saturday evening mellow....

Last night was a blast!
I got out of work early, and headed down to Albuquerque to go to the Gaelic Storm concert at the Zoo. Managed to find my way there, and did a 'park & ride' shuttle bus from the Botanical Garden parking lot. Lots easier than trying to park at the zoo! The lines were huge, but I finally got my ticket and headed in.
The bandshell is nice, and all the seating is lawn-style; bring chairs and blankets. I found a space over by the dance floor, naturally! Got myself a Guinness and a bite to eat, and settled in...for about five minutes. Lots of dancing going on, and I ended up joining in with a group of folks. We got talking, and they turned out to be some of the local pagan community! Now I'm even more glad that I got to go to the concert. We exchanged info, and now I have a connection that I'd been hoping to make. Yay!
After a great show, I treated myself to a snack at the Frontier Restaurant on Central Ave. Awesome place, good food, open 24/7. If I lived in Abq, I think I'd be hanging out there a lot!
Finally got home about 12:30 a.m. and started winding down. Had a lot to think about, including the workings of the universe in my meeting these particular pagans at this particular time. Those who know me best will understand, or at least know to ask me about that privately. :-D

So today, Saturday, I pried myself out of bed with Michael Longcor's song "I Can't Party as Hearty as I Partied when I Partied at 21" running thru my mind... Got up, went into town. Deposited/cashed my FIRST PAYCHECK! It's only a week's worth, but a very nice amount to me. I'm still trying to be economical of course, but it's nice to be making a decent wage at last. It shouldn't take long for me to save up enough to get into a nice place of my own with room for guests :-)
Worked all day, got a lot done, I think. Flutes this week. Bleah. They are so time-consuming! At least now I have the supplies I need to do them. And I should have a bunch of tools that I need coming in this week, too. I've been making do, and I did manage to get some tools at the jewelry supply store, but there are some things I really can't find substitutes for.
Tonight's supper is courtesy of the SF Baking Co. again. A veggieburger and a bowl of tomato cheddar soup. Good stuff.
I'll probably head home soon and curl up with a good book. I got some good ones at the library this week, including one on Mercury retrograde, one on Witchcraft in the Southwest (historical accounts!), a few mysteries and one on Native American lore.

Tomorrow is the 1st, so I'll try to call Matt and see if he wants to join me on a run up to the Mountain Home. I'm off work Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday! Wednesday's the 4th, of course, and I'm gonna try to go to the Pancakes on the Plaza event. There's a car show, too, and other activities. Should be fun!

Right now I'm feeling a bit mellow and melancholy. Nothing major, but I sure do miss being able to talk to all my friends more often. With the 2 hour time difference, it's even hard to make phone calls! By the time I get off of work at 6 here, it's already 8 in Indiana. Oh, well. At least there's email! (That's a hint, y'all!)
Off I go. More when I get a chance!