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So first of, I want to thank everyone who answered my pole. I will get to responding to the comments, just not sure when. See on Tuesday my mom went into the emergency room because it looked like she was having a stroke. She could barely talk, and she couldn't move one side of her body. So the doctors did the doctor thing, scanned her brain and determined she definitely has never had a stoke and doesn't have a brain tumor either. Which is good news, except that this is the second time she's had an episode that looks like a stroke or a seizure or something. So right now she can't drive, so my dad and I have taken turns taking her to all sorts of medical appointments. The doctors say she hasn't had any seizures either. And I guess it's all good news so far, I mean it's nice to know your mom doesn't have a brain tumor, but it's really frustrating not knowing what's wrong with her. The current theory is maybe it's her heart, and my mom's heart is sort of a medical mystery. Last year they discovered a hole in her heart that should have killed her as a kid. When they went into fix it, they found they couldn't, because she also has an extra valve in her heart, something else that should have killed her as a kid, but it seems the two conditions cancel each other out. In fact last year they ran a stress test on her heart and said that her heart was functioning better than that of most women her age. So on Wednesday she goes in to have an EKG on her heart, and we're kind of hoping they'll find something, because it's really stressful not knowing what's wrong, and if and when she'll have another episode.

Still it's good to know there's no brain tumor.

On the other hand the stress may force me into escapism through writing fic. We can only hope ;)

So life's been a bit crazy. I've been working more hours at work, which is good, although it's been super stressful lately. That's because the other guy who does the same thing as me has been in Spain for the last month, so I've had to do all the work, plus trying to help out the Genius' because they can't seem to get fully staffed to save their lives. Just when it looked like we were about to catch up, one of them decided to retire. Actually that's probably going to be good for me. I might get his job. I interviewed for it today, and I think there's only one other person up for the job (the guy who was in Spain). So that's pretty good odds. Actually, they are considering me for another position as well, which would also end up being a promotion, but not as fun a job. So if I don't get the Genius job I'm guaranteed to get that one.

Other than that, I've been trying to keep up with my one class. It's been hard to focus since the whole debacle with the school canceling my financial aid. The good news is that they no longer say I owe them $7000 only $800, which is a very good thing.

I've also been busy in theatre. I'm playing Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing. It's been fun but I'll be glad when it's over because I'm so worn out with everything else that's been going on. On the other hand, tonight the guy from work I like came to the show. I didn't get to talk to him afterwords, but I figure he'll say something to me next time I see him. I know he's in a Shakespeare class, and I think he had to write a paper on a play he sees or something. Maybe I can slyly offer to talk to him about the play over coffee or something. Of course knowing me I'll become completely incoherent around him. In fact I stumbled over a couple lines tonight, and I can't help but wonder if it wasn't because he was right there in the front row.

Oh, and I've finally gotten around to listening to the Dresden Files. The best part is that I've never been one to sleep in, even if I've wanted to. So on my days off I've taken to playing them right after I've gotten up but before I've gotten out of bed. What can I say, I like lying in bed listening to James ;)

That's all in my busy life for now. I'm hoping that sometime after this weekend, I'll find the time to start writing again.

So I had an incredible day at work yesterday. Basically I really like my job, but I've been wanting to move up, do more tech support and eventually start working at the Genius bar. Well I'd been talking to one of the managers and he was going to move me into a position to assist the Genius' so I could learn more starting next week. However yesterday they suddenly asked me to start shadowing one of the Geniuses at the iPod bar. We've actually been short one Genius for a while since one of our guys moved and transfered to another store, and one of the other Genius' has had his honney moon planned forever and is going in the next month. So it turns out that they are going to accelerate my training some so that I can help cover the shifts that are going to be empty. It's a ton of fun and I'm so excited (even if I did have to handle an iPhone that was dropped in the toilet yesterday). I doubt I'll be an official Genius for a while, probably just helping out with the iPods and iPhones because that's fairly easy, but I'm really looking forward to it.

Oh, and tonight's the Caucus, why don't I live in Iowa so I could join the fun?

So I'm trying very hard to write the next chapter of The Guardian right now, and it's not coming. It's not that I don't know what's going to happen next, or that I can't set the scene right, or I'm not sure how to start, all the usual sorts of writer's blocks I encounter from time to time, I just can't quite seem to focus.

It's not just fic either. I've been suffering from a general ennui that I can't seem to shake. I don't know why either. I love my job, although it's been less fun over the holidays. They hired a ton of seasonal people to help out in the store, and there's so many of us, that it's often hard to find a customer to help out. But still, I can't of another job I'd rather have right now.

And that's the thing, there's nothing wrong in my life. Sure it would be nice if I was dating someone, I've even started looking into online dating. But I don't think that's what's making me feel down. In fact, rather ironically, I'm not really interested in reading or writing smut right now. I'm kind of tending towards the theory that I'm chemically imbalanced somehow. Actually I have a theory that it might be lack of sunlight, not that it hasn't been nice and sunny here in Colorado (even with the snow), but I've gotten lazy and taken to driving to work. I think maybe tomorrow I'll force myself to walk so that I get some sunshine. I've never gotten seasonal depression in Colorado before, but I did have it when I lived in England, so I guess I am susceptible.

Anyway, I am still here, and I'm trying to write, it's just not going as quickly as I wish it would. Hopefully I'll have more soon.

So a lot has been going on of late, the biggest thing being that we got a puppy. Okay, well technically my parents got one, but now that I live in the same state as them I can go play with him anytime I want so he's sort of my puppy too.

He's kind of hard to take a picture of, but once I wore him out, I managed to get this picture:


He's just a wonderful dog, and his name is York. Actually it's kind of like he was destined to be our dog. I went with my mom to the humane society to look at the dogs there, and sure they were all cute and friendly, but when York walked up to us and licked out hands through the kennel we just knew he was the right the dog.

We loved him so much right away that we got him even though we were worried about the fact that he was listed as a border collie mix. We were a little worried that he would be too active a dog, but it turns out he's not. In fact despite his coloring we're a little skeptical about how much border collie is in him. He only hyper when someone first comes home, or if you start paying attention to him and playing with him. The rest of the time he either lies around or he likes to watch the traffic from our upstairs windows. He hasn't tried to herd anything or anyone, and there's no retriever in him at all. When you try to play fetch with him, you're lucky if he even watches the ball for more than a second. He also much prefers to be indoors than outdoors, which is perfect for us.

Like I said, it was like he was meant to be our dog. It turns out that more people want to adopt dogs from the humane society than there are unwanted dogs in our town. So the humane society takes in dogs from other places. About the same time we got York, they got in 38 dogs that had been rescued from a puppy mill in Mississippi. And York isn't a local either. He was a stray picked up in Kansas. The shelter there kept him for a while, but they were so full that they were going to have to put him down. So some of the volunteers there got together some money, adopted him, and brought him here to Colorado and our humane society so that he wouldn't be put down. And then me and mom found him.

Even my dad likes him, and he didn't really want a dog. In fact it was my dad who named him. The second day we had him, both my parents took him on a walk, and during the walk he barked (he's only barked one other time when he was still in the pound). Anyway my dad says that what the dog said when he barked was York, so that became his name.

So that's my big me update for now, although there may be more puppy stories later.

Yeah, I'm kind of worn out, it's been a long week, and the next one is looking kind of long too. On tuesday night my mom went into the hospital because of her appendix. They took it out that night. It all went really smoothly and she was out of the hospital in about 24 hours. Still exhausting. Especially cause I had to take over directing her play for two nights.

And I hate my graduate work. It's not challenging, just tedious.

So, I'm about to start my second graduate class, and I finally get to start studying the stuff I'm interested in, namely computer networks. So the whole reason I started this degree is because I want to learn network administration, so when I was researching the school I was very clear with them about the fact that I am on Mac and I didn't want that to be a problem. They promised me it wasn't, that everything is online, etc. etc. Guess what. I finally got a chance to look at the syllabus for my new class today and it says I have to be running some form of Windows. Grrr. I've e-mailed the professor about that to find out if it's really true, because no where does it list any software we have to have (except to say that we need some sort of word processor). The truth is, I'm not really as interested in the degree as I used to be, but I kind of can't afford to not take any classes (at least for the next month or two) until I have more hours of work. I'm kind of dependent on my GI bill to pay my bills for the next month or so. Of course I also don't want to drop out because what I really want to do is go to graduate school for Anthropology, but I figure dropping out of another graduate program isn't going to increase my odds of getting into an Anthropology program. Sigh, just when I thought I had my life mostly under control again.

Yeah, I know, I could have just ETAd my last post, but this calles for the Snoopy Dance icon, cause that's what I'm pretty much doing. They're having a big training event this weekend, which is why they were trying to do the hiring so quickly, so I start on Saturday. And they do pay durning training so that's good, cause evidently the training is pretty extensive. I'm just so happy, I have a job that I really want, and I get to learn about all the cool toys :)

Well, I made it to Colorado on Wednesday. Actually I was in Colorado Tuesday night, but I was in more the "South Park" area of Colorado rather than my own "Mork and Mindy" home. Anyway, made it safe and sound.

I don't know that I mentioned it much, but my niece got married yesterday, which is why I planned my move when I did. I was one of the bridesmaids and it was fun, although very exhausting. I love my niece to death, (she's more like my kid sister) but we are totally different people, especially when it comes to our ideas of what a good party is. So her reception was perfect for her, but not really my kind of event. Of course it was her party so that made it perfect, but it wore me out.

Hopefully I'll start to have some fic updates soon, but I have to start looking for a job/appartment tomorrow. Of course you go crazy if you spend too much time doing that, so I'll probably have a lot of time to write.

Oh, and I just got from Netflix the first "Kitchen Confidential" DVD. If you have no clue what that is, it's because it's another one of those shows that Fox canceled after about 3 or 4 episodes. But it had Nicholas Brendon in it, plus the male friend from the first season of Alias and it's actually a really great show. What's funny about it, is that although I'm not a Xander shipper of any sort, I could so slash the three main male characters in just about any combination or all at once.

So when you're sad all the time it's called depression. What do you call it when you're angry all the time? That's sort of how I feel right now. Actually it's how I've felt since Tuesday. At first I thought it was just an unusually strong case of PMS, but it won't go away, and all the other uncomfortable symptoms are gone. I think maybe it's LA. Now that I've made up my mind to leave, I just want to be gone. I wish I could just get in my car and drive off today. I think I'm going to go back to doing extra work until I do leave here. I don't really have to like people to do that, and the food is good.