back to normal

This is what the corner of my desk at work looks like. The plant is new. His name is Spartacus. The orb is a salt lamp. And, of course, the coffeemaker is soemthing I can't live without these days.

ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･ﾟﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･ﾟ


I asked my supervisor for a list of my official duties today so I can compare those to what I actually do. I also firmed up the assistant manager's support for contacting HR once I have all the information I need. This weekend, I'll go through our employee handbook and make sure I've done everything by the book, then I'll send the email to the assistant manager, who will forward it to HR, lending it more weight than if I just sent it on my own.

School was good today. I'm not so sure my grades will be fabulous this semester, but they'll get me graduated, which is what matters, righ? Nothing wrong with B's.

It was pretty hot out today, though, and I feel pretty gross. Time for a bath and a book.

up and dowm like a carousel

I took this picture at the Denver Zoo back in April. I wonder how the cubs have grown since. I'll have to go back to the zoo and see, I suppose.


*☆*:;;;:*☆*:;;;:


Today has been puzzling, but wonderful.

I decided not to go to work. Instead I stayed home and researched salary rangers for my job. Now I'm equipped to speak to Human Resources about a pay increase.

Also, while doing my research, I was contacted by two people I haven't talked to in a very long time. One, a former roommate of mine, I haven't talked to in about five or six years. It was good to know she's doing well. The other was a coworker and friend I hadn't heard from in about a year or so. I'm going to try to make plans to have lunch with her sometime so we can catch up.

I would never have made these reconnections if I went to work today, which makes me wonder if, somehow, this isn't how things are supposed to be.

Do you ever get that feeling? That even though you're frustrated and there's a lot of not so good things going on in your life, that that is simply how things are for the moment, but everything's slowly working toward something. That's how I feel today, as if all this frustration with work will smooth out, all my annoyance at school will fade, and, in the end, everything's going to be alright.

It might be blindly optimistic, but that's how I feel right now.

headaches that don't end

This is Harry, my cat. I was fooling around with the different shadings in my photo program and found that I really liked this picture in black and white. You can tell he was a little annoyed that I was taking photos instead of petting him.


*:..｡o○☆ﾟ･:,｡*:..｡o○☆


I've had a headache all day today. Ever since I woke up, my head's been pounding in my skull. I think it might be a combination of allergies and stress.

Mostly stress.

I'm still having issues at work, and there is an issue that's come up with one of my research groups that's bothering me a lot. But work is the main problem right now. Is it so much to ask for a solid description of what I'm responsible for? Management can't even agree as to the definition of what is "tardy" and what isn't.

It's so frustrating! ヾ(▼ﾍ▼；)

And, to top it off, the bath bomb I used the other day didn't smell as nice as I had hoped, and I had to clean my bathroom when I got home today because the smell wasn't gone yet, even though I cleaned the tub right after my bath.

Dear Life, cut me some slack. Love, Ves.

Not so much lost as taking my time of things

Today was a tough day.

Time for bed.

Memories Fading

That trip feels so long ago, not just a month or so. I've already forgotten the feeling of being in another country, relaxing, taking photos of everything and anything. Now everything is hectic again, filled with work and worries and more work.

Still, it's only for a short time, right? I'll get through this hyper-busy time and, in the long run, it will help me on my way to doing fun things again.

I need a little more patience, maybe, and a little more discipline. I also need to be doing my coursework, which is what I'll go do now.

((((((ﾉﾟ⊿ﾟ)ﾉ

Steady feet, unsteady world

This is a dessert I had at the Milky Way Cafe in Ikebukuro. It was...delicious! It was also HUGE! Ice cream, cake, fruit, jelly....so much to eat in one sitting. And the best part? The bottom of the glass let off steam that rolled out of the cup. So pretty. You can't get anything like that in the US.


*☆*:;;;:*☆*:;;;:



As for today....difficult is the best way to describe it. I stayed out very late helping a friend and had to call in to work. I'm only in the office for four hours today, so it won't be too much of a loss, but it still is an inconvenience to my boss, especially since I was supposed to be the opening supervisor for the phone center. Someone's covering for me, though, so it'll be okay.

The events of yesterday made me think very hard about what it means to be a friend to someone - a true friend and not just a casual friend. I'm still thinking about it, really, even though I should get some rest.

Sleepy

Waking up this morning was sooooooooooooo difficult. All I wanted to do was curl up and go back to bed because it was cold in my apartment.

Still, I have to get up and go to work, then go to school.

*yawn* Such a long day ahead....

It's Time!

Finally, after a lot of waiting, it's that time of year again!

My favorite...

My love....

Pumpkin Spice Frappuchino!

Sick Cats and Busy Days

My cat was sick yesterday because it was too hot inside the apartment. It wasn't supposed to be too hot, so I left the windows open and the fan on, but didn't use the air conditioning.

My mistake. (ﾉ_-｡)

He's better now, but I still feel bad for not taking care of him properly. He's old, so I really need to be more attetentive.

Today, I have to meet with my research group to discuss our project. The only problem is...I don't have my article approved. They know about it, though, so hopefully we can work around it.

Also, my kouhai is having his going away party today, but I won't be able to make it because of the research meeting. He'll be traveling for four months...I hope he's going to be okay. He's not...really prepared at all for the trip. And he doesn't really have any plans. No lists of hostels to stay at. Nothing.

I worry that he's going to die on a street somewhere.

I'll keep him in my thoughts, though, and hopefully will see him alive and well in January.

Time for me to get some work done for the meeting!

((((((ﾉﾟ⊿ﾟ)ﾉ

Thinking 'round in circles

There are lots of things I want to write about today, but I won't have time until after work, school, and some research at the library.

First, I want to do my review of Disney's The Little Mermaid musical, now that I've been to three shows - all of them different - and have collected my thoughts on it.

Second, I have some thoughts on being a fan that I'd like to write down - more for myself than anything else - that I'm still thinking over.

I'm pretty tired today, honestly.

I didn't get decent sleep and I had to be up very early. Still, the day is early and I want to be as positive and productive as I can, despite the circumstances.

I've been pretty negative lately, so I'm trying to turn that around.

While working out some of the details for my new story, I started thinking about values I used to have, values I have now.

Wow. Things change quickly, don't they? Especially in regards to how we look at others. Sometimes we don't even notice the changes because they're small, weaving into our worldview bit by bit until everything in transformed.

I need to be more conscious.

So, as I go forward this month, I'm going to be making efforts to remain positive and to think on my words and actions.

It can't hurt, can it?