Day Three Hundred and Sixty Five: One Good Year

Just shy of 92,000 words, over 170 pages long, this is the end of my blog.

As I wrote this blog, I kept a quote at the bottom of the page that particularly struck me as I was writing. I found it in an article that I don’t even remember reading. It was something about music or dinner or something. (I read so much.) Anyways, it’s been sitting with me for a while now so I figure I will share it with you:

“Humankind, in Yiddish terms, can be divided, more or less, into two distinct classes: shlimazels and shlemiels. Very loosely translated, shlemiels knock things off tables and onto the laps of shlimazels.”

Not what you were expecting, is it?

Well, this year of blogging has become about a lot for me. It’s been about being a better person, about loving myself and those around me, about identifying the things I can and cannot change. It’s been about the constant war within my own body and the constant battle against the world of injustice. It’s been about puppies and roommates and boyfriends.

But mostly it’s been about shlimazels and shlemiels. And about turning myself and the things I do from shlimazel to shlemiel. I talk about the shlimazels I have met (I’m talking to you, Weasel . And the ass from the other night.) And about the shlemiels I’ve met as well (like the guy helping the grandmother across the street.) And about thinking when my actions could be possibly knocking things off tables and into the laps of others.

This year, human kind has had to deal with a lot of shit (pardon my French) being knocked into our laps. We’ve watched some pretty epic shlimazels do some pretty horrible things. We’ve seen bombs going off at sporting events, children killed in their classrooms, guilty men get away with murder, typhoons, earthquakes and hurricanes. We watched several countries lose themselves to war, death, famine and chaos.

That’s a lot of stuff on our laps.

And it’s opened a lot of wounds. We’re more paranoid, more distrusting and angrier that we’ve ever been. We point our fingers and blame Obama, MTV, Miley Cyrus, religion, science and the NSA for senselessness which is, as it has always been, simply senseless. And we’ve opened a lot of doors. Every year more states allow gay marriage, gun control laws are getting stricter, we are examining ourselves and our values as a country and as a people in a way that they had never been examined.

At the end of the day, we have to ask ourselves: are we a shlimazel or a shlemiel? Is what we are doing right now for the betterment of ourselves and our world? Or are we just pushing things off tables and into the laps of better people?

Earlier in this blog, I made a call to arms. I asked everyone to make this next year their One Good Year. This has been my One Good Year. I’ve learned way more about myself and my life than I would have ever learned passively. And I have left it out there, in the world of internets, for everyone else to see. Now I’m upping the call, to my friends, and to myself. I no longer want to settle for One Good Year.

Now I’m demanding One Good Life.

So, as my last Challenge to my Readers, I’m asking for this: Go out there. Do what good you can. Help where you can. Love and trust in yourself above everyone else. Never apologize for who you are, what you believe, the things you like or the people you love. Never, ever give up on your dreams. Rescue a dog or a cat. Rescue a person. Be a shlemiel and stand up to the shlimazels. Have One Good Year, live One Good Life.

Make One Good World. 

Day Three Hundred and Sixty Four: Family Matters

If you remember, one of the reason that I started this blog is because of my family.

My overbearing mother and my cancer-grumpy father being the two greatest perpetrators, although my crazy Texan relatives might also be a good thing to mention. Anyway, if you remember my relationship with my mother was particularly strained. Moving out seemed to help that a lot. For one thing, she doesn’t see me nearly as often, so she has fewer chances to make passive aggressive comments about my looks/weight/health/relationships. I haven’t been called fat in nearly a year!

We have lunch almost every week because she works really close to where I live. I like these days because we have a chance to hang out and be mom/daughter, but if I start to sense her crazy coming, I use my dog as an excuse to get home. Works every time.

My father, on the other hand, remains an enigma. He’s been borderline depressed since the cancer diagnosis, even though he’s been cancer free for six months now. He has zero energy to do anything unless I bring my dog over. Then he’s all about going to the dog park and the pet store and playing with Ecco in the backyard. Don’t get me wrong, I love that my dog can give my father some comfort, but I hate that my father refuses to spend time with his family. It’s hard to see my dad, who is my hero, so depressed and tired all the time. Nothing I do to cheer him up or make him do things seems to work. So, there’s that.

My brother, for anyone who cares, is still an asshole living at home. Every time I feel down on myself, I just think “Gee, I’m better than Nate.” It’s sad but true. Moving out means he has fewer chances to bully me and just generally behave like a loser around people I love. Yay for that. But, don’t tell him I said that because he still watches Ecco for me from time to time. I like the free babysitting.

So, end of the line is this: Moving out has greatly improved my relationship with my family. My mother doesn’t get to demean me every day (Only Tuesdays and Thursdays now.) My father’s depression is out of my hands and being away from home means that I am not constantly exhausting myself trying to fix a problem that I can’t fix. But I love him still. Moving out is also one giant step that my brother has not yet taken, which makes me feel pretty good about myself.

All in all, I love my family and will spend the next lifetime alternately bitching about them and blessing them. Because I’m Irish and that’s what we do.

Challenge to my Readers:

Family is forever. Distance makes the heart grow fonder. The greater the distance, the fonder the heart.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty Three: Quitting the Internet

So I’m quitting the internet.

This is Taylor’s fault really. He introduced me to all my favorite sites. Especially that pesky Reddit. Nothing against Reddit or anything, I’ve just noticed a distinct decline in my writing since I became aware of its existence. I’m also addicted to reading the news and checking every five minutes to see if it’s changed. It hasn’t. And celebrity gossip an sites that bitch about terrible customers.

So, I’m trying to be more productive. Especially now that I’m really investing myself in writing. Also I have a new job that requires me to be up at like five in the morning every day, so avoiding the internet laden trap of emotions, I will probably sleep better, work better and do better.

Like everything I’ll have my cheat days. Also facebook, which I only spend about ten seconds on a day (I never was one of those people who could spend hours on facebook) and I use to talk to family. So, yeah. I think I’m going to do a new blog, but it’s just for me and to rant about stuff, so don’t expect to read it unless you stumble across it randomly. But for the most part, I want to quit the internet for a while, just to take a breather and cut back on how much I use.

If anything really big happens in internet world, please let me know. I’m sure I’ll pause my life long enough to blink at you in confusion before I return to my books.

Challenge to my Readers:

Even good things that you love can get in the way. Take a step back and see what you can cut out and what you can add in. You never know where you might be wasting time.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty Two: Moving Forward

Last year I promised myself that 2013 would be my year.

Okay, so I’m not universally famous. I’m not even relatively well known at all. But it has been a big year for me.

I finished my grant at work. I got promoted to manager. I got an apartment with my boyfriend and best friend.

I got a new job. I got an interview with a school. I started working for a guy on his thesis, completely out of my comfort zone.

I’m happier and healthier than I have been in a very long time.

I have a puppy who is well trained, loving and perfect in every way. I have a roommate and a boyfriend who are similarly well trained.

So far it’s been a good year. It’s been a year of moving forward, making mistakes and making progress.

That’s all I could hope for.

Challenge to my Readers:

 Keep moving forward.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty One: Almost Done

I am so close to being done with this blog that it is a little ridiculous.

Seriously, I have like four more blogs left and I’m finished. Can you believe it? I can’t. It feels like I have been doing this thing a lot longer than I actually have been. It’s been a little rough, especially the timeliness thing. It’s hard to remember to blog every day. It’s especially hard to remember to be motivated to do it every day.

But I’m glad I did it. I really am. A far cry from being a good introduction to blogging for me, it’s also a really good opportunity to keep a record of my life for one year. Maybe someday I’ll do another year blog. That might be fun. Who knows what will happen.

Challenge to my Readers:

Set goals, stick to them and see the fruit that they bear. You never know what might happen.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty: Writer

I mention this a lot, but I am a writer.

Last night I went and hung out with a few friends. Most of them got pretty drunk and I surround myself with the kind of people who get very complimentary when drunk. One of my friends started telling me that I am an amazing writer. And it felt really good.

I’m very secretive and nervous about my writing, so the fact that I put it out into the world is a big deal for me. To hear someone, especially someone I know as a fellow writer who I respect so much tell me it’s good….well it feels good.

Writing has been my life since I was a child, so to finally see everything coming together means a lot to me. This blog has been particularly cathartic considering that prior to this I never blogged before. This is all very new and wonderful to me. I’m happy that my writing is finally starting to go somewhere. Who knows, maybe one day you’ll see me on the best sellers list.

Maybe.

Challenge to my Readers:

Believe in your dreams and they will come true.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Nine: Sexy

I am damn sexy.

I think I’ve done this one before, but I was reminded of it the other night.

It’s hard to feel sexy when your body hates itself. It doesn’t help that I am sick right now, so the runny nose and cracked lips is decidedly unsexy. Lucky for me, I have a boyfriend who sees me as beautiful and sexy regardless of how I see myself. And he makes it his job to constantly remind me of how amazing I am and after a while I can’t help but start to believe it.

So I am loving and embracing my sexy self. I’m not going to go all Miley Cyrus and start wearing clothing that is more revealing than covering. But I do get to carry  myself with this newfound confidence in myself.

All thanks to Taylor.

Challenge to my Readers:

Be sexy. Whether you do it for a significant other or for yourself, be your own kind of sexy. Write the rule book and do what makes you feel good.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Eight: Feisty

I called out a customer on his rudeness the other night.

Maybe it’s because I’m pretty much done with this job or maybe it was because he caught me in a bad mood, but when I did it I didn’t even care.

This asshole comes swaggering in with his ‘I am secretly looking at your boobs while ordering’ game and starts his thing. I get his ice cream and go to ring him up. He makes a comment about how his cone, which has three freaking scoops in it, is a little small compared to when a coworker of mine made it for him. I give him the usual “well this is our proper scoops size” shpeal…and he keeps pressing. I finally snap and say “I’ve worked here the longest, so that was their mistake, not mine. Have a nice life.”

And he pulled the most annoying comment out of his ass ever  “Aww, c’mon, I was just joking…”

You realize that unless I laugh at you, it wasn’t a joke. It might have been an attempt at a joke, but it wasn’t a joke. And you’re still a jerk, regardless. So I say “You try working in retail and dealing with people’s attitude and see how it feels.”

“I didn’t have an attitude, I was joking!”

I didn’t say “F*ck you” but I think my eyes did. He kept hanging around doing the apologize-not-really-apologizing dance where he tries to get me to admit that I’m wrong when he is clearly wrong. And then he starts asking me personal details about my life. How long have I worked here? Do I go to school? How old am I?

By this time I’ve had enough of this asshole. So I just start ignoring him until he leaves.

I don’t know where people get off being rude and creepy. But I’m glad it was me and not one of my little coworkers who might not be able to tell him to ‘f*ck off.’

Challenge to my Readers:

There is a line in the sand and as soon as people cross it, you should let them know or they’ll walk all over you.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Seven: Skilled

I am mighty skilled.

But I have this really obscure skill that most people don’t have anymore. It’s called “find a phone number for a random person without using a phone book.” Mostly because phone books don’t exist anymore, which is a pain the ass when you need the number for a person who can’t be googled.

The other night I had to find my friend’s mom’s phone number to get in contact with him. Using every number I knew was even associated with him, we managed to track down his mom’s number in a matter of minutes. This skill was acquired from having a sister who ran away several times growing up.

Sometimes these small skills mean nothing, but you would be surprised at how useful they can be in the moment.

Challenge to my Readers:

Never take a skill, no matter how trivial, for granted. You never know when it will come in handy.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Six: Challenged

I have recently been challenged.

Okay, so it’s not that big of a deal. But if I get like thirty dollars in tips tonight, I get to have popcorn at the movies tomorrow.

Oh sweet popcorn, how I have missed you. See, I haven’t had popcorn since I was diagnosed with Crohn’s. Apparently that shit is really bad for you; go figure. I mean, you’re just eating seeds that have been super heated until they explode. No biggie, right? Whatever.

The really sweet thing is the reason I have to fight to eat it. My boyfriend, Taylor, is forever looking out for me. Even when it is really annoying for both of us, he sticks to his guns. Thus the thirty dollars in tips in order to get some popcorn. It’s the middle of winter right now, so it’s probably not going to happen and we both know that. But it is really sweet; both that he is willing to let me cheat and that he fights so hard to keep me healthy.

I love you Taylor.

Challenge to my Readers:

When loved ones challenge you, rise to the challenge and do everything in your power to respect them and they goals they want for you.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Five: Good Samaritan (Part 2)

Okay, the second nice thing I’ve done this week.

Today Tony and I were out walking Ecco. While we walked him, I spotted a wallet lying in the grass. Despite the fact that Tony and I secretly terrible people, we decided to do the nice thing and return it.

There was no address or phone number in it for us to work with, but there was a tax statement from somewhere he worked. We looked up the address and got the name of the restaurant. Then we called them and gave them my number so he could call me.

About twenty minutes later he called. Turns out that he works at the pub across the street from my work. So Tony and I walked it over and gave his coworker the wallet and explained how we got it there so we didn’t seem like creepers.

If you had asked me a month ago if I would return a wallet full of money to its proper owner, I might have hesitated. But in the end I did the right thing.

Challenge to my Readers:

Do the right thing, even if it seems hard.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Four: Good Samaritan (Part 1)

So far this week I’ve been a very nice person.

The other night while I was out walking Ecco, I heard something in the leaves. When I went to check it out, I found a cell phone. I tried to answer it, but the battery was so low that even though I could hear them, they couldn’t hear me. 

So I took it home and charged it for a while. Then I sent a text message to the number that called me telling them that I would leave it for them in my office. The next morning Taylor took it down to the office and left it there. As far as I know, they picked it up and got it back.

Because I’m a nice person like that.

Challenge to my Readers:

Be good. Return the things you find. You never know how much someone might need them.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Three: NaNo

I’m doing NaNoWriMo again.

You would think that after seven years (yeah, you read that right) I would be bored of this writing thing. Especially during November when it hits an all time high of productivity. This is the season when all your writer friends are locked in Starbucks across the country trying to finish their 50,000 words before the thirty first.

So I recommend that anyone who has friends who are writers should leave them in peace and let them get their work done. Even though it doesn’t mean anything to you, it does mean something really important to us.

Challenge to my Readers:

Even if you’re not a writer, dedicate this month to trying something new. Work hard at something you’ve never tried before and give it your all.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty Two: Paperwork

I did all the paperwork.

I have to do this orientation thing for substitute teaching. I had to wake up super early to go to it. So like a good girl, I did all my paperwork the night before instead of waiting until I get there. And low and behold when I got there (early because I was smart and left early in case of traffic) a lot of the people there were finishing up their paperwork.

So I feel proud of myself for doing everything early and not leaving it until the last minute.

Challenge to my Readers:

When you need to get something done, do it early in case something goes wrong.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty One: Kicking Ass

Okay, I’m sick.

I hate being sick. Despite the fact that I’ve been vaccinated for just about every disease on the planet, I still get the common cold. Especially since I’ve been living with two germ ridden roommates and a sick puppy who still needs to be walked in the cold every few hours.

The problem with getting sick is that I’m not supposed to take my medicine when I’m sick because it lowers my already dangerously low immune system. But luckily I caught it early enough that I’ll be better by the time my medication comes around.

Hopefully.

Challenge to my Readers:

Even when you’re sick, don’t let it get you down. Keep working hard even when it seems like worth more to give up.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty: (Puking)Puppy Parent

So Ecco is sick.

Poor baby. I had a very unseemly habit of panicking like crazy when my baby isn’t feeling well. Luckily I have Taylor to take care of me while I’m taking care of Ecco. Poor Ecco was puking from having something yucky in his tummy. I took him to the vet who gave him some special food and we got him some pills to make his tummy better.

I spent the rest of the day cuddling him and making sure he was okay. He is, after all, my baby boy and I will always take care of him.

Challenge to my Readers:

Don’t get a dog unless you can pay for the vet bills. 

Day Three Hundred and Forty Nine: Caretaker

It’s that time of year again.

That time of year when everyone I know is getting sick. Sick, sick, sick. Madison is sick, Taylor is sick. Hell, my dog was sick. But that is a story for another day. The main thing to remember is that everyone is getting sick around me.

I have been vaccinated against every ailment known to mankind at this point. The fun thing about Crohn’s is that it puts you on a very special list. This list tells every pharmacy in existence that they need to give you all the shots. Most people get a flu shot. Maybe. If they feel like it. I however get them all: Measles, mumps, rubella, yellow fever and everything else.

So yeah, my roommates and my coworkers and even my dog are all sick. But I am doing my best not to get sick. I pretty much guarantee that I will get sick someday soon, but for now I’m staving it off. Besides, it’s my time to take care of Madison and Taylor.

Challenge to my Readers:

Get your shots. Vaccinate your kids.

Day Three Hundred and Forty Eight: Keeping Promises

When I make a promise I keep it.

At least I try to. There are some promises that can’t be kept no matter how hard you try. Those ones are the worst. And it might take a long time for my promise to come through, especially if it’s a promise for something vague like promising to get lunch sometime.

But I do my best. Recently someone broke a promise to me and it made me a little pissed off. But I let it go because technically it was a promise we made years ago so I don’t really even expect them to remember it. But it reminded me that keeping my promises are important.

Challenge to my Readers:

Keep your promises. They are part of who you are.

Day Three Hundred and Forty Seven: Halloween

Woot, my favorite holiday!

Well, one of. St. Patrick’s Day and Christmas are pretty high on the list too. But Halloween is the best. The candy, the costumes, the trick or treaters. I’m proud to say that this year I am going as a Slytherin from Hogwarts. It have been really easy to turn this into a sexy school girl costume, but I have the class to go for realism. I look like an actual British schoolgirl, tights and all.

Plus, I’m Head Girl, so you all can suck it if you don’t like it.

Challenge to my Readers:

Sexy is fine unless it’s trashy. Then it’s just trashy.

Day Three Hundred and Forty Six: New Book

My new book is official at midnight tonight.

Why have I written four blogs about my new book? Um, because it’s very important to me and because I am so incredibly happy to have finally published it.

Do I really think this book will be a best seller? No. Is it good enough? Yeah. I just don’t have the marketing team to make it super publicized. Who knows, maybe it will pick up steam now that the sequel is out. Hunger Games didn’t hit the best seller list until Catching Fire came out. True story.

Now all I have to do is wait.

Challenge to my Readers:

Hard work and dedication are things that can’t be bought or taught. Practice makes perfect.

Day Three Hundred and Forty Five: Steadfast

So I’ve been editing.

You all know that editing is my least favorite part of writing. I can’t wait until I have my own editor and I don’t have to worry about that crap. I’m excited to tell you that I have finished the novel. It comes out on Halloween, cover and all.

Be excited.

Challenge to my Readers:

Even things that you hate can be good for you.

Day Three Hundred and Forty Four: JOB!

I got the job.

Hell to the yes. I got the job. My one new year resolution about getting a new job this year has finally come true. I can’t believe it. I’m going to be a substitute teacher. Sure, it’s not a formal reaching position, but it is a real start.

I’m so excited. I’m mostly excited to quit my current job (sorry guys.) I just need something new.

Challenge to my Readers:

Do your best and reap the rewards.

Day Three Hundred and Forty Three: Teaching

I never thought I would be good at Adult Education.

I’ve been teaching John grammar and punctuation for about two weeks now. I’m working really hard on it. It’s been very interesting work so far. Apparently he thinks I’m really good at teaching it, which makes me happy. His intern/grad student was less than pleased because he thinks I’m too young to be any help, but John disagrees.

Hopefully I’ll be some use to him in the final product. That would be cool to put on a resume.

Challenge to my Readers:

Don’t let haters get you down. If you’re good and you know you’re good, have the confidence you need to keep working.

Day Three Hundred and Forty Two: Writing

So, I’m still doing the writing thing. My new book comes out on Halloween. Which is so awesome. I’m so excited for it. It’s the sequel to my last book. It’s been a whole year, a whole year, since my first one. Can you believe it?

Here’s to dreams coming true.

Challenge to my Readers:

Work hard for what you love. It all pays off in the end.

Day Three Hundred and Forty One: Interview

I had another interview today.

Awesome, right. Well, at seven in the morning (meaning I was up at six) and driving through traffic to get to Thornton, it was less than awesome. Also less than awesome was the fact that it was less of an interview and more of a meet and greet.

Well, at least I got a human being. Which is cool I guess. Here’s hoping.

Challenge to my Readers:

Early mornings are worth it in the end. It all pays off.

Day Three Hundred and Forty: Under Control

So, my owner, who left for a week with me in charge at the shop, came back.

She thought I did a really good job of keeping the shop together. She only had one question: Why had no one emptied the trashcan out front?

Wasps nest. I’m allergic.

Sometimes keeping control means letting go of the things you can’t control. I’m not paid enough to empty a trash full of those little buggers and I know it. So I left it.

Challenge to my Readers:

Some things are out of your hands. Just let them go.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Nine: PARTY!

On top of being a good party planner, I am an excellent hostess.

My roommates and I threw our party and it was amazing. All our friends showed up in costume (impressive since we’re all disillusioned twenty somethings.) We watched little videos, the first part of A Very Potter Musical and just generally hung out. Slytherin beat Gryffindor in the House Cup, but we lost to Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Oh well. Third isn’t bad as long as Gryffindor is in last place.

We had a blast, ate a ton of sweets (special thanks to Lindsay and Victoria for the yummies.) Over all it was a great party. We even got everything cleaned up before the next day.

Challenge to my Readers:

You don’t need crappy music and overly sexualized dancing to have a good time. Sometimes you just need friends, Cards Against Humanity and some butterbeer.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Eight: Party Planner

I am a great party planner.

I have probably already mentioned this considering that I’m helping a friend with a wedding. But my roommates and I decided to have a Harry Potter Themed Halloween party. We went all out on the decorations. Pinterest would be jealous. It looks awesome!

Challenge to my Readers:

Go all out. Do everything 100% and never regret it for even a moment.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Seven: Can Do

I am appreciative of the things I can do.

Recently I’ve been seeing a lot of crap on my facebook feed about people who regret not doing XYZ when they were younger. I get it, I have regrets too. I would have been in Paris on a Fencing scholarship if I had taken it when I was fourteen. But I also would have never met the love of my life, or my amazing friends.

So I’m taking a moment to appreciate the things I can do: I can sing opera, I can dance, I can write, I read faster than most people think, I always get the parking spot furthest away but God graced with two good legs. I work hard for what I have, I have three degrees, speak four languages and I can do my own makeup without looking like a raccoon (thanks to Madison.)

The list goes on and on. I love the idea of learning new gifts and talents, but I don’t look back at that scholarship letter and think about what I missed. I think about what I gained by turning it down.

Challenge to my Readers:

Keep everything in perspective. The past is the past, done and over. Keep going.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Six: Jobs

I had an interview a few weeks ago.

Actually it was a month ago. And the weird thing was, I got the job. Well, I was offered the job. See, the job had been drastically misrepresented to me. First they said they were looking for a fulltime position. Then at the interview they told me it was actually part time, on call.

Then when they called, a month after the interview, they said they were really only looking for someone to work about two days a week. Short shifts. So like…six hours a week.

Yeah, that will pay the bills.

I had to turn them down, but it sure felt good to be offered the job.

Challenge to my Readers:

Keep looking, your dream job is out there.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Five: Good Friend (Again)

Remember my rant about a certain person who I now know for sure does not read my blog.

She knows who she is.

Even though I’m still mad at her about her poor behavior and her actions as a friend, I still love her. I mean, she may be a princess, but she’s my princess. Anyway, she’s been going through a rough time. Things are pretty hard on her right now; she’s in a city she doesn’t love at a school where she isn’t really close to anyone. All her friends live out here. Having lived abroad for three months, I know what it’s like to look at your Facebook feed and see all your friends back home having fun and wonder why you aren’t included.

I’ve been trying to help her out. I put aside the bullshit she dragged me and my roommate through before leaving and I’ve been talking to her a lot about jobs and life and friends. I do love her, she’s an amazing person. I guess I just have to keep being a good friend.

Challenge to my Readers:

Be a good friend, even to people who don’t deserve it. They need it the most.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Four: Attitude

I try my best to be upbeat about everything.

It can be really hard to keep a positive attitude when the whole world seems to be trying to drag you down. I’ve been called retarded (bad word) at least six times by customers in the last month. I’ve been verbally abused and forgotten by my employers, who don’t seem to care how well I do. My parents are still on me about everything even though I don’t live with them.

But I want to succeed and do well, so I just keep trying. I keep pushing forward.

Challenge to my Readers:

Keep your attitude positive and you’ll be surprised by the results.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Three: Resistant

I have resisted my urge to react violently and have instead settled for deep breathing.

I’ve probably complained before about Delivery Douche. They are without a doubt the most poorly run delivery company I have ever encountered, so of course they’re the one my shop has a deal with.

I would love to say that ninety percent of the time they’re fine and it’s the few and far between ones that bother me, but honestly it’s the opposite. Ninety percent of the time they are ridiculously unprofessional, dirty, smelly, high or drunk when they come into my shop. They have cursed at my employees in front of families and children, dropped/stolen product and been generally rude. I’m not happy with them, have expressed my unhappiness repeatedly, and thus they are not happy with me.

I haven’t had to deal with them in a few weeks so I’ve been hoping they dropped us from their site. Nope. They called me requesting a cake outside our 24 hour limit. I worked with them to get them a suitable alternative, but I could tell they weren’t happy that I didn’t bend over backwards for them. The new girl manning the phone is understandably tense; she called me seven times in a row, one right after another trying to reach me while I had customers in the shop. When I told her to just leave a message, she informed me it was against company policy. I get it, but it’s damn annoying to have a phone ringing constantly while I’m trying to help someone.

The driver they sent me today wasn’t wearing his uniform, so both a customer and I mistook him for a homeless person. He smelled like it. Plus his hands were so dirty he left smears on my counter. I’m all for giving people a job when they really need one, but if they can’t even shower before going to work, maybe they need to consider working somewhere without people.

Anyway, I haven’t punched anyone a DD yet, so that’s good. I supposed I can file them under minor inconvenience, but damn to they drive me nuts.

Challenge to my Readers:

Some things can’t be helped. Some things can. Do what you can to survive, because everyone else is going to make it damn hard on you.

Day Three Hundred and Thirty Two: Good Patient

I’ve spoken before about being a good little soldier who actually takes her meds, but today I was reminded that I’m a good little patient.

See, I saw my doctor about six months ago. I called about two months ago to make a check in appointment, because he said that I should. When I called, the receptionist sounded surprised; apparently they usually have to track people down for those appointments.

Then when I showed up twenty minutes early they gave me paperwork to fill out. Not only did I not fight them about the paperwork (the receptionist looked exceedingly relieved) but because I was early, I was able to finish the paper work and they were able to enter it into the computer before I saw my doctor. The result meant that I spent my visit actually talking about my concerns with my very friendly nurse and my doctor had the chance to go over everything I wanted to talk about without wasting time asking the same questions over and over.

They were also surprised when I knew the side effects of my medications. Apparently no one reads those little pamphlets either.

I am a good little patient. I try to be.

Challenge to my Readers:

Next time you have a doctor’s appointment, help them help you. Show up early, don’t complain, be patient. 

Day Three Hundred and Thirty One: Blogger Day

Today is Blog Action Day!

Every year different bloggers from all over the world post about a theme. This year’s theme is Human Rights!

This is my first year participating (first year as a blogger) and I didn’t want to just write something. So I used my limited artistic skills and my writing skills combined to make a kind of word art. The text comes from an essay I wrote a few years ago for a class. My professor told me it was his favorite part:

Challenge to my Readers:

Today is Blog Action Day! No better time to take action, no better day to start a blog!

Day Three Hundred and Thirty: Responsible (again)

You have probably read that I am responsible. Or that I at least think I am responsible. Well, I am. And to prove it, my owner has left me in charge of the whole shop for a week.

Wait, what?

Yeah, basically while she’s on vacation, I get to do…well, what I do every day anyway. See, I am so responsible about this damn shop that she actually didn’t need to leave me any instructions for it while she was away. Aside from a few reminders about specific things and a few notes about making change, it was pretty much the exact same as every other week.

So, yeah, my level of responsibility is been-there-done-that.

Cool.

Challenge to my Readers:

Be responsible and hopefully you’ll get rewarded….maybe. 

Day Three Hundred and Twenty Nine: Blame

We spend too much time trying to find blame.

Okay, so if you’ve been living under a rock, you might not have noticed the epic government shut down that has been going on for the last…two weeks. Yeah, two weeks of a non active government. Awesome. If anyone else in the world just decided to not do their freaking job for two weeks, you can bet their ass would be fired. Not in our country…they don’t even lose pay.

Don’t worry future readers (as in readers reading about this in the future.) This is actually the third government shut down in my lifetime. Actually, that might be more cause to worry. Anyway, this is the first government shutdown that has the added peanut gallery that is social media.

See, before, when shit like this happened, we only had the facts and the information provided to us by standard and tradition media, like newspapers and television. Which is not to say the internet didn’t exist the last time this happened, but it wasn’t as prolific as it is today. So this time, with the government shutdown (which supposedly will end today? Tomorrow?) we also get every freaking idiot on the internet’s personal opinion on the matter.

What?

If I wanted to listen to a bunch of illiterate, idiotic drabble about things they don’t understand, I would have gone to congress itself! The last two weeks has been a barrage of facebook and twitter updates about “Lol, stupid government” and “Obama sucks” and “Right wing nutbags” (My father got a facebook, did you see?) I’m all for people expressing their opinions, but I feel like we spend too much time looking for blame instead of solution.

I know a person posting on facebook can’t actually help change the government. Not realistically. And I know that the issue is definitively more complicated than it appears and that we may feel we are not in the position to fix the issue since, you know, we’re not those assholes in Congress. But, there are things we CAN do!

The government shut down meant that a lot of programs got cut. Things like Food Stamps and WIC, Veteran’s benefits and some unemployment and disability funds. That means that everyone around you is potentially going through a lot more than usual. Maybe you can’t recognize them, maybe you can’t see them as obviously, but they’re there.

So, until the shutdown is over and until the world is back to normal, maybe help out a little. Contact a local food bank and ask what foods they’re short on (hint, rice and beans. Nobody wants twenty freaking cans of mushrooms.) If you know a veteran in the area, offer to help around their house, mow their lawn or drive them to a doctor’s appointment. If you see someone struggling at the grocery store, maybe offer to help pay for some of it. For god’s sake, just buy some schmuck a cup of coffee at Starbucks.

Long story short, stop looking for someone to blame, someone to complain about and contribute. Fifteen, twenty years down the line, when someone asks what you did during the Government Hissy Fit of 2013, wouldn’t it be better to say “well, I donated some rice and beans to the ACC” than to say “Yeah, I totally complained about that shit on facebook!”

Challenge to my Readers:

I already issued the challenge in this post, go ahead and read it again.

Day Three hundred and Twenty Eight: Movie Trailers

I am the queen of movie trailers.

I love movie trailers. I think of them as short films in themselves. My favorite part of going to a movie is the previews at the beginning. I like to kow what is coming out, when and what I can expect from each movie.

My boyfriend probably gets annoyed at me because every other day I’ve got a new trailer for an upcoming film to show him. A lot of them are wonderful and indie, which he’s not really into. Many of them are foreign. A lot of them never end up in theaters near us. Which sucks, because limited release is just so…limiting.

So, if you want to know what looks good and what to look forward to, I’m your girl.

Challenge to my Readers:

Go to Hulu, go to their selection of movie trailers. Watch a few that look interesting.

Day Three Hundred and Twenty Seven: Comics

I’m a comic book kid.

I’ve mentioned this several times before. My geekdom really knows no bounds. However, I have recently been re-reading one of my favorite graphic novel series and it has rekindled my love of the genre.

A lot of people discount graphic novels as literature because they are comprised mostly of pictures. And true, the majority of graphic novels like Archie and Justice League are not necessarily what one might consider deep literature. But reading is reading. Whether you pick up a comic book or a graphic novel or even Japanese Manga, reading is what is important.

So, all time favorite graphic novel? Hell Boy. Yeah, best comic ever, hands down, don’t even argue.

A giant demon monkey with a stone fist who fights evil, smokes cigars and makes wise cracks? How do you even get better than that? His arch enemy is Rasputin. Rasputin! So awesome. Plus, he’s played by Ron Perlman in the movies.

So if you get the chance to spend a few hours in a bookstore reading, maybe a layover in an airport, check out Mike Mignola’s Hellboy. Don’t buy it unless you have like, a hundred bucks to blow, because graphic novels are freaking expensive.

Challenge to my Readers:

All literature is worthwhile. You can find something to enjoy in every genre.

Day Three Hundred and Twenty Six: YA

I love young adult novels.

Aside from a few writing excursions, I mostly write young adult novels as well. I started writing for my younger cousin because she liked those kinds of books, but wanted better stories. I’ve stuck with it ever since. It’s fun for me, okay?

I also love to read young adult novels. I’m weird like that. I spent a lot of time reading incredibly dense and boring education based books and law books in order to prepare as a teacher. As an English major I had to read all those dry and empty classics that Barnes and Nobel reprinted to make all pretty. Sometimes, I want a book to read that requires almost no brain function because I’ve just been using my own brain way, way too much.

My favorite has always been Cassandra Clare’s novels. But all-time favorite goes to Harry Potter,  which will no doubt go down in history as my generations greatest gift to the world.

You’re welcome.

Challenge to my Readers:

You know, sometimes it’s nice to know what’s going on with kids-these-days. Pick up one of their books and find out.