May you all have quite the merry holiday season!
Right now, me and Yara are chillin’ at Dad’s, enjoying some quality time with him and Keith and Dolly . . . and Keith’s new Wii. Later, we’ll all be headed off to my grandparents’ for more holiday frivolity with the rest of the family. And by all accounts my cousins are super excited about this because I’ve made plans to spend the weekend there, too.
Yesterday I attempted to get some Christmas shopping done, but was thwarted by several things. First, for some reason, my debit card was declined at Macy’s and while en route to an ATM to check on my bank account Yara had a rather messy episode. It’s not the first time I’ve dealt with the effects of EPI in a public setting, but I’d thought those days were long passed. Anyway, after I cleaned up the mess as best I could — since all the holiday shoppers milling about starring at me were oh-so-very helpful — I practically ran out of the mall and headed home.
Yara’s continued to be sick from both ends and this morning I finally called my father and grandmother to let them know I wouldn’t be coming to Dad’s party or the Candleight Evening at the Farmers’ Museum. I was very much looking forward to going with everyone, but even if Yara doesn’t get sick I’ll spend the whole afternoon/evening monitoring her and it would hardly be fun.
Instead, I’m finishing up my holiday cards while finally catching up on The Vampire Diaries. Given my personal issues with book/TV/etc. transitions and my somewhat indifferent feelings towards the book series, I’ve been avoiding watching the show for a variety of uncharacteristic reasons. I guess it’s because they were the first books in the paranormal genre that I’d ever read and while they have many flaws and issues they remain quite dear to my heart.
Anyway, I’m pleasantly surprised that I actually like the show. It has some moments that confuse me to no end — generally where the mythology is totally left field from the books — but the show is surprisingly not horrible. I’m still vastly amused that all the actors look so very much like they are not teenagers (which, of course, they aren’t). But usually I find that even when a part is cast with an actor not of that specific age, they could almost pass for it anyway. Not so much here, but whatever. One of the strangest things for me, though, is that Elena is so very much not the Elena from the books. I’m not exactly bothered by it in the sense that it’s a bad change — because I really loathe the self-centered “ice queen” from the beginning of the books — but it’s hard to really relate the two as the same because they have totally different reactions to the story. I’m actually rather pleased that the show isn’t following the books as closely as say True Blood (which has taken the exact plot from two separate books and then mutilated them to pieces) but it’s likewise with the Elena character it’s sometimes hard to see the similarities.
All in all, so far I’d say the show is actually better than the books . . . which I’m pretty sure I’ve never said EVER before about a transition. But I withhold final judgment until I’ve seen all of the season — and possibly until the final two books have been published. The books have, in my opinion, gone down with each addition to the original trilogy. (Nightfall was HORRIBLE!)
After nearly 21 months (and several Code visits) building management fulfilled their promise to glaze my bathroom. The good is that the tub and sink look spectacular! The bad is that not only did they not glaze the entire bathroom or fix any of the broken/cracked/missing tiles, but they still haven’t replaced the toilet. Also, the work done pretty much has left me unable to stay in my apartment until Sunday because of the horrific smell from the glaze and the need for it to “set” for 48 hours — meaning I can’t actually use the bathroom. (Well, I can use the broken toilet.) Still anything is an improvement over this, right? Bit over four months before I am free of this shithole apartment. I’m trying not to count the days, but I doubt that will last much passed the new year.
In other news, I plan to spend today acquiring presents for that fast approaching wintertime gift-giving holiday. How I’ve managed to basically not buy anything yet is beyond me. Also, I still have more holiday cards to send out.
Thing 1: Holiday cards should go out tomorrow, if not today. I’ve been working on them very slowly, which brings me to . . .
Thing 2: I had a stroke of brilliance for my potential thank you cards. Initially, I’d hoped to get them done when I had the holiday photos taken, but as I mentioned before there were some extenuating circumstances at the portrait studio that led to me not getting nearly the variety of shots I’d need for that. Which, you know, is a huge hardship for all of us because there is truly a shortage of adorable Yara photos and it is so very hard to rope Jean into taking yet more of them. (Or not.) So yes, be prepared for extra cuteness if you so happen to provide Yara and/or I with something worthy of thanks. ;)
Thing 3: I’m so entirely busy lately, and am appalled at the close proximity of Christmas because I have only just barely begun my holiday shopping. And by barely, I mean, not at all. The few gifts I do have in my possession — and have subsequently wrapped in festive paper — were not initially holiday gifts but rather things I picked up with said persons in mind . . . and then just never got around to gifting them with said thing. I’m truly pathetic. But I feel confident I can rectify this. Especially because of . . .
Thing 4: Building management informed me that today and Friday they will (finally) be working on my bathroom! This means that I am somewhat kicked out of my residence as (1.) the work will take two days and the glaze has to “sit” for 48 hours after it has been completed, and (2.) it smells really awful. As such, I plan to be avoiding home as much as possible, which means I have little excuse not to get to some stores and buy things to wrap in said festive paper.
Thing 5: Luckily, I’d already been planning to be away for the weekend visiting with Dad, Keith and Dolly. This Sunday we’re going to be at The Farmers’ Museum for their annual “Candlight Evening” which is always quite a treat and quite Christmas-y, especially since it almost always snores more out towards my father and that makes any holiday event feel more jolly. So, I’m rather excited for that.
Thing 6: (Or all the stuff that isn’t specifically holiday related, but very much worthy of mention.) Yara is thankfully back on Viokase for good now. After all my reading and reading and reading Goodreads tells me I have 105 more books in my to read shelf and in the last week I’ve received two separate packages that I’m pretty sure contain book presents which will add to this. (Need I mention yet again my own book-buying disease?) I’m now on my 47th consecutive day of writing (something) daily, well probably more than that, but I wasn’t really counting before. Yesterday, I found three separate Civil Service tests that I qualify to take that would, if a job ever materialized from them, be a rather substantial salary hike for me. *squee!*
Yesterday I stayed home from work since the dog was under the weather and it turns out that Code Enforcement had another inspection scheduled. I found this very odd because the last time I talked to them they said they wouldn’t be returning until more work had been completed and nothing has been done since the last visit they made.
Anyway, this was yet a third person who was making the inspection and he barely said three words to me. The super led him around a bit and showed him the bit of work he’d done in the hall and my bedroom. I was a bit irked that the investigator didn’t really bother to look closely at the wall in my room that is still visibily cracked, but didn’t say anything until the super brought him into the bathroom and tried to pawn off most of the work that hasn’t been done in their as unnecessary. He made some excuse that the glazing hasn’t been done because the person is in the hospital (for the last month?) and then tried to say that the toilet wasn’t nearly as bad as the initial investigator had alleged, stating the cracks aren’t even all the way through. Oh really?
After that he was all set to leave and I stopped them short with questions about the work in the kitchen. I showed the investigator what a shoddy job had been done to rectify the issues in the kitchen, noting the obvious water stains bleeding through the new paint. The super made some excuse that he’d not done all the work needed because, and I quote, “the chemicals and [I have] a dog.” Excuse me? One, obviously Yara is never in the apartment alone so how on Earth is that an issue. But two, even if she were just a pet, the management would have only to tell me that they had work to be done in here and to either remove her or have her crated or something. Of course, they never have even alerted me to when they’re in the apartment. I find out work has been done when I come home, since this super at least leaves a note on the door. (The last super never did.)
I was absolutely furious at all of this. I still am. I don’t really know what to think, the investigator who came admitted he was filling in for someone and “didn’t have the whole story” so I don’t know what to think of his reaction to all this. I talked with Code again after they left and was told that the next step would be a court appearance since the management had asked for an extension and still not completed the work.
I just don’t know. My father says they should put me up in a hotel, but I think there’s little chance of that kind of gracious behavior.
|
